Platy With Cloudy Film On Eye! Please Help Asap!

[mnm123]

So i got 3 platies 2 weeks ago. My other 2 platies are just fine and happy. all 3 eat well. but since last 3-4 days, one of my platy have got a white translucent film on its eye. its eye seems fine, but there is a layer covering its eye. It is sitting at one spot too, it just comes up to eat, but before it was very active. I am not sure what to do. I have tetras and a betta in the tank who are fine and i have my tank running for 13-14 weeks (30 l). Please help. 
 
P.S. i have attached the pictures.
 

 

[fluttermoth]

There are two main causes of cloudy eyes in fish; poor water quality and injury.

I'm afraid you have too many fish in your little tank. Platies grow quite large and need a tank that is at least twice the size of yours. Also, bettas and tetras need soft water, whilst platies need it quite hard, so some of your fish are going to be quite unhappy.

You need to do some large water changes, making sure the new water is warmed and dechlorinated, and get your water tested for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH and hardness and post the results here. If you don't have test kits of your own, then you can get a fish shop to do it for you, but you must make sure they write down the actual numbers for you. Results like 'a bit high' or 'fine' won't help us.

You're also going to need to get a larger tank, or rehome some fish, as a matter of urgency. With so many fish in such a small tank, any bullying or fighting will be much worse, as the fish have no space to get away from each other.

 

[mnm123]

Thanks for showing your concern! I am quite new to fish keeping, and so before buying the 3 platies i thought they wont be suitable for my tank. but when i went to my local aquarium shop (quite a big one) they said i could add up to 6 platies!!! i thought that was cray. but they said that we are experts and bla bla, so i ended up buying 3. i do not have a test kit, so i need to go to the shop to get it tested. I wanted to ask, if i sell 3 tetras (so 5 are left) and 1 platy (2 are left). Would that be fine? or should i leave it as it is and just test the water?

Thanks

 

[AmtotheBurr]

I would rehome all the platy or take them back to the store. Getting rid of a few of each kind of fish doesn't fix the issue of the species needing two different kinds of water to thrive. I would suggest purchasing an api master test kit. It will give you enough chemicals to test for years and allow you to monitor your water quality