Signs That Something is Wrong In Your Aquarium - Don't Ignore These!

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‎ Cory shares a few tell-tale signs that something might be wrong with your aquarium. Find out what might be causing bubbles in the water, hair algae growth, fish that refuse to eat, and more.
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WHO WE ARE
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At Aquarium Co-Op, we focus on your aquariums. We specialize in freshwater tropical fish, aquatic plants, and the overall betterment of the freshwater fish keeping hobby. Our goal is to help you with your first pet fish and graduate you to an advanced aquarium hobbyist. If you'd like to take it to the next level, subscribe to Aquarium Co-Op and check out our weekly videos.
Cory McElroy is employed by Aquarium Co-Op LLC. He also owns Aquarium Co-Op LLC. Therefore, all content is sponsored by Aquarium Co-Op.
#Aquariumcoop #Aquariumfish #Fishtank

[@AquariumCoop]

*What tell-tale signs do you look for to tell you something is wrong with your aquarium?*

[@hannahpieplow8557]

Aquarium Co-op Hi How is Murphy doing

[@ivanscottw]

Full response below but : snails ! If they congregate at the top of the tank : something is wrong - and it's time for a water change !

[@RyanStonedonCanadianGaming]

Smell and usually a dead fish, dying plants.

[@aquapuncture]

The speed of algae growth, fish behavior, and the smell of the tank all tell me how my tank is doing

[@arunmahider]

fish not being aggressive

[@sarahwoodring5587]

I love these "bite -sized" videos from live streams. The streams are my favorite, but they can be overwhelming with so much information. This helps me with the "oh man, he mentioned that in a stream one time, but I don't have time to look it up!"

[@TazawaTanks]

Thanks Sarah. That's the intent. 🙂

[@Belgorr]

I totally agree. It can be hard to find information you need in them huge videos

[@AlexIsModded]

What you say about frozen food is so important for people to realize. Keeping frozen rats for my boa constrictor is how I learned that you absolutely do not unfreeze and refreeze food for exotic animals. That frozen food is frozen because it's dead. The second it thaws, the clock starts ticking and it begins to decay. The longer it is thawed, even just twenty minutes like you mentioned, the more bacteria it can grow.

[@RamRam-oi3qm]

I appreciate these videos as I learn how to be a better fish keeper. One thing I do is sit in front of my aquarium every day, some times many times a day especially if I have a concern, and just observe.

[@Yellowswift3]

Loved the moment when you fed the discus, and they swarmed in on the food. Great video. :)

[@greenbeanie]

Very timely info. Although my water parameters have been good, I noticed the soapy bubbles a while ago and didn't think much of it. I just did a 80% water change and the soapy bubbles are gone. Thanks. 😊

[@terrilynn1771]

Wow the food part is very enlighting… i love seeing your videos ..taught me so much

[@pollywu1956]

I love how these videos are so short and educational!

[@esrilk]

I’ve been having really weird issues with some of my fish lately. It never occurred to me that my food could be the problem. I’ve had the same flakes and pellets for several months now. Just haven’t gone through them. I also usually thaw my frozen food out before feeding with a little syringe.

[@fishypetkeeping]

What a smart way of thinking. I have problems with hair algae in my planted aquarium with co2. I'll definitely look into your tips!

[@Pennysfishkeeping]

Thank you for sharing this knowledge

[@xm1345]

Wow every time I watch these videos I learned something new, so many things I take for granted but never gave it a thought. Thank you!

[@caewalker9276]

Thanks Coopy 💚. I vacuum seal my bulk food into one or 2 months packs.

[@tiger_844]

I seriously love this channel so much. I can't wait to visit the shop some day. I live in oregon!

[@plakat8155]

That tip about fish food was really useful, I've been using the same container for months now and didn't even know it was a problem.

[@mayronsting5627]

Same, but my fish are always active during feeding time

[@legionaquatics]

I love the quick info and all the beautiful b roll from jimmy

[@xxyy1318]

Kind and thoughtful. Thanks for the free education sir!

[@lyndsaymorris4588]

Best information Video I've seen lately 👌

[@MassAquaticx]

Absolutely it happened to me I lost everything all my snails all my fish I also heard the longer bubbles take to pop means more nutrients in water thank you for information I'm starting over again staying positive ❤❤❤

[@arunmahider]

awesome thnx needed the bubbles knowledge

[@begzodismailov6297]

I buy large packs of food. The day I open it, I put 80% of the food in multiple zip lock bags. I usually tripple bag them. Take out new packets as I need. When you take out the food, remember to let it reach room temp before opening the zip lock, or else you will have condensation on the food.

[@drockingfish]

Good info, thanks!

[@cjsmith5115]

Camera work is fantastic! Sometimes it's hard for me to get good shots like these

[@zoee1996xx]

Ohh the bubbles happened to me this week in my small snail tank! 😫 my ammonia, nitrite was off the charts and my nitrate wasn’t great either. Daily water changes now until the perimeters come back to normal unless my new bigger tank is cycled before that happens

[@amandafredette4400]

I had the bubble problem!!! I thought my female bettas were making bubble nests but, I don’t think I ever saw them doing this…thank you!💗

[@dimitrijekrstic7567]

Aren't the male bettas the ones that create the nest?

[@juliavanzant3549]

@@dimitrijekrstic7567yes males are more known to build bubble nests but females can do it as well

[@makjmakjs6146]

@@dimitrijekrstic7567 Yes it's the males, not females.

[@kevinshady4627]

Great information ty

[@colbymiffin939]

Love the video as usual

[@HAIZE419]

I have 10 tanks, I buy the big things of freeze dried krill then I open it and put about a quarter of it in another container that I use for feeding. Thanks for the vid !

[@zoradavinci3]

Love the lid on your aquarium.

[@dylanneff]

Love these old video reboots!

[@randealarid]

What is the best way to remove iron? We are on a well and have a softener. Thanks!

[@dylanmorrison951]

Thanks for the video i found it looking for a surface skimmer for my fluval 15 but i always noticed bubbles where my exit ports for the pump hit the front of the tank right around when i do wster changes. Its been up for 2 weeks imnthinking it might be the amonia like u said ill keep an eye on it but they only start late neer the end of the week.

[@maboleth]

Shout out to that Larry in the corner! We love you and you will feed too. ^_^

[@JJ-ji9xx]

I buy big packs of fish food but i immediately repack them into smaller portions that'll last a week each and put the rest either in the fridge or freezer with silica gel.

[@JLAquaticsLLC]

I spend an hour a day in my fish room! I’m always looking for abnormal behavior during feeding and after water changes! Great video!

[@tylerwestman5258]

😂 I spend more then that because I got 1200gals in my bedroom 😂

[@ralf716]

hats off

[@dragunitytamer28]

Great advise

[@carlwagers9829]

Hey congrats on 850k!

[@sweetpea2888]

@aquarium co-op I have often wished that I could purchase smaller amounts of fish food in a multi pack. Same size as amount now available but in smaller packages so it would be used up faster and not spoil. How about offering smaller size containers of food?

[@uniseine]

1) if fish are not hitting food at the surface, I change water. 2) opening the food lest in moisture, especially if the food is refrigerated. 3)refreezing food causes slow freezing which forms large ice crystals which breaks open all the cells, which leak nutrients before the fish can eat the food.

[@FLOMALS63]

Спасибо за полезную информацию 🙏

[@MZRFaith]

I enjoy a nice porcelain product near my fish tank not in it but near it as a decoration preferably a rooster

[@stanleydoran2584]

I'm not going to lie to you when I watched one of ur videos for the first time I thought, oh here's another guy youtubing his basement fish farm. Skip. But then I didn't lol I watched ur video and many many since and now I find when I absolutely need an answer to a question idk I skip past countless videos till I see ur face then I'm like wow back up there we go I'll get the answer here. That's my way of saying you really do know the business of fish keeping. And you are very talented at it. Thank you for sharing such valuable knowledge. Your advice has personally saved two of my tanks in my fish room in the past thank you

[@josipmatic1912]

I wish a new this ammonia and bubbles correlation before. :( I had bubbles in my aquarium so I think there is something wrong with my filter.. so I cleaned it ... and that made everything 10x worse. Since then I have educated myself and learned about stuff like beneficial bacteria, ammonia, nitrates, nitrites....

[@evocativeswine7170]

I have an air stone. New fish tank it is cycled. .25 ammonia,0 nitrite 20 ppm nitrate. I did a 50% water change added aquarium salts! Then got scared so I did another water change two days later to reduce salt contents. The small ammonia spike is because I just added 2 new fish? But 15 - 20 percent of the top of water is covered in bubbles. Could a lot of prime cause bubbles

[@Mr98Death]

Can I keep pellets in the freezer and take out some at a time to keep them a bit fresher?

[@agnediciuniene9861]

I have one aquarium and I like nano fish. There is no packet of food that I can finish in a month. They could package those flakes or granules in blisters, like medicine.

[@SS3paranormal]

I have 4 nano tanks a large one. and still never get to empty any size container. With us it is cause we feed such a varied diet, so from flake, granules, bug bites, daphinia and bloodworm.

[@juanriverajr5183]

Dang I saw the bubbles 3 weeks ago and my tank crashed . Now I know , I lost some fish and I still can’t get over it

[@carlosjoya1583]

What was the reason your tank crashed?

[@al3xandremagalhaes]

I find it complex to find the sweet spot regarding water surface agitation. Should I have or not air pump in a community tank with Pandas and Betta? This causes some turbulence in the water. If I dont have it, bubbles start appearing which makes me feel I should have air pump.

[@audrameyer9558]

Poor Larry back there in the corner! I have a pair of Leopard Ctenopomas. One is very outgoing, the other is shy. I make sure that "my Larry" gets his share of the food. Sometimes I fake the rest of the fish out by making them think more food is coming in for them with one hand, but I am really only dropping food in the back corner for my shy guy 🤗

[@urbansk8r231]

This video seems familar. .good advice as always.

[@ivanscottw]

My take on this : Ok I just have a couple tanks.. I mainly feed my fish (you guppys, a few tetras, corys and whatnot) flakes and bottom pellets.. So I do buy them in bulk (say 1000ml or 250g cans).. but what I do is when it's time to open the bulk container, I leave it open for a minimum amount of time just enough to get (say a month worth) at a time and fill a smaller container, seal the bulk container back up and put it in the fridge.. This seems to limit spoilage.. and the thing is - if it doesn't smell good - just throw it away ! Oh and another tell tale sign I also notice is the snails (and is one of the reason - not the only reason - I always keep snails - just your regular ramhorns) - when they start reaching to the top - you know something is definitly wrong. Snail are excellent bio indicators ! But the thing is.. man - my fish DO know when it is feeding time.. I turn the light on and they will gather like crazy at the place I usually drop the food.. (Then again I started with 8 guppies in January and now there are more than 250 .. and I went from 10 corys to 60) - and they are feisty - even walking by the tank they are begging for more ! so they are apparently happy with the food I give them !

[@MichaelTranoid]

Three of my fish are well known Snail Hunters. Sooooo....

[@johncameron4194]

Good video

[@wikyWargaming]

Eyyy I take my frozen foods straight from the freezer like you said 😁🐟

[@JasonFolk07]

More fertilizer is better but expect a bloom sometime soon lol I know that all to well took me 2 months to get rid of my algae completely it was covering everything bad. I had many days with no lights on and more to help ahaha what a pain

[@PerAllwin1963]

Hmm, the ammonia level is ok in my tank, but there’s a lot of foamy bubbles on the surface. I’ve been using almond Cattalpa leaves in my tank and they’ve been decaying. The water is also greenish due to algae. Could this be the source of the bubbly water?

[@17tamal]

Hearing all these makes me feel like throwing my aquarium and adopt a new hobby 😢

[@bryandearstyne7436]

Come on, Bud. it's not that bad.Everything has ups and Downs.It's all part of it. in brace it or throw your tank away

[@XOIsot]

Never give up I just had to do an in tank cycle with a bacterial bloom at the same time , I want to cry but it’s finally over

[@maritaandcats]

Aww poor Larry! 🥺

[@RescueDogTreats]

OG Cory! Lol...❤

[@therazzmatazzkaty6862]

Where’d you get the Kuhli loach plush?

[@kevinnathanwells2642]

I thought when you said "they like subdued light" I heard "they like some dude light" like the fish are chillin in dude light

[@hk5288]

My dog absolutely does the “not hungry today” thing. He is such a picky eater and just isn’t in the mood for meals some days. Has been this way since he was a 4 month old pup (he’s 4 now). Frustrating as all heck.

[@rachelwitherell1947]

What kind of foods can you stick to the glass like that?

[@davidvalenta9394]

`would be interesting to suggest to mfr's to repackage accordingly; a shaker bottle/tube, and shelf-stable packets. it'd take some serious marketing & re-education. ...and yeah: as a one-tank person, I'm likely going to toss a few things, even though there's longevity on my fish & it's staying pretty balanced/established. I had a dog who'd let me know that a batch of dry wasn't up to par, so I stopped buying 35# bags & kept to 15#'s ..

[@mikea2020]

Nice vid

[@rythmjunky5292]

So I recently set up a new 30 gallon tank,with everything transferred from my old 29 gallon(tidal 55 with four sponges,two medium sponge filters,plants,driftwood,rocks),the only thing different was a thin layer of black sand over the old aqua soil,that I rinsed about ten times before I added and filled the tank. I ended up with loads of brown bubbles around the edges of the surface,as the trumpet snails moved the substrate around and released air pockets. I understand it will take some time for the tank walls to be covered with beneficial bacteria,but wondering how long it would take for the tank to be considered “established” as well as the old one was?(it had been running for 8 years,and filters running for 3).

[@cadeneby5186]

What brand was your 29 gallon?

[@e_kaika2967]

I have bubbles from my air stone that take longer to pop I test the water with the api test kit and it reads zero ammonia. Does that mean my test kit might be faulty? My test kit expires June 2023.

[@Itsjastahonda]

This happened to me when I added root tabs

[@JTCT371]

M just getting back into the hobby. Buying every test kit I can get. I want to know everything....I also know this will lead to me buying an RO system. Lol

[@trcs3079]

Anyone ever use seachem clarity and fish start gasping for air? Because it happened to me about an hour ago and lucky I had another fish tank that I was cycling for 2 weeks to save them

[@tyray6180]

Idk how but one time I had an opened bag of cheeto puffs still be good almost a month and a half after I opened it

[@ballbro613]

What am I supposed to do it I see bubbles in the tank though?

[@davidking2470]

Will adding a beneficial bacteria drop cause it?

[@bernandoturner4840]

Mine just did this. & went away.. shrimp fine😅

[@Susbaguetteman]

So I have this this juvenile tiger parrotfish temporarily in my 25 gallon tank and it just can’t seem to get along with anything ( has killed guppies, platys and mollies that I tried over various attempts the tank before so I have given up on getting another tank mate for it at this point) even though it has a pot to hide in . Any suggestions on what I can go to minimize this?

[@MichaelTranoid]

Bigger tank. I recommend 40 G MINIMUM for a Parrot Fish. One of my tank mates is an Orange Parrotfish. He gets along well with everyone, since I run a 90 Gal setup.

[@goldy24t]

If you use Stress Coat it creates bubbles too

[@liamhales5854]

I feel like a lot of people get aquariums and fish because they think they are an easy pet to have. It’s really the opposite. Fish are so hard to perfectly take care of. I feel like I learn some new thing I need to watch or know about my fish.

[@cityboy_ss1423]

So what can we use for the bubbles ?

[@Dreamzz101]

my betta makes a bubble nest at the top of the tank.. not bad at all

[@leo2o915]

Also noticed lower water level with a hob causes bubbles on the top

[@tiffanysavoie4847]

Sure does.

[@xxyy1318]

​@@tiffanysavoie4847right

[@Artbyambrianna]

Was that a pothos plant completely under water?

[@ryanglavin6587]

What was with the eye covering at 2:53

[@Rustysturtles]

My heater failed overnight (locked on) and I came downstairs in the morning and all but my plecos had unalived due to o2 Depletion

[@1w72st]

Wow I've been using the same little can of fish food for two years. My fish still eats it.

[@Earthsbounty]

Can you help. me out my new pond is producing crazy froaty bubble clamping on the side I already bought pond conditioners, anti ammonia, etc. stops for few days and comesback again they said it's a new tank syndrome but i really want to get rid of the bubbles might also purchase test kit later

[@xxyy1318]

They

[@reevecallen134]

What’s the best way to remove iron from water? I’m on well water and it does have too much iron. Along with being on a well an RO system seems like too much water waste to be viable.

[@jeannev7048]

Plant some iron loving plants

[@darthplagueis3400]

What is a good iron loving plant for a small aquarium?

[@xxyy1318]

​@@darthplagueis3400update?

[@hardybryan]

So in my 135 gallon reef ready tank I have peace lillies growing out of both weirs/overflows. One of them suddenly has foam at the top of the overflow. The foam isn't in the tank, the sump or the other overflow. Just this one overflow. The lily has been growing in it for over a year. Any guesses?

[@xxyy1318]

Something died in there?

[@stasiamvrie]

I DIDNT KNOW THAT ANE THE FACT I HAVE 2 FISH IS CRAZY

[@jamesdumond9859]

Hi I am new to the hobby and I have had my tank for 2 and half years no issues and in that time we've had to upgrade from a 10 gallon tank to a 20 that was about a year ago maybe a little more than a year and everything was fine until about a month and a half ago my heater went out it took me a few days to get replace it everything was good after I replaced it and then I started noticing my blue neon tetras we're very dark in color and I lost three out of the four the one that's still alive and every other fish in the tank now had like a fungus or something going on I treated it with Tetra lifeguard and they've improved however it's treatment cycle is a done it's been three more days and they're still not done with the recovering what should I do next

[@fabiangiraldo3119]

Try Ich X (dark blue liquid) put fish in your hand or net then pour it on them directly & they should be good within a week

[@garys2971]

In all my years of fishkeeping. one thing has trip me up, staghorn algae ... That stuff is wild looking. Had no idea it existed up to that point. That would be a great topic to cover especially if you could get some live pictures to show people what it looks like even though it's not at all the best conditions for fish.

[@pamelapilling6996]

Today is cleaning day for my tanks.

[@il.mister]

This is not water...is chemical soup

[@_Clayton.Bigsby_]

Would a lack of enough surface agitation cause foamy bubbles, possibly due to a lack of gas exchange? I'm still getting the hang of this. Water parameters are good, my hob doesn't really cause any surface agitation though. Was wondering if maybe adding a sponge filter to get that surface agitation would make any difference (other than adding more surface area for bacteria)?

[@GhostKing6790]

When just my HOb filter runs, the filter agitation is so poor that a thick film of bacteria forms. I also have a sponge filter and a airdrome. When those are also running, the film goes away.

[@johncameron4194]

Awww poor Larry

[@blooky102]

My fish one time didnt eat but from stress and temperature change due to a big water change but once the heater warmed up the water, the next day they were fine.

[@xxyy1318]

Risky

[@Dicomillo]

Yep, I noticed I had a bunch of bubbles on the top of my tank, and next 3 days 8 fish died. Id had this tank going for 4 years. I just did a complete water change.

[@xxyy1318]

I always read to do 1/4 change at a time. How long to wait for the next 1/4 I don't remember. Maybe a day or 2. Anybody? Reddit?

[@high_fructose_corn_syrup]

Gotta guppy that has white stringy poop. Is now not eating and is just hanging out at the top away from the females. I treated with levamisole and flubendazole (at different times obviously). Still hasnt helped helped. According to the fresh/new test strips my water is great! I just ordered ich-x and paraguard, will be here Wednesday. I read you can use those together, is this true? The more time that goes on, the weaker my purple mosaic male gets. Can you offer some advice?

[@xxyy1318]

Update?

[@high_fructose_corn_syrup]

​@xxyy1318 all the guppies died. White poops, lethargy then gone. They weren't cheap guppies either $15 ea plus shipping 😢

[@dto507]

Okay, so I have a micro aquarium (20*20*40 cm) with a betta fish in there. He eat once or twice a day. How am I supposed to use up all the food I bought in one month!? I already bought the smallest package of 50g and it lasted me for almost 3 years now.

[@dto507]

Additional note, I never have any bubble problem. Instead, I have hair algae problem even though it's an indoor aquarium with 8h of lighting, hob filter with ceramic bio filter and regular water changes (once every 2 weeks).

[@thanuradayal1218]

After l fed my bettas from brine shrimps next day I so bubbles top of water what should I do. Do i need to add some fresh water.

[@xxyy1318]

Breeding/nesting bubbles? Research

[@omaeve]

Yay feed Koi pellets are usually just two a day. In my little 10 gallon guppy tank but suddenly I had a big problem with my tank one I had just bought a heater when I brought in my Guppies off the deck pond. Two I ran out of fish food and the order online had still not come so I started putting an extra koi pellets. And I couldn’t figure out why I was having this come on top of my fish tank it turns out the heater was melting the coil pellets and it was oil floating on top of a tank. But I had couldn’t figure it out till I broke down the tank and took the sponge filter out when I started to wash the sponge filter I found out it was greasy and I put in the spare sponge filter in a few days the problem is back again. And the next sponge filter was greasy so the problem was not having my fish food and I usually feed them and feeding them too many Cue pallets that we are melting and the oil floating on top of the tank

[@xxyy1318]

Kid disturbances?

[@ozzleoni6609]

Bubbles in liquids are formed by dynamic surface tension, not viscosity.