Community Tank Die-Off, Help!

hubrigant

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Tank size:
pH: 7.8
ammonia: 0
nitrite: 0
nitrate:
kH:
gH:
tank temp: 80

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
--The first fish to die was one of my sunset blushing angelfish and one of my tiger barbs. Neither had been displaying any unusual behavior, they were both floating on Sunday morning. Neither showed any indications of disease (i.e. no discoloration, bloating, spots, etc.), nor was there any visible trauma.
--Next was an albino bristlenose pleco. I hadn't seen it for a couple days, then found it floating Tuesday morning. It had white scaly patches over roughly 1/2 of its body, one of its eyes looked to have an opaque white covering over it, and its abdomen had turned dark blue/black.
--This morning, I found the new regular bristlenose pleco dead. Its fins were a little ragged along the edges, but other than that, it looked like it had when I bought it on Saturday.
--This evening, one of the odessa barbs died. Again, like all the other fish except the albino pleco, it showed no disease or trauma.


Volume and Frequency of water changes:
--45 gallon tank, 25% change every two weeks

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank:
--Only chemical additive is the dechlorinator that I put in when I do water changes.

Tank inhabitants:
--Before the dying started, I had the two bristlenose plecos, seven tiger barbs, four odessa barbs, two sunset blushing angelfish, three clown loaches, and a rainbow shark.

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration):
--The regular bristlenose pleco is the only new addition. Everything else in the tank has been there for around two months. The tank itself has been in use at my house for about two years, but around Christmas, a bout of ick wiped out everything in it (HUGE loss, three clown loaches that were 5+ years old, a 15+ year old common pleco, and a 3 year old angelicus loach). At that time, since the tank was empty, I removed all the big rocks and vacuumed the whole thing out before putting new fish in.

--I was concerned that the population was too big for the existing filtration (a Fluval 205), so when I got the new fish population, I added a Penguin 150. With the two of them running, the chemistry's been stable, and I've not seen ammonia go above 0.

Exposure to chemicals:
--None

Feeding:
--Sinking cichlid pellets in the morning, and a cube of frozen bloodworms in the evenings. Some evenings, if the fish look like they're hungry (i.e. swarm over to the edge of the tank and follow me around when I come in the room), I'll give them some pellets before bed.

I'm feeling rather desperate at this point. It was bad enough the first time around, but at least then I could see what was killing everything. Now, the fish are just dying, and I can't figure out what to do. :-(
 
Sorry to hear bout your fishes. The dead fish you found sunday, could have died from elevated ammonia levels from dead pleco which you had not seem for a couple days and did not find until tuesday.Excess food laying on the tank bottom can increase ammonia level's as well.Washing filter material in tapwater containing chlorine or replacing all filter pads,sponges,cartridges at once,can also result in ammonia level's increasing.Unless you are testing for ammonia daily?,, It could be ammonia level's spiked for any of afore mentioned reason's temporarily and you simply missed it.
Tattered fins on Bristlenose and or possibly Angelfish, could have been result of Tiger barbs(poor choice with Angelfish) who are notorious fin nipper's and the stress from this activity could lead to fishes dying (can't escape). The fact that you may not have noted, (seen) said fin nipping, does not mean it couldn't have been, just like ammonia issue.
Water changes each week, are more beneficial than every two weeks at keeping organic waste (NitrAtes) to manageble levels between water changes.Ideally,, you want these level's (nitrAtes) no higher than 20 ppm.
 
...could have been result of Tiger barbs(poor choice with Angelfish) who are notorious fin nipper's...

Yeah, the angels weren't my choice, my wife decided to get them despite my repeated warnings that tiger barbs and long-tailed fish don't mix for long. She kept trying to convince the guy at the LFS that fancy guppies would be OK, because the tigers looked friendly!
 
Hello all, I have not long started my tank it is a 140 litre tank. I started this tank with 10 harlequin 6 head tail light tetra 10 danios and 4 yoyo loaches and 2 aquatic frogs. Couple weeks down the line my frogs died was told this is normal they mite have just not acclimatized. So another week past and I tried to introduce new fish 10 neons 2 more frogs 2 algae eaters 1 khahri loach a think it's called. Since then my fish have been disappearing my khahri loach died within hours, the yoyo loaches were looking as though there were attacking it. I over a week now am down to 1 neon and have lost my frogs and am down to 1 algae eater but strangely there is no remains. The only thing I have seen is the yoyo loaches eating 2 tetra. I have also lost 1 of my larger danios. Water ph and heat are nominal this us my first tank do i am worried am I nit caring for them right?
 

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