Breaking a tank down

[AquaBarb]

Got a few projects to do over the coming weeks/months

One will be to break down and deep clean a 200 litre. This needs to be done after a bad batch of Rainbows ive had. Need to get the tank clean and safe to run again.

Plan is..

*Tank and filter will be washed with a bleach/water solution.
*driftwood and rocks to boil somehow. (If i can find a pot big enough)
*substrate and media i will be replacing for new.

Plants...now i havent a clue about what to do with my live plants. Can i use them again in new setup or break up and put some in my smaller tanks? Or will these be not worth risking?

Thanks in advance

 

[AbbeysDad]

Why exactly are you breaking it down? 'A bad batch of Rainbows' doesn't mean anything to me.

 

[Byron]

Likewise; we need to know what exactly was the issue.

One thing I will say though, is do not boil wood or rock (rock can explode). There is no way to get out whatever may have been absorbed into wood or rock. It will leech out, usually, over time. When we know what the issue was we may be able to suggest keeping or discarding both.

Back in the late 1990's, I had an issue in my largest tank with fish being extremely lethargic (it had slowly developed over several weeks), and any new fish died overnight. Absolutely everything was tested/examined with no idea emerging as to the issue. The hobbyist owner of my principal store suggested I contact the Freshwater Fishes Curator at the Vancouver Aquarium, so I did. The issue turned out to be some toxic substance being released by one (or more) chunks of wood, all of which had come from a fish store. The point here though is that in the end, on his advice and with good sense behind it, I discarded all the wood, substrate, filter media, and rock, as he said (and our tests along the way proved) that the toxin had over time not only leached out from one or more chunks of the wood, but it had permeated the filter media and substrate and then began to poison the fish from those sources too. The tank and filter housing are easy enough to clean/disinfect as you plan (rinse very well with tap water several times and completely air dry afterwards), but porous items will absorb anyting theey come into contact with and you can never be assured of getting it out.

 

[AquaBarb]

Ill try and explain the best i can.

I purchased 12 Dwarf neon rainbow fish back in June and all was well for a couple of weeks but then they started bloating 1 by 1. I think they have some sort of internal protozoan infection (symptoms very much similar to Malawi bloat) what i have tried to cure but unfortuntely cant get Metronidazole in the Uk so ive used alternative meds i can get. I only have 5 males remaining and tried the last treatment to cure them a couple of weeks ago. (Hopefully this sorts the problem but i dont hold much hope).

Im going to be breaking the tank down and either set it back up or ill upgrade it for a bigger tank i was planning to get early next year.

I cant risk adding any fish to my current stock just in case they get what my rainbows have. Corys in the same tank have been fine upto now but some diseases could vester for years. They look lost in my 200 so ive had a 125 litre tank of a family member to house my current stock till i can sort them out then fingers crossed i can move them over to the bigger upgrade at a later date.

Hope that makes sense




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[Byron]

Given that info, I am not going to comment on the possible disease as it would be guessing and that can lead to far worse problems. My experience (fortunately) with disease issues is extremely limited.

If it is determined that this is some form of bloat, then concern over disinfecting this and that would be much less, compared to a pathogen. And you are correct, metronidazole is incredibly effective for many/most internal protozoasn issues, I have used this twice on the advice of a microbiologist/marine biologist. Fortunately I can get it here, Seachem produce one type which I found very effective when mixed in with the fishes' food and this is the most effective method to administer it.

 

[AquaBarb]

Ive tried all i can now so hopefully the last treatment works

Im not going to risk anything that could hold the infection and discard anything what could cause the problem to come back. Ill break it down and start at the beginning. Ill get rid of my wood and rocks with the substrate in this case.

Wasnt sure if plants would be affected that was all

 

[seangee]

I seem to recall you mentioned you had corys in the same tank which were unaffected. (Sorry if my memory is mixing things up). If that is the case and it is indeed a pathogen your corys may still be carrying this. My intention is not to alarm you but disinfecting may not be sufficient in the absence of a firm diagnosis.

 

[AquaBarb]

No fully aware the corys mighy be carrying it. Other than getting the fish necropsied, i dont think i will ever now whats the cause is tbh. Ive been going of the symptoms they have be showning over the past 4 months or so and the symptons have pointed me towards a protozoan infection. My first worry with it being the Rainbows was TB and i cant really rule that out but signs were slighty different to what id read and been told.

So this is why i want to move the Rainbows and corys over to another suitable size tank and get the big tank disinfected.

With bleach being used to disinfect TB out off tanks i thought this would do the trick for most other dieases/infections.

 

[Back in the fold]

I'm curious about something. Would letting everything dry thoroughly and leaving it for a length of time, say a month, solve the problem ? It would mean buying all new stuff and that may not be possible. Just wondering.

 

[AquaBarb]

I'm curious about something. Would letting everything dry thoroughly and leaving it for a length of time, say a month, solve the problem ? It would mean buying all new stuff and that may not be possible. Just wondering.

I not sure tbh but i wouldnt think leaving it without some sort of disinfection would get rid. Certainly would do it if a knew it would work because ive got to buy all the new stuff anyway.

Got to plan what to do with it scape wise. Im definitely going to try play sand with my next few projects

 

[Byron]

Stating the obvious, it naturally depends upon what the issue was as to whether it will remain "active" in wood, substrate, etc. Substrate is relatively inexpensive (if you use play sand as I do) so that is not worth risking. The rock, you can buy suitable river rock from landscape retailers; I use river rock which costs me 75 cents for a 3-gallon pail full of rock, I select the various sized chunks. The wood is expensive, and I would never use wood other than what I acquire in a fish store (which is not always risk-free itself). Filter media is risky, and may be expensive depending the type of filter, but I would not risk this either.

I missed the plant question previously, sorry. I am not sure what I would do with these; I have often posted that dips in hydrogen peroxide or weak bleach solution tend not to be effective unless strong enough to damage/kill the plants. I might be inclined to grow the plants in a non-fish tank for a spell, if they are significant plants not easily replaced.

 

[AquaBarb]

I think with me not knowing the cause and for my own piece of mind i will just start from scratch and not risk anything. I dont want to leave anything to chance and get this again.

Im going to bleach the tank, filter and heater, buy new sand, plants, wood and source some more rock/stone.

Ive picked a small tank up tonight and purchased some play sand to try for the first time. If i like it i will use it in the other tanks ive got to set up. Ceratinly cheaper than what i have been using

 

[seangee]

That would be my instinct. May be tough to keep everything separate. Like many I have separate nets, sponges, buckets etc etc for each tank - but in reality its more of a theory than reality

 

[Byron]

Ive picked a small tank up tonight and purchased some play sand to try for the first time. If i like it i will use it in the other tanks ive got to set up. Ceratinly cheaper than what i have been using

Some 8 or 9 years ago I was talked into play sand by members on another forum, and I have never regretted changing over all my tanks. Plants grow very well in sand, it is safe for all fish, it looks natural (play sand does), and it visually creates the suggestion of more space.

 

[AquaBarb]

Not to bad for me tho tbf all my tanks are in different parts of the house and have storage for them to help me keep things separate.