Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Hi, I have about 6 Comet Goldfish and 9 Tilapia that just won't eat. They have to be eating something because they are still alive but they sure don't do it when I'm around.

I have two flood and drain aquaponics systems.

1. 55 gallon aquarium

- 3 Tilapia and 3 Comets - All eating normally
- 30 gallon grow bed
- water levels all normal (ph 7, little ammonia or nitrites)
- 75 degrees F
- Plants doing awesome

Here's a pic of my 50 gallon tank doing its thing



2. 100 gallon rubbermaid stock tank

- 9 Tilapia and 6 Comets - Not eating
- 2 x 50 gallon growbed
- water levels all normal (ph 7, little ammonia or nitrites)
- 72 degrees F
- Plants not doing so awesome

I think my plants in the 100 gallon setup are suffering because the fish just aren't eating/pooping enough. My 50 gallon setup is doing great, presumably because the fish in there actually eat.

Even when I move a fish who is eating normally from the 50 gallon tank to the 100 gallon tank he/she stops eating.

Here's a pic of my fish not eating in the 100 gallon tank. I put the food in this little floaty thing so it doesn't go all over the place.



Any ideas how I can get these guys eating normally?

Do you have a pet shop near you? do they sell live food ? Daphnia would be perfect,if they do introduce a little into the tank,the Comets love them,if one goes for it they all will its a competition thing that might spark them into eating. i wouldn’t worry to much about the fish they can go weeks with no food,not so the plants,maybe a little season or maxi crop to help them.
In the pic there up near the surface almost looking for food.

In my experience the darker tanks make fish shy. I have Tilapia in 55 gal. glass aquarium and they hit the feed like they haven't eaten in months. Another batch in an unpainted IBC and they hit the feed almost as fast. A third batch in a blacked out IBC never eat when they can see me. If I stand back and remain perfectly still I can see them eat but it's nothing like the feeding frenzy of the other more visible tanks.

I just put forty comets in my system and they were sulking on the bottom of the tank hiding under the pipework acting very skittish.. Like yours, they weren't hitting the food much at all and today I noticed a few were flashing on the bottom and brushing against the solid lift pipe.

My system holds about 2000ltrs but only has about 1200ltrs at the moment so I chucked in 1.2 kg of pool salt and left for town to get some filter foam. Anyway, when I got home they were chasing each other and playing under the waterfall so I chucked in a mid size pinch of food and they got stuck into it pretty much straight away and with some gusto.

I don't know if this helps you but what the hell.... it might.

Wow, thanks everyone. I really appreciate the comments.

Update: I went down there today and three of the Comets are dead. Ugh. They are supposed to be super hearty? I have no idea what is murdering these fish. I had a bunch of mollies and guppies down there before and they all disappeared, but I though the tilapia ate them. The tilapia are really hard to see in the tank, and I fear a good number of them have died over the last few weeks and I just haven't noticed.

Crap. So I guess I have less of a "my fish won't eat" problem and more of a "my fish are dying" problem. This system is about 2-3 months old at least and should be well-cycled by now. I DID find a piece of cardboard (with stuff printed on it, like, with ink or whatever) at the bottom of my tank last week. No idea how it got there, but could that cause issues? I am at a loss here.

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Dasboot: I will try some Daphnia. I threw some seaweed extract in there for now as you suggested.

KillerOfFish: That makes a lot of sense. I've snuck up on my fish from afar about 20 minutes after i dropped some food in there. Still no action.

telonline: Maybe I should throw some aquarium salt in there?

I read this on another post re: dead fish

"3 Something nasty has made its way into the water. This could be as simple as a sealant you used or some little rascal dropping something in your tank. Spray drift, contaminated rainwater, inappropriate garden sprays used on your plants are a few suggestions."

I feel like this is the likely culprit. Any ideas of what to look for?

If salting does nothing and you suspect toxins you should move the fish to another "clean" system ASAP. Best if you have a stand alone aquarium not being used but buying an aquarium/filter is not a bad idea if you don't already have one. Once the fish have a fighting chance at survival you can take your time determining what the problem was in the "suspect" system. Things have a way of becoming clearer when you're not dealing with the stress and frustration of losing fish to an unknown enemy.