Please Help Me Major Emergency!

[finfayce]

Hi everyone-
Earlier today I added Tetra Algae Control to my 30 gal tank. The dosing was 1 ml for every 12 gallons. I did 2 ml in my 30 gal just to be safe. Well, an hour after adding it, two of my guppies were dead and my other fish following. I quickly added the carbon back into the tank and called the company. The guy I talked to told me that because I didn't add the dosage in the morning this happened. Had I added it in the morning everything would have been fine. (I actually wasn't using this chemical for killing algae. I have a major snail invasion I found that this product kills snails). I called Petco and the animal manager told me to do a 20% water change, turn the lights off, and just wait and see what happens. I did that and then called her back a couple of hours later and told her that my fish were still looking pretty bad. So she told me to move them to a different tank, which I did. But my guppies are still not doing well. One is just about dead and my prized male cobra guppy is very close to being a goner. I am still not sure what else to try. Btw, this has only affected my livebearers. My neon tetras are strangely fine. I appreciate any help.

 

[Silencedogood]

Re-reading this thread, something occurred to me. Parameters were mentioned near the beginning but none provided. What is the GH, KH and pH of your source (tap water on its own, and for the tank water (if different values)? The GH, KH and pH for the source water you should be able to get from the water authority, check their website.

If my assumption based upon your baking soda issue and the reaction of the livebearers compared to the neons, I think I know the issue why the former are dying. But let's have the numbers, there is no point in further guessing.

My tank ph is 7.0, gh is 100-200, and kh is 140-220. I don't know the ph, gh, and kh of my source water.

 

[Silencedogood]

I now have another guppy going down when he was doing pretty well earlier. Is there anything that I can possibly do to save him before he gets worse?

 

[Fishmanic]

try adding aeration if you have another air pump....

and please check your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels

 

[Silencedogood]

try adding aeration if you have another air pump....

and please check your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels

I don't have another air pump. I'll check the water parameters right now.

 

[Silencedogood]

Okay, ammonia and nitrite are 0ppm and nitrate is 10ppm.

 

[Fishmanic]

ok..good..so we can rule that out...not much more you can do except do another 75% WC between now and tomorrow morning

 

[Silencedogood]

ok..good..so we can rule that out...not much more you can do except do another 75% WC between now and tomorrow morning

Okay so basically this will run through their system and they will either die or pull through. I have to keep up on the water changes and monitor the water parameters closely to make sure my cycle is still good. Right?

 

[Fishmanic]

Yes.. at least until they improve.

 

[Fishmanic]

How often do you service your filter? What brand filter do you have?

 

[Jan Cavalieri]

First of all you post "Major Emergency"

I'm sure you are happily sleeping away by now and your fish are all dead and fry are all eaten, but I sincerely don't understand your constant wringing of your hands "what to do" , "what to do" and you are told what to do (water change) repeatedly and you reply "I'm too tired" then go back to "oh what to do?" Do you want somebody to go over to your house and do it for you?

Do the GD water change. Geez.

 

[Byron]

My tank ph is 7.0, gh is 100-200, and kh is 140-220. I don't know the ph, gh, and kh of my source water.

This is likely the major source of your dying livebearers when the neons managed to survive the toxic additive.

Livebearers (guppies, swordtails, platies, mollies, Endlers) must have moderately hard or harder water. When kept in water that is below their minimum level of dissolved mineral, which is the GH, they are unable to assimilate sufficient minerals (primarily calcium and magnesium) from the water they take in through every cell; this mineral is essential in allowing their physiology to function properly.

If the GH is at the absolute highest end of the 100-200 ppm range you give, this is just minimum. If the GH is lower, which given the pH issue (lowering pH) is much more likely to be the case, these fish cannot be healthy. They will be slowly weakened, and that means when something like this toxic algae substance is dumped into the tank they cannot cope. The neons by contrast are softer water fish, so they are in a better overall state to deal with the problem, though in time they too may succumb.

 

[Colin_T]

It could also be the guppies are surface dwellers and they copped a face full of the algicide, whereas the neons are mid/ bottom dwellers and the algicide had diluted by the time it got to them.

 

[Fishmanic]

It could also be the guppies are surface dwellers and they copped a face full of the algicide, whereas the neons are mid/ bottom dwellers and the algicide had diluted by the time it got to them.

I agree. You should always put potentially toxic additions to the tank by first filling a large jar with tank water, add the chemical, shake and then distribute evenly around the top of the water surface and also put some into the outflow from the filter.

 

[Silencedogood]

How often do you service your filter? What brand filter do you have?

I change my filter every month and my brand filter I have is Whisper.