Aquarium Catastophe!!!

[cupids_angel1989]

hello all

I have a standard 5ft tank approx. 250L, I say approximately because I have about 20Kg of gravel, a 1Kg ship, 4 artificial plants and 4 live plants. I have 4 clown loaches, 2 of which have been around for over a year, 4 angel fish (3 of which have been around for over a year), 6 tiny widows, 2 large Silver Dollars, 4 small gouramis, 1 Rainbow Shark, 2 Bristlenose Catfish, 1 male Betta and 2 Bala Sharks (1 of which has been with us for over a year which appears to be diseased and dieing

To cut a long story short, our aquarium light blew during a thunder storm and not knowing any better we replaced it with your normal light globe which you would use to light up a room. We knew something was happening when the fish refused to eat on the surface. This went on for about 2 weeks before we started making inquries. During these 2 weeks we could not understand why it was our PH levels were always increasing to Basic and we were finding ourselves trying to bring the levels back down to roughly 6.4pH. We finally changed the globe and the problem was rectified. Just to add insult to injury, our external cannister filter which should do about 700L per hour had a mind of its own and started lagging within these 2 weeks.

Anyhow, we had lost a bala shark and a golden gourami. We have a couple of Angel fish that are not doing as well as they should be, even after about a month after the light and pH issue, and now of course another Bala Shark is on its way out too as he is showing symptoms of disease such an off colour body, red blotches which appeared on his body but have apparently healed and are now replaced with a cotton like substance. We have used Aquarium Salt in the whole tank and also treating it with a chemical called Multi Cure which is supposed to cure white spot, velvet disease and fungal diseases. The water appears to be green.

Question: Do I have too many fish? and we are thinking about buying an Aqua One 2200 external filter, what are your thoughts?

How often should I dose the tank with this chemical, the instructions say until the fish are cured. How can we tell when theres only 1 fish showing visible symptoms and a couple of others on the mental side of things (lathargic) and not eating??

[michael lai]

Hi Cupid,
The 5 footer tank is more than enough to house your critters. I'm not sure about aqua one 2200 because I do not own one but i have been using Ehiem external cannister filters for many years without any problems, I've a 2215 which I've been using for almost 20 years without much wear and tear. If your cannister is lagging, it could be due to clogging or the head needs maintenance or changing.
I'm not sure about multi-cure but if its green colour it's usually malachite green. Try Tetra Medica, look for the range that cures external fungus and dose according to dosage regime, xxML=xxLitres. Your fish shall heal within the week if the dosage is correct. If you can't find Tetra, look for medication that heals external fungus and red lesions and continue with the salt regime.( according to your description, it is definitely not Ich or velvet but there are more than 1 infection here. )

PS:It is recommended to do a 50% water change before start of new medication regime. Pump more oxygen into tank, starve fish for 2 or 3 days. The critters should be jumping over each other when the next feeding comes.
Tetra Medica is good for 30 days before redose also look for medication that does not harm biological filter. ie:Waterlife

Good luck and god speed.

[cupids_angel1989]

Thanx for the reply Michael..the Bala Shark eventually died last night and to prevent any more losses I'm gonna continue with the medication quick smart. As for the treatment I'm using, it doesn't really say whether it interfers with the biological cycle (maybe I should just get the product Cycle, which introduces good bacteria)

P.S: I've been doing a 25% water change, more frequent now but am restricted to do this till the next treatment which is in 3 days time, and I find myself adding aquarium salt with every water change. Is this really safe seeing that it's supposed to be a freshwater tank and not a salt water tank? and do I keep using thr Aquarium Salt with every water change, or does this have to cease some where along the line?
thanx again

[wasabi8888]

Cupids

Remember to remove any charcoal filters when dosing medication...

It can become toxic during period of medication

[michael lai]

Hi Cupid,
Stop the water change and do not add anymore salt. Wasabi has a valid point, do you have any activated charcoal in your filter? Please take it out as it will neutro your medication and render it useless.
I think the best course of action is still observe first, maybe can come back to us in 2-3 days time.

[cupids_angel1989]

hello there again
its been 4 days since i've last posted and have lost an angel fish that appeared to be sick since the day we used the wrong lighting we do have a black angel which appeared to have a few white spots but don't appear to be there anymore; I think I have actually killed the cycle of Ick and think it is no more I have given the tank 3 doses of medication with a 3 day interval, should I be on the safe side and give another dose as I have a feeling the angels are not liking the green dye that it floating in the water as they hang around the bottom? and in answer to your question, I was not using Carbon but I sure cant wait to clear that water up.

I'm thinking of purchasing a UV Sterilizer, do you think this will eliminate this and other parasites?
Thanx