please help !!!

[fat bob]

I have had problems with my plants not growing so over the weekend I installed an under gravel heater and fitted a more efficient pump. This meant removing alll plant and ornamentation, installing the heater under the gravel then replacing, the pump has got a small bit of cork (is cork ok to use ? ) sealing up one of the outlets to reduce the flow rate. I also added one large rock, which I dilligently cleaned with boiling water. with the hot weater and the extra heat the temp jumped from 76 up to 80 and the fish are now apparently dying

my male dwarf gourami has developed a large patch of fungus, seemingly overnight and has now keeled over onto his side but is still breathing.

all the others are lethargic and sitting on the bottom

Some have darkened in colour

my large common plec is virtually immobile, I thought he was dead and it wasnt till I got him to the surface that he twitched and swam back but slowly.

Water testing has proved inconclusive as a litmus stick suggested nitrates and nitrites to be ok but tablet tests indicated nitrites to be up over 4.0ppm ! Both however read the ph as being up around 7.5-7.8 (could this be the rock ?). I am about to retest and will check back here in an hour or so to update the post. Ammonia is 0.0.

I have now umplugged the under grav heater and swapped 6 gals of tank water for cold fresh water in order to lower the temperature. it is mow 78.2 and some of the fish appear to be picking up, obviously I dont want to lower it too quickly and send them into shock but I wanted to know

- could all this be due to the temp raise ?

- is it possible that the rock I added is leeching something into the water ?

I was going to do the following

- Remove the rock

- 50% water change .


Please help a.s.a.p I think I will loose fish tonight if I don't do the right thing now !!!

 

[karrihug]

what was the ph before you put the rock in? and where is your thermometer? could it be hotter at the bottom of the tank? some rocks can raise your ph, but it sounds like the heat is the problem, it depletes teh o2. you don't want to lower the temp to fast, but i would take a reading from the bottom of the tank and see how warm the gravel is.

 

[Angel Lady]

what do you feed your fish You could try feeding some frozen foods this can bring the temp down a little.. If you bring down the temp. to fast it could cause ich on already stressed out fish.