I need help

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aloysius

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Mar 16, 2003
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I am having a problem with my fish tanks and I would appreciate any advice you can give. I have a 55 gallon tank that has been set up since July. It had 3 Jack Dempsey Cichilids and a pleco in it. The pleco suddenly died in December, and each new pleco I put in died within hours, and the ammonia, pH, and nitrite levels all were good when I tested it. Algae has become very conspicuos in the tank. I started setting up a 20 gallon tank in late December, which I planned to put new fish in. That plan changed in late January. I lost heat in my house on a very cold day, and by the time I got home from work, the temperature in the tank had dropped below the reading range on my thermostat. By the next day, the two smaller cichlids had white blotches all over. I assumed it was Ich, and treated them with Ich medication. They never got better, and the third Cichlid started to develop a white patch on his on side. I moved them all to the 20 Gallon tank and tried treating them there. I did a complete water change on the 55 gal tank, and rinsed eveything in it. I set that tank up again while using Ich cure in the 20 Gal tank. They seemed to be doing fine in the 20 for about 2 weeks, but the big cichlid became very aggressive in the smaller tank, which seemed to bring a return of the symtoms to the smaller 2. I moved him back to the big tank, and within days I noticed a white spot with red streaks near the bottom behind the fins on each side. The two smaller ones I then noticed, also had redness in the white patches, as well as a white film over their eyes. All three fish were lethargic. I decided it wasn't ich, and tried some other treaments. I put the big one in a 5 gallon tank, and treated him with maracyn. I treated the 20 gallon tank with tripla sulfa. The Maracyn worked, and moved him back to the 55 gal tank a few days ago, but the sysmptoms are returning. The tripla sulfa did not seem to work, so I tried Maracyn in the 20 gallon, but that didn't seem to help either. Now I'm noticing fin rot, and their nostrils are enlarged and are white. This week Iv'e tried something called Paragon blended biotic powder, and that does not seem to help. Does anyone have any suggestions?
 
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Okay, you have a few problems to address here.

First, the white spots on your fish are most likely a fungus rather than ich. Treat with a fungus treatment or with salt.

Secondly, by completely changing the water in your 55, you have "reset" the tank and it must be cycled again before your fish can be safely added back in. One solution might be to put all of the media and decor from the smaller tank over into the 55, but you will still probably experience a "mini-cycle".

Couldn't tell you why the plecos keep dying without knowing the specifics of your water. Plecos are kind of fickle when they are young, so they're easy to kill until they get a little bigger. Keep in mind that a pleco will get lazy about keeping the tank clean once it gets over 5 or 6 inches in length.

I keep my aquarium at room temperature, so the temp in the tank fluctuates a little from day to day. I've never noticed a negative effect on my fish, but then, I've never had as dramatic a change in temperature as you have experienced, so I don't know if that is what caused the fungal outbreak or not. It seems feasable, though.

Cichlids do become very aggressive when they feel their territory is being invaded. Smaller tanks make them feel claustrophobic, and they lash out at their tankmates.

Sorry I couldn't offer more in the way of advice, but I hope this helps a little!

Good luck.

EDIT: You had added something to your post by the time I got done typing. Fin rot and cotton fungus are caused by pretty much the same thing. Fungus Eliminator by Jungle has always worked for me. I use it in conjunction with a small dose of aquarium salt (non-iodized table salt will also do). (Okay, salt arguers, let's not get into a discussion about iodine again... I say, better safe than sorry...)
 
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Thank you. I will try to find Fungus Eliminator. When you say salt, do you mean aquarium salt. I put a tablespoon per 5 gallons in each week. Should I be using more? I also put regular iodize table salt in once last week. Could that have been harmful?
 
Originally posted by bizzy928
Do not use iodized table salt. It contains IODINE in it, which is a poison.
Click to expand...

Oh no here we go again - the great salt debate :D

Bizzy - check some old threads here, you will find out you are wrong - lots of good info on those threads
 
Originally posted by pinballqueen
(non-iodized table salt will also do). (Okay, salt arguers, let's not get into a discussion about iodine again... I say, better safe than sorry...)
Click to expand...


Guys, didn't I say, specifically, that we shouldn't go there? The merits of advanced chemistry have no place being argued in a help thread.

To answer your question, the salt you have already added is fine. No need to add more, until you do a water change, which will dilute it. (salt does not evaporate). Then add your chosen salt type, 1 tbsp to every 5 gallons of new water.
 
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Yes, but you see the problem is ably demonstrated by Bizzy928 and Aloysius' two posts:

aloysius: Thank you. I will try to find Fungus Eliminator. When you say salt, do you mean aquarium salt. I put a tablespoon per 5 gallons in each week. Should I be using more? I also put regular iodize table salt in once last week. Could that have been harmful?

bizzy928: Do not use iodized table salt. It contains IODINE in it, which is a poison.
Click to expand...

You see, the newbie gets scared rigid that he's poisoned his fish, then someone weighs in saying, effectively (and quite falsely), "yes, you probably have"

That's why the debate does get restarted every time someone posts the old iodine myth - it's inevitable in reassuring the newbie that no, he hasn't just sentenced his fish to death by iodine poisoning.
 
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