Dying fish

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Bmcbride95

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I had three fish die in about 24-36 hours. Should I treat water? I have a bala shark that looks like he has a swim bladder injury. Should I quarantine him?
 
We need some more info before giving advice. How many fish, what species and how large is the tank?

Is it a new tank and how long has it been running? Was it cycled before adding fish? Can you test the water for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates, then post the results?

The first thing to do when fish start behaving oddly is change 50% of the water. If you can, test the water before doing a water change.
 
It’s a 55 Gallon tank. There’s about 11 fish left now. Tetra, mollies, angelfish, platys swordtails and a pleco. The shark had bubbles on him so maybe ich? No ammonia when I checked. It’s been up and running without a problem for 3 months. Cycled for a month before adding fish. I have diatomes on the sand.
 
Ich doesn't look anything like bubbles; it looks like very bright white, raised spots; almost as if the fish has been sprinkled with sugar or salt.

Do you know if your water is hard or soft? You can find out on your supplier's website, if you don't. You need to find out, as you have a mixture of fish; some that need hard water (the mollies and platies) and others that need it soft (most of the tetras).

Do you know what species your plecs are? Some of them can grow very large indeed, and might not be suitable for your tank..
 
It is indeed ich. It was white spots and not bubbles. It’s a bristlenose pleco.
 
Could you try and get a picture? Even if it's not very clear, it would help us give you a proper diagnosis.

If it is ich, you will need to treat the whole tank. Ich is a parasite, and only part of its life cycle is on the fish (that's what causes the spots). At other times, the parasites live on other surfaces or in the substrate. The parasite can only be killed when it's not encysted on the fish.
 
Here’s the only pic I can get
 

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Here’s an update. I went to my local aquarium store and they strongly suggested quarantine. All fish are all safe in the QT and the display tank will be cleaned and cycled again.
 
I'm sorry, but that's terrible advice :/

Is your quarantine tank cycled? They really would be best off left in the main tank and treated there.
 
Heres what you need to do.

Return the fish to the main tank. Forget the Q tank.

If you are not running one, put an air stone connected to an air pump in the tank.

Change 50% of the water

Over the next 2 or 3 hours slowly bring the water temp up to 32 deg C( at that temperature ich can't reproduce) and leave it there for about 7 days.

If you do not see an improvement in 24 hours then you can add salt. Dose one teaspoon per gallon of salt, you dont need aquarium salt, Kosher salt is fine( do not use iodized table salt ). Dissolve it and add it over a few hours.
 
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Agree with all the above, no point in quarantine when the issue will still be in the main tank upon the fish's return. Raising the temp to about 88F is the best and most successful method I've used.
 
The problem won’t be there anymore since I’ll be cleaning the tank and adding new gravel and water
 
Okay I know it's a bit besides the point but the fins on your Bala Shark are in poor condition. It looks a lot like severe fin rot. If it is indeed fin rot, and not just other fish picking on him, then you need to treat it. Fin rot is also bacterial and can be deadly if not treated in time. If You determine that you should take action, quarantine the fish (unless if the rest of your fish have it too. Then treat them together) and add aquarium salt. A tablespoon a gallon should work. Make sure to turn off the filter as well. Continue to add salt daily, but Do 100% water changes daily before adding new salt (a buildup of too much aquarium salt will kill the fish). I would suggest doing this treatment for about a week. If that doesn't work seek over-the-counter meds! Good Luck!


Ps- sorry I suck at explaining things. if you're not familiar with fin rot you should google it for a better explanation XD
 
The problem won’t be there anymore since I’ll be cleaning the tank and adding new gravel and water

I still think it will be far easier on you and the fish to put them back in the main tank and do the heat treatment. By removing everything and starting from square one you will lose your cycle, creating a much more dire situation.
 

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