Guppies exploding...i know right

[csuggett]

HI everyone, i have a community 35 gallon tank established for a year. I change 50% H20 once a week, add fish medicine (MetroPlex), water conditioner, aquarium salt, my levels are decent (last time i checked was a few months ago) and all other fish look healthy, temp is 76F.
Except the guppies slowly get bloated until they burst a few weeks later. They bloat at the sides and get so big they wobble when they swim. They seem to eat regularly and socialize as if nothing is wrong until the last few days they hang out at the very top or hide in a plant. When I say burst, I can see their insides hanging out for a few days before they die. Then the pleco munches on them so it's difficult to do a visual analysis. I changed the food to a higher quality flake but they keep dying. What am i doing wrong?
Other fish in the tank: full sized pleco, rummy nose(4), dwarf catfish, German ram, glass fish (3). I run an LED light on timer about 10hrs a day. Clean the plants and filter(AquaSense) at least once a month. The guppies that died were in the tank for about 3 months. The only thing i can think of is a couple of plastic plants broke so i used a glue gun and repaired them. I have added some live plants and it seems to coincide with the deaths. Also I've tried feeding them peas but nobody eats them. Please help my

 

[Toad]

Sounds like dropsy. I'd test the water and see where your levels are, things may have changed from the last test. How are you cleaning the filter? The media should be rinsed in old tank water, not replaced or rinsed with tap otherwise you'll crash the tanks cycle.

 

[csuggett]

actually yes i am rinsing the sponge, charcoal and media with tap water....oops. Do i by a bacteria additive to get my cycle back to normal?

 

[Toad]

You can, but I've heard mixed things about them. I'd recommend not touching the filter for a month or two, checking your water levels frequently and keeping up on water changes and see where that gets you. I'd also stop adding the salt, especially with the pleco and catfish in there, and if you do get more guppies try a different supplier. Sometimes you can do everything right but if the fish go through hell before you get them, you won't stand a chance.