Fish Dieing For No Apparent Reason

[TheeMon]

You may cut and paste the template below and submit in your post:

Request Help

Tank size:40gal (36lx18w)
pH:7.8
ammonia:0
nitrite:0
nitrate:0
kH:?
gH:?
tank temp:80-85F

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
fish look totally fine, but they are breathing heavy

Volume and Frequency of water changes: normally 30% every other week or so

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:i have been treating it with gel-tek amplicilin

Tank inhabitants:african cichlids(mbuna) and 2 zebra plecos

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):none

Exposure to chemicals:none



ok well what happened was 2 fish died out of the blue, i took them out and checked the water nitrate and it was 0, so i left it be thinking they just died, later that night 2 more died, i started treating it with the gel-tek amplicilin(i read the back it was the best i could find for interal deseases/bacterial infections) also fyi they fish look and act normal, execpt for maybey heavy breathing, and theres like 3 airstones in the tank so its not air. well a few more die, im freaking i call 2 different fish expects i know and they both say its the water, a contaminte in the water, and say to do a 90% watetr change... i do(well i think it was more like 85%) and then i fill it up to 75% full then empty back down to around 20% then as im filling it back up my girlfriend tells me there all floping around and swiming sideways n stuff. like 2 mins later there all dead but 2, those 2 i put in a bucket then later in a hospital tank. btw when i was doing the massive water change i put stress zyme(its like stress coat but removes clorine and adds bacteria too)

also before i did the 90% water change i had 2 breeding nets(with fry) on the side of the tank i put them in a hospital tank(same i put the 2 surviving ones in later) and they were ok for like a day or two then they fry start dieing...


what the hell guys? im currently breaking down my 40breeder tank and systematicly boiling everything in it. i still got 4 baby yellow labs and 1 baby demasoni and the 2 adult yellow labs but as far as im concerned there going to die anyway. i just want to know what the hell happened, and how can i catch it next time?


oh btw i took the water to the lfs to test it(again, thinking i was missing something) and the only thing they said was that i had very hard water...


plz help

 

[WILDER]

Something could be in your water.
Check the gills to see if there pale with excess mucas on them, or red and inflamed.
Been decorating or using any household chemicals near the tank.
Run some black carbon.
Check your water source.
Never do large water changes it stresses the fish to much.

Tolak good on water ask him to take a look at your thread.
He's a mod so his name blue at the bottom of the forum.

 

[Tolak]

Exactly what product are yu using to treat your water, and do you have a private well or are you on a municipal water supply? If on a municipal supply what is its water source? What has your weather been like for the last week?

 

[zoekin8yg]

Also the nitrates being zero is unlikley, check your results

 

[Tessla]

I'd suspect cleaners or air fresheners near the tank, but the water changes ought to have helped that. It sounds like it must have been something in the water, did this start soon after a water change? So sorry about your loss, that's a big hit all at once.

 

[TheeMon]

I'd suspect cleaners or air fresheners near the tank, but the water changes ought to have helped that. It sounds like it must have been something in the water, did this start soon after a water change? So sorry about your loss, that's a big hit all at once.

nothing near the tank(trust me) they started dieing off slowly before the water change, a fish expert buddy of mine told me it was the water and to do a 90% change... when i did that is when they all died...

wilder: the gills looked normal, and also as soon as the 2 died, (luckly i had just bought a new power filter) i installed it on this tank(so that= brand new carbon)

tolak: the med? its gel-tek amplicilin... i also put in stress zyme(like stress coat but also declorinates and adds bacteria) in when i did the water change(to declorinize and to calm them)

the nitrates i unfortantally i never checked, i never knew about it(i only checked no2 not no3- did some research and just bought a no3 tester) BUT i took the water(when the first 2 died) right then to the lfs and had them test it... they test for everything they said it was fine(i tested it too of course)

i think that answers all your replies...


oh a side freaking note... as i was cleaning the tank out(i totally broke it down, boiling the gravel n everything) i FREAKING CRACKED THE TANK!!!!!!!! god i lose all my fish AND my tank damn.... im starting this setup over again though, ill keep u informed

 

[WILDER]

Sorry R.i.P.
Not having much luck with the tank breaking as well.
Never add hot gravel to a tank I let it cool down first.

 

[- Jez -]

Was the new water you were putting back in the same sort of temperature as the water you were taking out? It could've been cold shock, with that amount of water being changed, and the fish couldn't hack it?

Sorry for your losses though, dude.

 

[Tolak]

Stress zyme does not act as a dechlorinator. This would explain why they did so poorly after large water changes.

Once again, are you on a private well, or a municipal water supply? If on a municipal water supply, what is the water source? What has the weather been like for the last week?

 

[TheeMon]

it says on the bottle that it does

as far as water supply goes, its a small city but its city water. the weather has been 40-50ish the last week... i dunno anything other then that sorry

 

[TheeMon]

my stress zyme is different then the ones at the store now, mines yellow the stores is blue(older version or something?)

also i think it was stress of pretty much totally new water with the fact that the nitrAte was threw the roof... i never knew about it till this, i thought yall were just misspelling nitrite i have had the consultants of my fish expert(AllOddballAqautics) and he thinks that also with a lower ph(from all the brand new water) did it...

 

[WILDER]

If you alter water stats to fast it can cause stress and death.

 

[K.J.]

So wait, what were the stats in Ammonia + Nitrite? NitrAte doesn't much matter unless it's above 40.

 

[WILDER]

And ph as thats just important.
To be hoenst to lose that many fish so fast I still say something not right with your water supply.

 

[fishymaster66]

okay Ph is too high 7.8 is waaaay too high its for cichlid and braackish tanks. second 80 to 85 degrees fareingheit is waay too hihgt shouldb e 78 just IMO