# Tank infested with dropsy and somethin else?



## swaddell13 (Jan 20, 2010)

I've got a 20 gal holding mainly platys and mollies, a couple cory catfish and an algae eater(there where more but lost to infection) it all started with my frog. he got dropsy and died. so i did a 50% water change then a 20 after that which was rec from another forum and at the same time one female molly and 1 emerald cory cat had a type of body fungus. Since then ive had one molly (tiny since still not fully grown) stay at the bottom for a long time and eventually die.

now heres my situation, i get back from Brazil (2 week vacation) dad should be feeding, hasnt been cleaned thoroughly in id say a month. My male black and white molly has dropsy (obvious protruding belly) and my female yellow(LPS calls it a creamcicle) molly has the right side of its face all white scaly and looks like its peeling almost. one small platy is lying on the ground like the baby molly did and isnt eating can barley move, i expect him and the male molly to die any day.

What do i do to prevent this from ever happening again? complete water exchange? meds forever? ive tried adding melafix and aquarium salts to help a bit, but i only have a little bit of maracyn at the moment. 

the levels are:
gh:180
kh : 20 
ph: 6.5
no2: 0
no3: 200 if not higher

arizonas got very hard water coming outta the tap so when i try and do changes i try to do mostly filtered drinking water or half and half.

help would be awesome i can get pics if needed


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## jeaninel (Aug 24, 2007)

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Wow, your nitrates (NO3) are way out of control. A safe level should be under 40ppm. So a series of small daily water changes to get them under control is needed. Once you get the nitrates down to an acceptable level you should be doing weekly water changes of 25-50% depending on your stock and fish load. The high nitrates may be contributing to your fish's health problems.


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

jeaninel said:


> Hello and welcome to the forum.
> 
> Wow, your nitrates (NO3) are way out of control. A safe level should be under 40ppm. So a series of small daily water changes to get them under control is needed. Once you get the nitrates down to an acceptable level you should be doing weekly water changes of 25-50% depending on your stock and fish load. The high nitrates may be contributing to your fish's health problems.


 I agree with above. would also submit that livebearers such as mollies,guppies, prefer hard water from pH7.4 to 8.0 and will do poorly in soft water in the long term.
Would not add salt unless treating for Ich. I would slowly with each water change,begin using tapwater more and more and less and less of the drinking water.
While mollies do not mind salt at one tablespoon per five gal, they do not need it for their health and the catfish do not do well with salt.


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## swaddell13 (Jan 20, 2010)

i see, i think its because i only have a 20 gal and its stocked with too many fish(they kept mating and the babies lived!) so should i not do a 50% today since it will be the first cleaning since i got back(been waiting to hear from u guys) and then just do 25% daily? and what is the white scaley face of my molley?? its so strange it looks like 2 face.

thanks for the help


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

I would do the 50 percent water change today and use mostly tapwater and less of drinking water. I would see that the water is treated with dechlorinator before it goes in the tank. Then every other water change,I would use less of the drinking water until water changes were all tapwater.
Is difficult to say what is ailing the fish but improving the water conditions by lowering nitrates and using more tapwater for changes, will give fish best chance in my view of healing perhaps without the use of meds.


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## swaddell13 (Jan 20, 2010)

okay ill try that, ill keep ya'll posted, but im pretty sure im gonna lose atleast the 2 fish(one lying on side on bottom, and other with dropsy)


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

swaddell13 said:


> okay ill try that, ill keep ya'll posted, but im pretty sure im gonna lose atleast the 2 fish(one lying on side on bottom, and other with dropsy)


Would also get in the habit of vaccuming a small area of the gravel during weekly water changes ,a different area each time you change the water. Sadly sometimes we lose fish ,all we can do is try and provide them with comfortable enviornment.
Finrot,fungus,and or bacterial infections are linked to the fishes enviornment. When enviornment is not to their liking, the fish become stressed.This in turn ,,weakens their immune system and they are much more suceptible to the afore mentioned fungus,finrot,bacterial infections etc. Medications are largely ineffective while water conditions are poor but by providing proper water parametrs for the species we keep, the fish are able to fight off infections and such much more easily than they can when they are stressed.


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## swaddell13 (Jan 20, 2010)

so im bout to do the change right now, and i was wondering if i should take the fish out, leave them in with only half(which i was gonna do), take out the ornaments and plants first or take the water out first then do the ornaments? i was gonna take em out first so none get stuck. also ive got black crap in my pebbles and growing on the ornaments. i was gonna do a hot water bath and scrub to the ornaments, and the rocks... well my plastic vac aint the best at suckin out waste and what not from the rocks, so thats one reason why i was thinking of taking the fish out, to clean the majority of the rocks.

let me know thx sorry if i sound like a moron, but thats why use noobs come to the pros like you so we dont kill our fish XD


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## fryup (Jan 12, 2010)

seen as your tank hasnt been doing too well i would get rid compleatly of the ornaments and but new this way all the crap/waste is gone off your ornaments....NEVER TAKE FISH OUT OF THERE TANK WHEN CLEANING THE TANK UNLESS THERE SICK...the fish will usually move away from the vac thing (mine do) also if someone like yourself needs help then just post it, usually people on the site will reply the best they can......good luck


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## swaddell13 (Jan 20, 2010)

thanks guys, the one with dropsy died shortly after the water change(think too much stress) and the other one(my little platy that stays on ground level but still manages to eat sometimes and move a bit) hes still kickin it. the other one with the face all white and crusty is also living. one of my cory cats also seems to have a recurring mouth fungus problem(always poppin up right on the tip of its nose/mouth) maybe stress? im gonna let this water go for a few days and do a 25% change a couple times this week

thx again


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