Trying to diagnose a problem in my tank- help!

[truegirl]

Hi, as you can tell I'm a newbie, in search of some solid help.

A couple of weeks ago, our silver molly started swimming vertically (kind of floating). Everything else was normal with him, so we wrote it off as some kind of mating dance. That lasted about a week and a half.

We are so new at this.

Anyway, the past few days, he's been lying sideways (not flat), but still swimming up to eat. We assumed he had been injured, and there was nothing we could do.

Yesterday, two of our black molly's took to the bottom as well. One was dead by morning, along with the first silver molly, by midday. The second black molly is swimming erratically and I'm sure won't be with us by morning.

We've been to the pet store to ask questions. The expert there said to first check the water (everything was normal) and to pump more air into the tank. She said it would help oxygenate the water in case the fish had overeaten. She said it would be a waste of money to mess with any medicinal additive.

Done.

I see no signs of illness (growths, popeye, etc) aside from what I've written. There haven't been any new introductions (fish, plants, equipment) in a couple of months.

We don't overfeed, and the water and filters are changed/cleaned regularly. The temperature is fine.

What could have caused this? And do we have to be concerned about our other fish?

Should I bother moving the last sick fish to a hospital tank, or would it be too late?

Any information would be appreciated. We don't even know if we could add an additive (like Jungle Fungus Clear) or medicated food to the main tank. Would it hurt the healthy fish? Would it help prevent this unknown 'infestation'?

Thanks for a quick reply.

We're cleaning out the tank again tonight, adding salt (we hadn't before), and hoping for more information from the pet store. true

 

[GeraldTheMouse]

8 mollys in a 12 gallon tank? I would say that tank is overstocked. What are your parameters, and what equipment are you using?

 

[MissFishy]

My first guess is ammonia/nitrite poisoning. First thing you need to do is an immediate 50% water change. Make sure to treat the water with water conditioner to remove the chlorine and chloramine from your tap water. The water should be the same temp as the water currently in your tank. How long has this tank been set up? It is overstocked, so you may want to consider returning some fish. See my website below for stocking and cycling information for new fish keepers. Hope you find it helpful! Welcome to the tank!

 

[jediinthedark]

I agree that this sounds like toxin poisoning to me too. The good news is that if you can verify this then you can save the other fish without a problem. It will take work though.
Do you have a good test kit? The test kit must include tests for Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate. All of these are toxic to fish.
Do not buy test strips. Buy the liquid kind of test kit:
Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Freshwater Master Test Kit at Big Al's Online
Next post the readings for Amnonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate.
Then do a 50% water change like MissFishy suggested. If you do have toxins in the water then these water changes are the only way to remove them (at the moment). Listen to MissFishey about the water conditioner too. Chlorine/chloramine is poisonous to fish and must be removed.

If the above steps come back positive then MFT will walk you through saving the fishies. If it comes back negative then I'm not sure what's going on...

Personally I'm not sure you are too overcrowded, but you're definitely topped out on fish. What kind of tank and filter do you have? Is it an Eclipse setup by chance?

Jonathan

 

[truegirl]

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

We started out with 6 adult mollys (my siggie is wrong). 4 (large) fry, and one guppy. We were told that the rule of thumb is about one of this size fish per gallon, so we had 11 fish in a 12 gallon tank to start with. (Well, the fry were a suprise.)

All of our water testing, including ammonia, came back normal. We had been on the same feeding schedule since we started the tank, about 5 and a half months ago. All tests have been good.

My husband went back to the pet store Monday evening. He gave two people there the rundown, again, including the water test results. He told them the fish's symptoms, etc. Even they were completely stumped. (We've talked to these people before, and they are very well educated in all of this, unlike me.)

We did end up doing a water change, and adding salt. That last black molly did die, but the rest (One black molly, one gold, one adult dalmation, 4 dalmation fry and one guppy) all seem to be doing well.

As far as the setup goes, I really don't know. I'll have to better acquaint myself with this so I know what you all are talking about. My husband usually handles that area, and he doesn't have much of a chance to get on the computer.

I'll be watching closely for any changes. Thanks for all of your time. We really appreciate it.

 

[jediinthedark]

I'm glad to see that the other fish appear to doing well.
Sometimes weird things happen and it can be hard to figure out because fish don't tell you what hurts.

Still... I'd like to ask you a very specific question:
When testing your water did you test for Nitrite?
Did you test for Nitrate?
If so what were the results? Nitrite should read a 0 value. Nitrate will give you a number depending on how dirty the water is (that is normal).
Those are the values that interest me more the then ammonia.

In case you don't know why Nitrite and Nitrate are important here is the background: Fish make waste in the form of ammonia, and this is poisonous to them. Bacteria in the filter eats the ammonia and turns it into Nitrite. Nitrite is also poisonous to fish, but a 2nd kind of bacteria in the filter eats that and turns it into Nitrate. Nitrate is also poisonous to fish, but to a lesser degree. You get rid of Nitrate through water changes and live plants.

A lot of people know about testing for ammonia, but not a lot of new people know that Nitrite and Nitrate are just as deadly.
That is why we keep harping about what kind of water tests you've done.

Good luck with the remaining fishies, and stick around on the board. It's amazing what you'll learn on a day-to-day basis.

Jonathan

 

[truegirl]

Hey Jonathan, thanks for the feedback.

My husband did the testing, and he's got one of those super deluxe testing kits that probably includes the wherewithall to test for dna. No strips, just tubes.

He did check for Nitrate and Nitrite levels, and they came back at whatever level they're supposed to be at for a healthy tank. (Told ya I didn't know much!)

To answer your other question, we do indeed have an Eclipse setup. Is that important?

So far, so good. It looks like a happy tank again.

By the way, I like your siggie. I've got to change mine. true

 

[nealio]

Could also be a swim bladder problem, second I have seen on this forum today. If a fish is swimming sideways, and having balance problems, try the Pea first if you’re sure your water params are ok. It is the cheapest most effective way of treating a problem swimming disorder without introducing chemicals.

Also slow and steady WC's once a week thru the month are a good idea (about 25%). Consistency is the key.

Give em a Pea or two and make sure it stays on the bottom with some type of airline clip or what not. They sell special clips for omni's at the LFS but they are a waste of money. If it was Nitrate/Nitrite poisoning, they all would be dead, if not acting abnormally or jumping out of the tank.