# in a flash they were gone :(



## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

Hey everyone. its been a loooong time since i have been on this forum. I have had my 75 gallon setup with a fluval 304 filter and a smaller canister fluval going on 3 years now with only a minor problem here and there. 

well, about 2 months ago i was sifting through my sand trying to get the gas bubbles out and im assuming more gas was released i thought was under the sand and it ended up killing about 4 rainbows... i started draining the water and replacing with clean filtered water which seemed to fix the problem. 

the other night i noticed a grey lint started growing on the wood and on the fake plants. i ran a test and my my nitrites? (the first one on the 5 in 1 test kit, sorry im at work and knew i would forget if it was nitrites or nitrates) were well above stress level(dark red) but everything else was pretty much in line including the ammonia. i started my water change after removing the grey lint and added Prime to the new water which states on the back of the tube that you can use up to 5 times the amount for Nitrite emergencies so that's what i did... For the first time ever i could smell the prime almost across the room. i know it smells of sulfur but this was much much stronger... almost like it was reacting with something in the water.

This morning i awoke to a disaster in my tank. my 3 medium sized hearty clown loaches were all dead (they had survived all the other dilemmas through the years but this one got them all overnight) along with one rainbow and another rainbow swimming upside down but still alive.  

All that is left is one other rainbow that is covered with a white film and my huge Angelfish that is starting to get a small white film on the tip of its fins but seems fine other then that (of course im afraid of it spreading) and one large rope fish that looks and seems to act perfectly fine.

the water doesnt smell of sulfur like it did last night but i cannot for the life of me figure out how all of this happened in 8 hours... 


Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Does ICK spread that fast? I'm currently at work and feel helpless about the situation until i can get back home to tend to this disaster which wont happen for another 9 hours....


on a side not i have plenty of airation in the tank and the tempeture is around 80 degrees. 

thank you very much.


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

A sulphur smell mean bad bacteria infection in your tank.
The tank should smell like an earthy peat smell.
The white film is it all over the body of the fish as what you are describing can be bacterial to parasite.
Any signs of flicking and rubbing against objects in the tank.


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

http://www.ponddoc.com/WhatsUpDoc/FishHealth/BattleBacteria.htm


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

*thank you*

thanks for your insight. i did not notice any darting or rubbing but most were dead by morning... the rainbow that did survive and was coverd in the white film swam normal...the rainbow that was dying was swiming upseide down and was also covered. all deceased fish had their entire eyes Covered in white.. 

the sulfer smell wasnt noticable until i used the prime treatment.. i felt like the treatment "SEEMED" to have caused all of this or at least triggered the massive change in condition although i know this statement to be false. it happened right after my 15 % water change though...


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

Sounds like the prime gone off.
Throw it away.
Fresh filter floss in filter.
Water change and black carbon.
Increase aeration in the tank.


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

this is why im so confused....


prime: bought last week

carbon: bought two weeks ago and installed

oxygen: i have two medium air stones one on each side of the tank and one extra long air wand across the back along with two canister filters that both distribute the water evenly across the top.

nothing is outdated and the aeration seems more then adequate!!!


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

If the prime smelled of sulphur I wouldn't use it.
Never used the stuff myself how does it normally smell.
Did you check the date on the bottle.


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

yes...it smells like sulfur..it even states on the back that it smells of sulfur... but once it hit the water it quadrupled in the smell factor....


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

Are you sure no chemicals got into the tank when doing the water change.
The test strips are no good they are not even accurate.
Liquid test kits are the best.


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

I'm 1000% sure that the only chemical that got in the tank are the same chemicals i always use for water changes.

Prime
Stress Zyme 
Tetra EasyBalance Water Conditioner


i have used these chemicals for the past 3 years with no problems.


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

How are the fish that made it.
Are they breathing any heavier.
Toxins in the tank fish will gasp or labour breath, dart about the tank, roll over, spinning.
is your ph still the same.


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

when i left for work this morning after disposing of the dead fish the three left were as follows:

All that is left is one other rainbow that is covered with a white film and my huge Angelfish that is starting to get a small white film on the tip of its fins but seems fine other then that (of course im afraid of it spreading) and one large rope fish that looks and seems to act perfectly fine.

the rainbow with the white film was swimming normally...no gasping, no darting... just coved in a film.. (eyes starting to become covered )

i wish i would have stayed home to really take care of this but i had very important meetings i could not miss.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Prime normally smells like sulfur. It usually smells worst in the bottle and the smell goes away in the tank. I've never had a problem with Pirme. I have even safely overdosed it. I don't have a clue whats happening to your fish.


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

Does the white filming on the fish look like slime build up, as fish will produce more slime coat to protect themselves.
Cloudy eye is a symtom of a desease not a desease in its own right.
Causes.
Bad water quality.
Stress.
Old age.
Bad diet.
Bacteria infecton.
Parasites like whitespot and velvet.


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## tromeokid (Mar 8, 2006)

I went home at lunch to check on the remaining 3 (the ANgel, rope fish and one Rainbow) both the Angel and the rope looked good... no white deposits anywhere... the Rainbow was completly white this morning and this afternoon he looked much much better. he still had deposits but they looked like they were peeling off...? i picked up some Maracyn. i removed my carbon and used the recomended amount. i also picked up another bottle of prime.


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## Louise163 (Jan 12, 2008)

Hope they carry on improving.
Peeling skin can be a number of things as well, bacterial, parasite, to bad water quality.
Good luck.


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## Guest (Jan 24, 2008)

Like said above, Prime is supposed to smell like Sulfur. I have never noticed it getting worse after dosing though, but I've never overdosed it. I personally wouldn't have dosed 5 times the normal dose (even if the bottle said you could). That seems like overkill to me and I am not confident it actually toxifies/breaks down ammonia and nitrite.

Have you checked your water parameters lately? You should really consider getting a liquid kit, even if you don't use it often. They are more accurate and actually give you numbers instead of a range. You have no idea what they consider "danger".

I hope it was high nitrites just for the fact that prime wouldn't do anything for nitrates. 

I'm not exactly sure what the white film on the living fish is, but I know that when fish die and are left in the tank for a few hours, they develop a white film...even on their eyes. 
After doing some searching, it seems that fish can develop a heavy slime coat as a response to stress. That could be what the existing Rainbowfish has, since you know its been stressed. I also read that parasites can cause the film because of them irritating the fish's skin. I would just keep the water clean and see if it goes away on its own before adding meds.

Does the Rainbowfish have any other problems that you can tell? Is it eating well?


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