Help my fish keep dying!

[itsjustmeuc]

The white patching on the tetras is excess mucous, the same as on the platy just not as bad.

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When you cleaned the filters, how did you do that?
Filter media/ materials should be washed in a bucket of tank water and re-used. The dirty water should be poured on the lawn.

If you turned the power filter off for 24 hours the beneficial filter bacteria might have died. However, if the internal sponge filters were cleaned in a bucket of tank water, they should have sufficient bacteria to keep the water clean.

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The dog drinking tank water won't affect the fish. But if you had Malachite Green in the tank water, that is not really good for the dog.

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If fly spray was going to affect the fish, it would happen within hours of spraying so that is unlikely to be the issue.

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Do you gravel clean the substrate when you do a water change, or do you just syphon the gunk off the top of the gravel?

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I kept my fish buckets, gravel cleaners and nets in a plastic storage container and made it off limits to everyone. It stops people accidentally using the buckets for cleaning and the lid of the storage container stops chemicals and dust getting onto the equipment. Just make sure the buckets and hoses are dry before storing them.

I washed everything out in a bucket of tank water. I didn't realise the filter bacteria could die off so quickly after being turned off though so I won't do that again.

I didn't clean the gravel at all this time but when I do I try get in to it not just the top but my rock work takes up quite a bit of space so its not easy to get to all of it. Does rock in a fresh water tank work the same as live rock in a marine tank? In my marine tank I mostly relay on the rocks for filtering, though I do have external filters as well.

I'm pretty sure after reading all this I just let the after get too dirty and it crashed as a result. I've never had a tank crash before so didn't realise it could go so bad so quick!

 

[Colin_T]

Does rock in a fresh water tank work the same as live rock in a marine tank?

Yes and no. You normally have more fish and food in a freshwater tank compared to a marine tank. So you rely more on the filter rather than the rock. The rock, plants and gravel will have some beneficial bacteria on it but a lot of the bacteria also lives on the filter media.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Does rock in a fresh water tank work the same as live rock in a marine tank?

And rock in a freshwater tank is just rock.
All you have to watch for is that the rock you use won't affect your water's hardness. (Dropping vinegar on it is a good test...if it fizzes, it's going to dissolve and make your water hard and alkaline).

Looks like @Colin_T has every sorted for you, info-wise.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Oh yes...lose the 'Ammonia checker' and any meds, etc., you've had lying around for a while. These have Use-By dates and it'll be safer to get new. The API Master Freshwater Test Kit is well recommended.