Would It Be Safe To Do A Water Change...

[QuotheRaven]

Due to a power outage a disease was brought back or introduced to the tank now it killed off 3 yoyo's 2 botia sids 2 platies 1 swordtail 1 bristlenose catfish a featherfin syno and a spiny eel...now I believe it was a protozoan disease that took a fungal appearance while skin peeled off in bad cases...now after all those deaths and 4-5 days of copper treatment and 2 days ago I added aquarium salt all the fish appear healthy but my water is now green because of rotted plant matter would it be safe to add any fish to the tank Or do a water change at All??

 

[Tiggle]

Are you talking about adding new fish? I would leave the tank with its current inhabitance atleast two weeks after treatment to be sure the parasites are gone in a sort of quarinteen before adding any new fish.

You should quarinteen any new fish as well. trust me, you dont want to be adding a new disease to your recovering fish.

Now ive never used copper medications, but assuming youve completed the medication course you should be fine to do a water change, in fact i imagin your fish will thankyou for it.

 

[QuotheRaven]

I wasn't going to add "new fish" I currently have a tank which is set up fine but the fish would be happier in a larger tank... I did a 5 day course of copper I was advised 10 days by my LFS for treating a disease which they said was velvet however I very much doubt it was...

 

[Tiggle]

Personally id still wait to make sure it really was gone before up grading them. If where they are is really inapproprate then its up to you, but i would be wanting to wait still.

 

[QuotheRaven]

Anyone else have a opinion at all?? I think I might do a water change clean the bottom of the tank and rescape it for now and get the tank the way I like it prior to adding fish

 

[Bignose]

You can virtually always do water changes whenever you want. I posted this a while back, and just copied and pasted it so I don't have to re-type it all again:

"
So long as you match the water temperature, pH, and hardness of the replacement water, there is very little wrong with doing as large of a water change as you can handle. Now, the fish may get stressed out in that inch of water, but the quality of the water wont matter.

There are only two real occurrences when large water changes should not be done. 1) if you root around in your undergravel filter when taking the water out. You might accidentally disturb too much of your beneficial bacteria, and get a mini-cycle. 2) if the tank has been neglected, and there is ammonia present with low pH. If the new water will have higher pH and probably higher hardness, the ammonia-ammonium equilibrium could be shifted towards the more lethal ammonia with the new water. Very small but very frequent water changes are needed in this case.

However, again, so long as you match parameters, and don't do something silly like let your filter dry out, you can do as large of a water change as needed.
"

So, so long as it isn't an undergravel filter, or large amounts of ammonia with low pH, feel free to do a water change. You fish will most likely truly appreciate it.

 

[Lynden]

I agree. Water changes are very rarely anything other than benefitial.

-Lynden