What could be killing my discus and cories?

[anti-generic]

overnight i found half my cory population dead and all of my discus either swiming sideways or laying flat on the bottom.
All the discus had really bad looking mucus over them some even looked blind.

i did a 25% water change. raise temp, added salt. i've even tried adding metro..

nothing...
now whats left of them are in a quaranteen tank with 2 filters. but it doesnt look like its getting better. im getting casualties everyday since sunday.

im really confused.
is it some kind of disease?
has my filter suddenly failed?
Can seachem prime go off like its gone past its used by date?

I'm really lost..
HELP!!!

[dreamer]

never put medicine just because something happened, i repeat NEVER!! what made you decide that metro will help anyway? in most cases, fish died due to mis-diagnose. this may sound harsh ... but u need to restrain urself from dumping meds into tank.

[Bill T.]

I'm sure if you talk to ladyred she will say something like:
What are your water parameters? Test for ammonia, nitrite, pH, hardness & nitrates.
Then do a 100% water change & keep an eye on water parameters.
How often do you do water changes, by the way?

By the way, do you run a U.V. steriliser?
I've had these sort of "wipe outs" in the past which caused much pain & angst. When I put a U.V. in the system, it got much better very quickly.
If this ever happens to me again I am going to take one of the almost dead fish straight to the vet for a real diagnosis, so I then know what the right sort of treatment would be.

I'm sure I have reacted wrongly in the past. I just learned that fins going pale could be due to the fish creating mucus, which is a defense, possibly due to stress or something "bad" in the water. I reckon I have mis-diagnosed and treated for bacterial infection which in fact made everything worse.

Good luck.

[Trebs]

Please post your ammonia and nitrite. Never raise the temp until you know what these are.

The only things you should add in this situation without knowing your water conditions is an airstone, carbon and maybe some salt.

[Merrilyn]

The symptoms point to a pH crash. Either that or discus plague. Have you had any recent additions to your tank in the way of new fish or plants, or even rocks or ornaments or driftwood.

As Bill said, I'm going to ask you to do full tests of all your water parameters, and I do want to see a 100% water change, or put them in a completely clean tank, with fresh water and just an airstone. No filter at this stage.

The other thing you need to do is test your water straight out of the tap. We have in the past had problems with high ammonia readings from tap water.

Keeping my fingers crossed for you.

[Bill T.]

This is just a crazy idea, but ..... would you be running an undergravel filter by any cahnce?

[anti-generic]

thanks for the great advice and info..
since sunday, all my fish has been put in a new clean tank.
doing 50% water changes everyday..
carbon has been added since monday to get rid anything in the water..

there is a air stone and 1 cannister filter in there thats been running for a while..

but now from my collection of 10 discus.
im down to 2..

everyday i wake to new deaths..
i really dont know why..

[Merrilyn]

I'm so sorry to hear that. You must be devestated.

Had you added any new fish to the tank recently, or is there a possibility that someone had used insect spray in the room, or in a nearby room.

This has got to be some kind of poisoning for it to be killing them so quickly.

Or if you have added any new fish, I still think it could be plague.

[anti-generic]

and then there were none...

i lost my last 2 this arvo..

ladyred thanks for your kind comments but to answer ur question..
no there has no been any new fish..
not for months..
and it has tobe some kind of poisoning coz the water is stable and clean now..

i just cant believe how quickly they can all die out.
:(

[Merrilyn]

That is really rotten. I'm so sorry.

Looks more and more like a poison of some kind for a total tank wipeout like that. You may never find out what it was.

Nothing left to do now, but a complete teardown of your tank, and sterilize everything. Toss all the filter media, and replace with new stuff, and replace all the gravel.

When you set up the tank again, place a couple of test fish in there, like some goldfish, to check the conditions before you add anything expensive.

Naturally, you will need to do a full fishless cycle on your tank again.

Don't give up mate. It does get better.

[chrissyoscar]

Sorry to hear about your loss. It's sad when you loose one but to loose all of them must be shattering :cry:

I forget who it was but one of the guys from QLD lost all his discus overnight. It happened about a year ago and that was caused by fly spray. He had a big spider in his house and used fly spray to kill it and in the morning all or most of his discus were dead. I don't know if you used any but it does show just how fragile they can be. Anyway he thought about quitting discus but soon bounced back and got some more.
Hope you do the same.

Oscar

[anti-generic]

i will definatly bounce back..
thanks guys for your support..

the tank has been stripped and filter left to dry..
ladyred, what do u use to sterilize the tank? a watered down bleach solution?

[leanne31]

You use that homebrand bleach solution in the big bottle not domestos or whiteking as they contain detergents. By the way Im sorry about your fish I hope you bounce back bigger and stronger than before.

Leanne

[Merrilyn]

Leanne's right. That cheap generic brand bleach is the way to go. All the fancy ones have detergent.

Because of the problem you had, I'd be using a real strong solution, of say one cup of bleach in 1 litre of water. Wash down all the sides, and let the residue sit in the bottom for a couple of hours. Then rinse it really well, with several waterchanges, and use double the normal amount of chlorine neutralizer.

Wash out your filter, and all the pipes, by soaking them in bleach and water. Once again, rinse well, and put together with brand new media. Toss any logs or gravel you had in the tank, and start with fresh stuff. Anything you have previously used in the tank must either be bleached, or replaced, like nets, gravel vac, syphon hose etc.

Do a fishless cycle on your tank. It should take about two weeks, and then run it with a couple of test fish for about a week, before you add any discus.

[CKY]

Yes please do not use antibiotics 'willy nilly'. Firstly you are potentially risking the fish to toxic side effects. Secondly and most importantly you are effecting other bacteria in your tank-this will not only kill off some of your good bacteria but will help bacteria develop a resistance to antibiotics. This is how Multi resistant organisms have come about and utimately you are not only effecting the antibiotics potencey on the fish but also on humans. Overuse of antibiotics will create superbugs so never does your fish with ANY m,edication unless you have consulted someone in the know. This could be a vet, the local fish shop or breeder, it could also be a biologist/aquaculturist :)

[Merrilyn]

Hi CKY and welcome to the forum. If you read through the posts, this is something we have been preaching about for a long time. But it's always worth mentioning again.

Please ask first, there will always be an experienced breeder here to help you, and if we're not sure, we will refer you to someone who can help