Cloudy Water, Dead Fish, Remaining Fish Still Breathing Very Fast

[alexktz]

hi all,

first post...

i have just come in from work today, taken a look at my 180l tank with 1x catfish, 6x danios, 2x tetras, 2x gouramis, 1x guppy, 1x siamese fighter, 2 zebra pinstripes.

water is VERY cloudy, and i have lost about 6 fish.

the remaining fish are breathing incredibly quickly, i'm assuming due to the high level of nitrite in the water?? please correct me if i'm mistaken.

other than doing a 50% water change (which i'm in the process of...) what else is there I can do?

the only reason i can think of for this emergency is that i changed my filter wool about 3 days ago. i regularly check all readings and they have all been within tolerances for about 10 months!

 

[Ficious]

Welcome! and sorry for your losses.

water changes are the only thing i can think of. take out the fish that are alive and put them somewhere safe until you figure it out maybe? good luck though

 

[8inary]

it sounds like you removed all the good bacteria from the filter thats built up and your now having a bacterial bloom. Unfortunately your tank needs to cycle again but in the meantime, is there anyone that can take your fish for a short time?

IMO 'will not take any responsibility for any losses lol' - do large water changes and dont put the old filter pads back in thinking it will help, the good will have died and you would only be pumping bad bacteria in.

sorry for the losses

in future, only clean the filter pads with water from the tank, not tap