Help, Tank full of sick fish!

[Colsha]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ok so last night, i replaced my elite internal filter with an Aqua one external canister filter. About two hours later i noticed my male bristlenose with a swollen abdomen, staying on the sides with half his body out of the water. I removed him from the tank and gave him his own bucket of water, with a heater which i set at 28c (the tank he WAS in was at 25c). I added a small amount of salt and in four hours his bloating had gone down and now he is swimming around freely but still a little swollen. However when i woke up this morning the rest of my fish have all developed similar symptons, with 5 harlequin rasboras, 2 odessa barbs and one clown loach not surviving. So right now, i have two rosy barbs and one odessa barb floating upside down still breathing in an epsom salt bath. I also have a lethargic yoyo loach who is leaning a little to the side. But strangely my guppy's and two other bristlenose seem to be fine. In an hour i will take a water sample down to the lfs and get some tests done. Any advice you can give me in the meantime would be muchly appreciated. Thankyou!

 

[Doodles]

Did you seed the new filter with some used filter media?
tbh though 2 hours is a bit quick for any ammonia to build up too much.

Did you do water change too? remember to add dechlor?

 

[Colsha]

Yeah i used some used filter wool in the new filter. I thought it was a bit quick to be caused just by the filter. The BN may have been swelling before i put the filter in but i didnt notice. I added water ager, however not the water ager i usually do. Could this be a problem?

 

[Doodles]

The one you used deals with chlorine chloramine and heavy metals? if so and you used the right amounts then it shouldn't of caused those problems.

Do you add the ager to the new water beforehand or to the tank after?

Was the old filter working properly before you removed it? not clogged or anything?

 

[Colsha]

While iv been working out what to do i read an article on swim bladder disease which said that fish affected with SBD may have a kinked back. I noticed a small rosy barb has an almost S shaped spine. How likely is it though that all the fish could have developed SBD overnight?

 

[Colsha]

"Instant chlorine, Chloramine, Ammonia and Heavy Metal Neutralizer + Slime Coat" it says on the front. I added it after adding the water to the tank. I only added a bucket, so 10 litres or so of water to the tank (which holds 100L). The old filter was working, but it was getting clogged, to the stage where a week after cleaning there would only be a trickle of water being moved through the filter.

 

[Doodles]

While iv been working out what to do i read an article on swim bladder disease which said that fish affected with SBD may have a kinked back. I noticed a small rosy barb has an almost S shaped spine. How likely is it though that all the fish could have developed SBD overnight?

It is possible i expect, but there would have to be a cause.

"Instant chlorine, Chloramine, Ammonia and Heavy Metal Neutralizer + Slime Coat" it says on the front. I added it after adding the water to the tank. I only added a bucket, so 10 litres or so of water to the tank (which holds 100L). The old filter was working, but it was getting clogged, to the stage where a week after cleaning there would only be a trickle of water being moved through the filter.

ok it might not even be the cause but i would start adding the dechlor/ager to the water before you put in tank. Even though diluted by the rest of the tank water, chlorine and some of those heavy metals can be pretty deadly to fish and even possibly affect the filter bacteria.

If the filter wasn't working properly, i would imagine you would be experiencing some mini cycles, this would happen when theres too much 'waste' but not enough filtration to cope, this could help contribute to the problems with the fish.

The temp is 25c normally, is this stable?

Personally i would do some 10-15% daily water changes starting with maybe 20-30% today, get the water checked as you said, also ask them to check the PH along with ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

The problem with smallish tanks is that unfortunately it doesn't take much for them to get out of control

 

[Colsha]

Alright a question i have always wondered is how long after adding the de chlor should i wait before adding the new water to the tank. The temp is stable, we have central heating/air conditioning so there is no big fluctuations in temp in the house. I will get it tested this morning, but is there anything you could suggest to help with the barbs that are upside down but still breathing? I know chances probably arent good, but after the salt bath one of them is beginning to roll itself right side up again before ending back up on its back. Thanks alot doodles!

EDIT: oh and the pakistani loach who is just really lethargic, laying on the bottom and leaning to one side?

 

[Doodles]

If you stir the dechlor into the water, it is fairly instant. Ive always added the new dechlored water around 5 mins after mixing it in.

You could do a water change and add some extra aeration.

What did they all eat that night, same food as always?

 

[Colsha]

i didnt feed them but my girlfriend would have given them frozen bloodworms and some algae wafers. They would only occasionally have blood worms but for the last week they have had them nearly every day. I just got back from the lfs and my PH was up near 8, which i knew as i had cichlids in there and i have had no luck trying to lower it. She also checked for nitrites and there was almost none. They are the only tests she would do. With the fish in buckets, with heaters i am now removing 30% of the water and i bought a "wardley Bullseye 7.0" PH conditioner to add to the tank to try and change it to 7. Should i use this now?

 

[Doodles]

They would only occasionally have blood worms but for the last week they have had them nearly every day.

That could be the problem, any uneaten food especially meat can cause problems with the filtration

She also checked for nitrites and there was almost none

Almost none means there is some which in turn means there is or has been ammonia and also extra nitrates

bout a "wardley Bullseye 7.0" PH conditioner to add to the tank to try and change it to 7. Should i use this now?

Nope, even though the PH is on the high side, it is stable. The problems you are having right now need to be sorted out first otherwise the fish will become much more stressed. As we know the ph is stable, i would change a bit more each day than I initially said. I would even start with a 40-50% change. make sure the new water temp matches the tank temp and add the dechlor first:yes:

Also you might find investing in a test kit will help you monitor and get on top of this quicker, they are pretty cheap if you buy a master test kit.

 

[Colsha]

Alright will do. Thanks for your help doodles. I'll write an update later to let you know how they are doing!

 

[Doodles]

Alright will do. Thanks for your help doodles. I'll write an update later to let you know how they are doing!

:thumbup:

Just to add, can you get hold of Seachem prime?
Its an excellent dechlorinator and lasts for ages, also it can be used to detoxify ammonia and nitrite:yes:

 

[Akraziatic]

Hey Colsha. Have just been reading about your ordeal and I am sorry to hear. To add to doodles reccomendation about getting a master test kit have a look here http://www.aquariumproducts.com.au/test_kitselectronic_testers.php . I found that these guys have the cheapest API master test kits that I've come across. At that price you can't not get one. Unfortunately they don't stock Seachem but doodles is right it's a great product, though costly it pays off in the end. Anyways good luck bud and keep us posted.

 

[Doodles]

Something else i just thought of. Bloodworms are very high protein food, bloat is often caused by too much protein and a week of bloodworms might not of done the fish much good. Theres a link here to an article

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/malawi_bloat.php

even though aimed at cichlids, bloat in plecs is pretty much the same.

 

[Colsha]

hey cuz (akraziatic) its joel. thanks guys, im down to just the one floating rosy barb, and im not sure how he's going to go. he's holding on for now. Otherwise the three BN are back in the tank with the guppies and loach and they seem fine. Thanks for your help. I have to go to work now, so i hope all is well when i get back :S

 

[Akraziatic]

Lol hey man. You made it to the site. I thought you were keeping peacocks?? :S Are you coming down for xmas?? well hope its all good mate. If not get your mrs to buy you some real fish. lolol. talk soon.

 

[Colsha]

yeah i was, they were getting a bit big for my tank so i gave them back to the pet shop and they gave me some BN. Im waiting till i move to get a bigger tank, i dont fancy moving a 6ft tank to sydney lol umm i doubt ill be down for xmas, im in the middle of looking for a job in sydney and work in bathurst is busy, but ill be down around the 20th for pops 70th. ill let you know anyway!

 

[macvsog23]

a week of blood worm could well be the problem

Feed blood worm very sparingly
and never to African fish

blood worm is a very good conditioner but as said is protein rich protein will convert to phos and then its a problem.

 

[Irene0100]

Hi , sorry to read about your troubles,
you dont mention how you cleanthe filter, I assume you wash it with tank water not tap water?

blood worm not good for BNs really, try fresh veg or frozen peas (cooked or defrosted raw but with skin removed.) . peas really helps with bloat etc