What Are The Factors That Cause New Tank Syndrome?

Q. A month ago, I bought a 3” x 4” x 2” fiberglass tank, complete with a filter system that comprises three compartments. I am keeping a dozen small koi in this tank. I added some floating plants to the tank, but removed them subsequently because their roots dropped off very quickly.

What Is New Tank Syndrome?

When a tank is newly set up, it will exhibit what we called “new tank syndrome.” This phenomenon is responsible for early death of fish, which are unfortunate enough to be “dumped” into the new tank.

There are several factors leading to the new tank syndrome:

1. Immature water: The water may not be “aged” enough. This together with leftover solvents or cleaning agents, makes a lethal combination. So, the tank must be rinsed at least once with light soapy water. Then its inside surfaces must be thoroughly scrubbed and rinsed at least twice, before filling up the tank with water.

2. Overstocking: Always understock your new tank for at least two to three months before adding more fish to the tank. It would be good to invest in three basic test kits—for pH, ammonia, and nitrite. Water is colorless even if it is polluted with byproducts excreted from the inhabitants in the aquarium. Water with high ammonia level is colorless and odorless. This invisible “toilet bowl” soup of ammonia, when not properly managed, is usually the cause of fish slowly dying off. This problem often baffles many new hobbyists.

By observing your fish, you would be able to see some of these symptoms in their behavior: stress, nervousness, poor appetite, and lethargy in swimming movements. However, note that this is not necessarily an indication of high ammonia levels in the water.

The ammonia test kit is the only way to test the ammonia level. An ideal level would indicate a “zero” reading. You can manage the ammonia cycle by combining small numbers of fish with reduced feeding. If the ammonia level is high, bring it down by changing the water more frequently during the initial stage of the cycle.

3.  Lack of good bacteria: When the ammonia cycle is peaking, good nitrification bacteria would have started to colonize your filter media. These bacteria are essential to filtering the water, and keeping it in good condition. They will convert ammonia to nitrite (which is still a harmful product), and then reduce the nitrite to nitrate. The latter byproduct is harmless, though a high level of it will have an impact on fish health. To speed up the cultivation of good bacteria, buy a bottle of dried bacteria from a reliable aquarium store. Simply follow the instructions and recommended dosage.

4. The bacteria need two key ingredients to survive: well-oxygenated water and enough carbonate to help them convert ammonia to nitrite and nitrate. Hence the need for a pH test kit. Strictly speaking, pH is not an indication of carbonate presence. However, there is a positive correlation between higher pH levels and higher carbonate presence. A reading of pH7 and pH8 is a good enough indication of carbonate presence. Add a bag of coral chips to one of the filter compartments. This not only provides a home for the nitrification bacteria, but also allows carbonate to slowly leach out into the water.

When the bacteria in the filter can successful convert ammonia to nitrate without water-changing, and the ammonia and nitrite reading are always at zero, the full nitrification cycle has been established. Your tank can then be considered as having matured.

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