Help with my tank and sick fish.

[MamaSueD]

Hi, I inherited my 33 gallon tank about 9 months ago. I would like to apologize for this long post but I feel you need to know the background and my experience with the tank so you can help me.

I have the following fish in the tank (all came with the tank except for the larger snails)

1 Bala Shark (approx. 7-8 inches long & 8+ yrs old)
1 Angle Fish (approx. 5-6 inches & 8+ yrs old)
1 Siamese Algae Eater (approx 4-5 inches, no age given)
2 Reg Zebra Danios (2-3 inches, no age given)
4 Long fin Zebra Danios (2-3 inches, no age given)
5 Snails ( I can't think of names but ones that don't multiply fast- 1/2 -1 inch) These were added by me 2 at first and 3 more after the Plecos died)
Several tiny snails (1/8-1/4 inch) I have no idea what kind these are. These came with the tank.

Until 2 wks ago I had a Plecos (i believe it was a Long Fin Plecos) that was approx. 7-8 inches long.

When I inherited the tank, it was running a filter similar to the Aqueon Quiet Flow filter. However, it was an ancient filter and the actual filters had not been cleaned often at all. There was no air bubble system, black sand was used in place of stones, and I believe Java Fern attached to driftwood ran the entire length of the aquarium down the center. The tank had been set up for at least 8 years so the tank definitely had cycled. The person I received this tank from never, as far as I know, checked any of the levels such as nitrites, nitrates, ph or ammonia. At least that was what I was told by him. There is also a florescent light across the top, wattage I do not know. I was given with the tank Aquarium Salt & APT Tapwater conditioner and told how much of each to use. I was also given Tetra Fish Flakes and told to feed approx a 1/2 TBS each morning. Water changes were to be made once a month and filter changes were not mentioned at all. The Java Fern was so large you could barely see the fish swimming and the Siamese Algae eater I did not see but twice in the first six months I had the tank. I was also given an old heater but told that it was optional and he had not used it for quite sometime, so I have not used it as of yet.

I bought and started to run, when the old filter quit working, a Marineland C-220 canister filter about 3 months after I received the tank.

Because I could not see the fish in the tank, I removed two of the five Java Ferns that were in the tank about a month after starting to use the Marineland filter. I replaced these with some ornamentation, simple but with hiding places. Approx. a month after that I removed another of the ferns because the filter kept getting clogged with the pieces of leaves that somehow kept getting broken, or eaten I supposed, off. I added a third ornament, some floating vegetation, and a bubble maker ornament. The tank was doing fine until about two months ago when I first read about testing the water and bought a testing kit. The levels were fine according to the stips I used except it did read that the water was a little harder than it should be. I was told that since the tank had been established so long, it was not wise to try and add any other fish. The more I read about freshwater aquariums and the fish I had in my tank, the more I became concerned about my tank. So I bought the APT master testing kit.

I have tested the water over the last month and tried to do the water changes to remedy my numbers but to no avail. Here is where they have been and where I have them to as of tonight.

1st readings
Ph 7.8
Ammonia .25
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 80
Temp: 70.9

Readings 4/16/16
Ph 7.8
Ammonia .25
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 40
Temp: 71

I have been changing the water 1/3-1/2 once a week. I stirred up the sand and tried to get the excess food and waste out of it but this has not been easy. I cut down on what I fed the fish a long time ago because of the uneaten food I could see once the plants were removed. Until I removed them I could not see but a small line of sand in the front of the tank. I have cleaned the canister filters once a month with a water change and per the instructions of the unit for replacing the filters and charcoal.

Here is where I need help.
1. What do I need to do to get rid of the ammonia and lower the ph?
2. I have some sick fish-my long fin danios.
1. I have noticed over the last several weeks that the fins of the long tails seem to be getting whiter especially along the edges but other than that they ate and swam as usual.
2. The Plecos started acting funny at times, he always came out during the daylight even from the beginning but he seemed to sit still in one spot a little longer than normal about three days before we found him dead. He had eaten the day before he died and other than being slightly sluggish as described seemed fine. We just found him at the bottom of the tank one morning.
3. Since he died, one of the long fin danios fins have been getting brown and rusty looking. He swims and keeps up with the others and he is eating still. However, tonight I noticed the other danios picking on him and chasing and hitting him. Another of the long fin danios was swimming with fins sticking straight out from its body, swimming in a circle and sticking to one spot in the tank. That fish and one other one had a light purplish color at the point where the tail fins and the back fins connected to the body.

What I have done so far.
I took the three fish and put them in a different 10 gal tank I have had set up for about a month and to make sure it was cycled enough, I added the safe start by Tetra to the water as well as adding StressZyme.
I did my regular water change tonight in the big tank, with my usual conditioning, used StressZyme this time, and used Tetra Easy Balance.
I noticed that as soon as I did the water change and put them in the other tank, the fins of the two did not look so purplish anymore. It is the one with rust colored fins that I am really worried about even though other than the color of his/her fins there seems to be no real problem with it. I will take pictures tomorrow and add to this post if I get the chance. The ones I took tonight did not turn out well at all.

I would appreciate any advice I can get with these problems. I am new to this but have come to love these fish.

 

[Autumnsky]

That is a very long post. But I understand.

There is too much to answer all at once.

So first off when a tank has been established for a very long time, and changes are made, it can cause an uset which can cause sick fish.

Evaporation causes water to leave the tank and all the minerals remain in the tank because they do not evaporate. If the bottom is not vacuumed, the mulm (poop & stuff) builds up. When disturbed this can cause problems with the tank parameters.

When you changed to the new filter did you remove and keep the filter pads?

If not that was where a huge amount of the BB was.

When you removed a large amount of plants you also removed a large amount of natural living filter of the tank.

If you change the filter pads every month then you throw away the largest amount of BB and you have to essentially start over for cycling the tank to grow enough BB to have the cycle work.

Cleaning the sand kicks up Nitrates.

I personally wouldn't worry about the pH right now.

As for the ammonia, check your faucet/tap water and see if it has ammonia. Mine has before and it was driving me crazy not understanding why my tank had it until I fould it was coming straight out of the drinking water (Yuck!).

You can use Prime dechlorinator which will neutralize the ammonia and other bad stuff. Buy as big of a bottle as you can afford! Get this as soon as you can.

Its pretty late here, hopefully a few more can chime in and help.

 

[ktomminello]

I would strongly suggest removing the bala shark from your tank, rehome him OR get him a 75g minimum tank and at least 4 friends. I honestly hate seeing box stores sell them.

I second the prime suggestion. Just remember to use as instructed (*dose for 1g is 1 drop, I realized yesterday that this dose is not on their packaging) and only dose the full tank every 48 hours to bind ammonia if you find yourself in a state of cycling your tank again.

Ph of 7.8 is not bad as long it's stable. How is your angelfish doing?

 

[MamaSueD]

Thanks for the help!

Autumnsky,

I will try to answer as many questions as I can in the order you replied.
1. No, I did not keep the old filters 1st, because I had no choice they were
totally gone. When I removed the first one to see if I could find the
problem with the filtration unit, it fell apart. I have no idea when or if the
filters had ever been changed. 2nd, I most likely wouldn't have kept them
anyway because I did not know to do so at the time. So all the filters were
brand new. I knew it would make a difference, just not how much of a
difference.

2. I figured the dynamics would be changed when I removed some of the plants but again, I had no idea how much it would change. I removed them because I could not see the fish but also because there was a lot of rotten leaves in the ones I removed. The two that I did keep, I have had to trim back drastically because of the dead leaves also. Even now there is a lot of brown in them. I am fertilizing them as instructed to by a person at Petco.

3. Since I bought the new canister filter, I only change the top filters completely and the charcoal as per the instructions that came with it. The Bio Balls, Ceramic tube things, and the sponge filter are all only cleaned. I did this according to a you tube video I saw and in it the Bio Balls and Ceramic Tubes are cleaned/rinsed with filtered water in the tank. (done by pouring it through a t-shirt to sift the waste particles out of the water.) The sponge filter and plastic parts are rinsed off in tap water. After everything is cleaned, I then filter the water through the t-shirt once again and put it back into the canister so that the BB is not all lost. If this isn't the correct way, please let me know.

4. Cleaning the sand is something I am not sure how to do. I know there is a lot of waste in it and I have done my best to vaccuum it like you do the stones but other than that I don't know how to clean it. The one fish I have loves to disturb it and lay against the glass bottom. Would I be better off replacing the sand with stones?

5. I had not thought to check the tap water for Ammonia. I will do that and get the Prime dechlorinator immediately.

Thanks for your help. The sick tank is holding its own right now but fish are no better or worse than they were.

I've taken some pictures and will add them shortly. Try to add a video as well of this tank.

 

[MamaSueD]

ktomminello

Thanks for your reply. I agree with rehoming or getting a bigger tank for the Bala. I am wanting to make a tank that is approx. 5' x 18" x 20" which from what I have researched will hold somewhere around 100 or more gallons of water. I was very upset with the person who gave me the tank when I realized after research that the bala should be kept in no less than a 55 gallon tank and that there should be at least three kept together. The angel I read is another one that can get quite large and could use a friend or two. I just have not decided what I do want to do with the fish I have. If it wasn't for the fact that my son--in-law gave me this tank and the fish, I would have had them out of here in an instant. As for the Angel, after this last water change, I can actually see the stripes on the fish. Previous to this, it appeared to be a solid goldish color and also appeared fuzzy looking. I was so shocked when the color came out in this fish over the last few days. Pretty much behavior wise nothing has changed over the last few months. She/he goes to the top surface quite often which there may be several causes. I have included a closer up of the video I put on for Autumnsky which shows the two larger fish better. Please let me know if you see a problem. I will reconsider doing something with the Bala since I don't want any harm to come to either fish.
Thanks again for the help!

 

[MamaSueD]

Videos

I will have to try to put the videos on tomorrow as they don't appear to be here. I used the browse link but must have to do something different to have them show up.

 

[Delapool]

Out of interest have you tested ammonia after a filter clean. Say in 12 hour intervals for a few days. This might tell you if the filter cleaning is too aggressive or not.

Is the rust colouring a red colour internal to fish which might indicate something like bacterial septicaemia. Or is it more like a dust covering and fish are flashing (which might suggest velvet). I'm assuming parasites is unlikely from the age of the tank but it sounded like you introduced snails recently. So seeing if this started after anything.

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/fish_palace/tropicalfish_disease_identification.html

Are the water changes temperature matched? It kind of reads as something is off in the tank water chemistry and causing or making worse secondary problems as a thought.

Edit - to sum up I would be looking at anything which changes tank water stability and seeing if fish look better / worse afterwards (eg filter clean). Parasites or bacterial infections I'd also research to see if present.

 

[Autumnsky]

As a quick addition...
The filter sponge is a location where a huge number of BB will colonize, so you should consider rinsing and gently cleaning in old tank water to get out the worst muck, then you can use treated (Prime) water to rinse over and get out more gunk.

I know the sponges need to be really cleaned like in strong running water to really get clean. That is good for flow but bad for BB. So if there are several sponges. Do one one month and just rinse the other, then clean the other one the next time.

As for the T shirt thing, something instead which might help would be a dollar store or thrift store, or just a cheap pasta pot with the holes in it and a large strainer from the dollar store, you can keep just for the water changes.

This would work for the rings and easily be able to rinse using a large (fast food cup will work or like a large Starbucks cold cup) cups of tank water out of a 5G bucket in the tub or outside in the grass or flower bed so the plants can enjoy the muck. Also the option of the pasta pot insert with the handles sloshing up and down in a pwc 5G bucket of water to rinse easily!

As for vacuuming the sand, sand is great as the mulm will be at the top more.

I had an issue with a tank I got a few years back. It had so much mulm, I spent nearly every night at least 5-6 nights a week using a vac for about a month to a 50% or more pwc and still couldn't get the mulm out enough. It was years of build up and the guy who had the tank hadn't done a water change in at least a year. Never vac'ed the substrate. (YUCKY) Finally ended up removing the substrate and starting over.

Initially I had loses of fish because of the water being so different, after cleaning.

Also something called old tank syndrome can happen. There can be too much of some minerals, and other minerals can be all used up and then the pH can crash. If you have a decent KH calcium content and now you are dosing ferts that should help not have that.

All the minerals build up and the GH is very high because it is only filled for evaporation, not cleaned - exchanging the old used water so to speak with fresh new water.

So the clean water is distressing for the fish because they are used to the old water. You are passed that now I imagine with all the water changes you have made.

But, do you know what the tank GH/KH readings are? General Hardness and Carbonate hardness. There is also a test for TDS - total dissolved solids, measuring all the organic and inorganic particles/minerals. Especially in a tank without maintenance this number can be very high if there aren't adequate/any pwc. That makes the difference in the water from the tap and the water from the tank hugely unequal and the type thing the fish have a hard time adjusting to.

***
The Angelfish can be fine without a friend. For now you might be checking to see if there are any people with adequate sized tanks to accomodate the Bala (yes it is terrible some fish are commonly sold to by employees to people who aren't aware there are tank size / tankmate requirements)

Often if there is an aquarium club which meets near you, it might be a good idea to visit, often free to hang out and cost is usually reasonable if you want to be a member. Also good to check with them about a home for him, as there are responsible members who are aware of these type fish requirements and have space and friends for them.

Don't worry about this so much right now as you have some other serious things to handle first.

This is so much to have fall in your lap. The great thing is you are here for some help and that after the tank gets stabilized, keeping fish can be fun and enjoyable.

As for the plants, you can trim a leaf at a time if you have the ability to do that. I removed some plants from my little fish tank and I really didn't understand how much of a difference something like that can make.

The BB only live based upon the amount of food which is available to them and the plants filter quite a bit (some kinds more than others), think fastest growing plants generally filter the most from the tank using the excess ammonia for themselves. When those plants are removed there can be too much stuff in the tank and cause a mini cycle, because the BB aren't plentiful enough to handle the new higher amount (because the plants were using it up now aren't there).

If you haven't had the opportunity check out the article and the links in the article to get a wealth of informaton which might be of value to you and help bring together much of these bits of info we are giving you.

 

[MamaSueD]

Thanks for the help Delapool

Hi, thanks for the information and help.

I have never tested the ammonia like you suggest. I will do that this week when I change the water. It is also the week I clean the filter so maybe if I start testing every twelve hours as you suggest we can pinpoint at what is going on. I am going to start the treatment as suggested by Autumnsky as soon as my shipment comes tomorrow. Unfortunately, the only way I have of getting supplies is by mail unless I can find a driver. I am not able to drive due to several health issues so maybe I need to stock up on a few things to keep here to treat sick fish. Any suggestions of what to keep on hand?

When I first took the sick danios out of the tank and put them in the other tank, it looked like their bodies had become more red. However, once in the other tank for a while that has kind of cleared and they are the more natural color. That is except the one with the rust colored fins. I am far far far away from an expert on this but if I had to guess I would say the rust color is through the fins and not just a dusting on them. What is strange is these three fish seem to be the only ones who have problems and all three have different symptoms. 1 the rust colored fins. 2, swimming with fins straight out, and 3. tail rot. All three of them are not eating. They swim to the top and the food but seem unable to eat it. I tried some mini pellets today that I am feeding to a baby Betta but I was unable to tell whether or not they ate any. I will watch more closely when I feed them the next time.

I do try my best to temperature match the water changes. I use a thermometer for this in the tank and watch to see that the temperature does not change during the water changes. Because I am one person and I have to use a syphon attached to a faucet, it is almost impossible for me to be watching the temperature on what is going in the tubes and the tank temperatures at the same time.

I do not know how to research to see if parasites or bacterial infections are present. I've read about this being done but do not have the equipment here to do it myself and cannot afford it at this time so I sort of skimmed those chapters in the books. Maybe I better go back and reread this information.

I will start charting any differences I notice in the tank, I can do that at the least. I will say I do notice a difference in the Angel's coloring since this last change. Up until this point I thought her stripes were very dull and she was almost a solid gold color.

Again thanks for the advice. I am trying to upload a video but so far not figured it out so I need to go look for information on this and see what I am doing wrong. I'm wondering if mine are too big of files.

 

[Delapool]

Pictures are good as well. You can upload to the forum or to a hosting site like photo-bucket.

If there has been no flashing or excess slime coat production, I would suspect bacterial infection. That is what it sounds like with the purple body / white fins. Also the variety of symptoms.

But the bacteria is usually always present so something is triggering stress. Some thoughts, will see if I can dig out the books tonight.

 

[MamaSueD]

Autumnsky, thanks again

I have so much to learn!

I have noticed the sponge filter is where the must gook is. I will definitely try cleaning one at a time and just rinsing the other one out. The strainer idea sounds like a winner also.

I doubt there will be a club near me. We are in a small rural town and the closest place I would probably find something like that is about 30 minutes away. That doesn't sound like a very far distance but I don't drive due to health issues. I have to order everything over the internet. Which brings me to my next question.

Is there some basic supplies, treatments, I should keep on hands? Delapool suggested the one fish might have a bacterial infection. I have no way to test this and I have nothing to treat it with either. Everything I order has at least a two day lag time before reaching me and sometimes three or more. Overnight stuff takes two days for us because of our post office hours. Anyway, if keeping some stuff on hands will help I can start and order some of it a little at a time. I just need to know what I should keep on hands.

Now, I am going to rehome the Bala and temporarily put the angel in a different tank along with the siamese algae eater. I am thinking of scrapping the sand and starting over with new or even going with the stones. I really don't know which is best to use or is one better than another? I will do my best to clean the filter but leave as much of the BB as I can so the tank will cycle quicker. Is there any such thing as too much BB?

I am going to read the article you suggested and hopefully that will help me a little more. Oh, I almost forgot. I am having trouble with the video file, I think mine is too big so will still work on that one but if you could view it, you would see that the Bala and Angel swim together a great deal of the time. They were purchased at the same time and have always been together and this they are over 8 years old but how much older the old owner cannot remember. Pictures dating back 8 yrs is the reference point. My question is, should these two be kept together? Are fish like other pets that if they are raised together they should not be separated?

I have taken to heart all your suggestions and advice and I have already initiated a few things and am researching others. I will read the article tonight after the puppy goes to bed, yes on top of the fish tank I now have a new 7 month old puppy to deal with so time is not easy to find.
Thanks so much for all your help!

 

[MamaSueD]

Videos and pictures.

I actually found where to upload these and tired doing so but the message I get is "this site can't be reached." So I don't know what I am doing wrong. I will keep working at it or try some other site and put in the links.

Thanks for your help. If it is bacterial what do I do about it without knowing what bacteria is causing it? These fish are really old according to the previous owner so he wasn't even sure it was worth saving them. He said the small ones were from his very first tanks and he has had tanks since he was in his teens. He turned thirty recently so they could be up to 15 years old. He said there were quite a few more of them but we are down now to the last six that were left. I know the larger fish are at least 8 yrs old and he said he would not be surprised if they were more like 10 yrs. old. I called him tonight to see if I could get any more information out of him about the fish. He is my son-in-law so that wasn't too difficult. It is clear though that he doesn't know as much as he thinks he does about them because many of the things he told me about keeping these fish is actually wrong (you don't have to change the water but about once a month and clean the filters every six months or so.) I think he got most of his information from PetSmart and places like that where they don't always know themselves.

Thanks, any help you can give is very welcomed.

 

[MamaSueD]

Here is a link to my photos and videos

Hi, I decided this was the easiest way to share the pictures and videos. There are pictures of the Angel, Bala, and the rust colored-fin sick Danio. The videos are of the Danios and one of the Angel and Bala in the big tank. the Danios are in a tank with a florescent light at the moment so they appear more red than the really are now although they all had reddish bodies when I first separated them. Also, the Angel has white spots on her tail and fin but these spots have been there since I got her last June and they have not changed at all and none of the other fish have gotten any of them. I first thought of ick when I saw her but apparently this is just a part of her coloring. I hope this link works for you, I have never used photobucket before so I am not sure of it.

MamaSueSD's Library | Photobucket

 

[Delapool]

I kind of really need to read this all again but have jotted down some ideas below. Mostly working through the posts. Bearing in mind these are just notes from my tank and you can pick from these and other posts/research what makes sense for your tank.


Tap water conditioner - check if it detoxifies chlorine, chloramines and ammonia (e.g. seachem prime). It should say this on the label otherwise may not. Since you have slight ammonia readings this would be helpful.


Fish food - check if fairly fresh and recently opened. Otherwise replace with a quality product.


Temperature - check within range of fish preference. I'm used to Celsius and wondering if those temps are low.


Substrate - sand or fine gravel is fine. Coarse pebbles may have food sink into it which fish can't get to. I use fine gravel and light gravel vac the tank front (rest is covered by plants).


White fins - can be natural or I've noticed that in tetras where they get stressed and a precursor to bacterial infection (or ages ago fungal but never parasites).


Purple colours - at the base of the tail I've had that as a bacterial infection (along with swelling and lesions develop). If a black colour on top of the scales or fins might be from ammonia (chemical) burns which I've read can take three days to show.


Ferts - what are you using? Just in case test tank water after ferts dosing (say several hours after) for ammonia. Sub-note Nitrates are sufficient for plants.


Angelfish - er, weird. Not an expert on these. Wondering what the fuzzy-looking means and if the stripes are stress related or natural. Photo's needed I think. Edit - to check photos.


Old tank syndrome - agree. Changes to be tank should be gradual to keep stability but improve tank. If very old fish may just be their time.


Tail rot - bacterial infection (signs of again).


Temperature match - just needs to be close and not say way colder water tipped in from a bucket suddenly into tank.


Meds - will post later. I guess thinking of medicated fish feed with antibiotics to be kindest on filter.

 

[Autumnsky]

Sounds like you have your hands full!

One thing you could do for the fish is (testing of course) but if you decide to change the substrate. Sand is fine. Garnet (real Garnets) sand is a sand blasting sand and ranges in color from a pinkish purple or orangeish amber depending where it is mined from. I have a tank of the purpleish color. This can be found at a farm supply store. Or a company that supplies items for paint and sand blasting, sometimes big box home improvement stores. I think there are 40-50 lbs for around $20-25. Needs rinsing, and is a little cleaner than average sand due to its use as blasting sand.

Another option is Eco-Complete plant substrate, no rinsing just put right in, or Caribsea Naturals with its own version of bb and and no need to rinse, it just goes right into the tank. Both can be ordered online and just compare based on whether shipping is included or not. Both are good.

Then take water from the tank and put into a five gallon bucket. Add the fish when there is enough water in the bucket. Leave a couple of gallons of room in the bucket.

Save all the water you can (2nd or 3rd bucket if you have it).

During the time, add new fresh treated water into the 5G bucket at about 16-20 oz (I use a cup like plastic fast food/Starbucks) about one every 20 minutes to half hour while you are doing the new scape. Until the bucket is pretty much full.

You scoop out all the sand goop into a tripple bagged trash bag and or use it in the garden/flower bed.

Clean every thing out with baking soda and vinegar, a new, clean, rinsed, sponge, as well as a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser useful for any particles.

Add new sand, design your scape, add extra water from the original tank back into the tank. Add 1/3rd new fresh treated water also into the tank.

Add about a gallon of the fish in bucket water to the tank, then add back water from the tank one container at a time about every 10 min till full again. By this time the fish water in both containers should be pretty much the same.

Put the water from the fish bucket half way back into the tank add back in the fish then the rest of the water.

Don't worry if the water in the tank isn't full, but you will need to hopefully have enough to get your filter hooked up and running.

Then after about 12 - 24 hours add more clean treated water into the tank a couple of the containers at a time every half hour or so (when you think about it,) till full.

This is more complex process than one might usually use due to the fish being a bit more sensitive.

 

[MamaSueD]

Like your thoughts Delapool

Tap water conditioner I was told to use is API brand. I do believe it removes the things you listed. However, I was told how to use it wrong and so I know I have not been using enough, or at least not according to the directions I read on here tonight in one of the beginner guide things. I have only been dosing the amount of water I replace, not the whole tank so if I removed 10 gallons I put in the amount for 10 gallons. That is not what I understand it should be so I will need to change this.

Fish food-It is the Tetra brand of flakes because that is what he had been feeding them. It is a fairly new container but a giant container because my hubby bought it for me when he was out and figured it was the best buy. It has been opened about 3 months I would say. Is there a better brand I should get?

Temperatures- I know these are lower than what they should be. However, there again he didn't keep the temps any higher so I'm not sure at this point if I should actually raise them since that is what they are used to. If anything my temps are probably higher than what he kept them at because he doesn't believe in paying high heating bills in the winter and only kept the heat about 65F when he was not home and about 68 when he is home. He did not have a heater in the tank so I would say his tanks were kept at a cool 68F most of the time. Should I or should I not put in a heater at this point?

The tank came with sand as the substrate and I have not changed it thus far. I do try to keep it vacuumed so that the excess food and other gook is kept as low as I can keep it.

Fins being white-- They have always been a whitish color but seem to be a little more white than usual. Purple at base of tail disappeared as quickly as it appeared. I believe it had to do with my tanks levels.

I just started using the ferts. I believe what I have is API Leaf Zone. I did not know about the root tabs until after I got this so will get these in a couple days when my order comes in.

Angel fish- I know she has looked weird to me since I got her. In fact, until this last water change I did not realize her black stripes were actually black but thought they were a muddy gray color. She looks much brighter these last few days compared to when I got her.

Unfortunately I did not know what removing plants etc. would do to the tank so that is one I can't turn the clock back on but will know better about doing from now on.

I would like to treat these fish if for no other reason than to gain experience in doing so. My pictures are not very clear especially for the sick fish but I'm hoping we can figure out what to do using them. My phone does not take good pictures.

Thanks

 

[Delapool]

Tap water conditioner I was told to use is API brand. I do believe it removes the things you listed. However, I was told how to use it wrong and so I know I have not been using enough, or at least not according to the directions I read on here tonight in one of the beginner guide things. I have only been dosing the amount of water I replace, not the whole tank so if I removed 10 gallons I put in the amount for 10 gallons. That is not what I understand it should be so I will need to change this.



Fish food-It is the Tetra brand of flakes because that is what he had been feeding them. It is a fairly new container but a giant container because my hubby bought it for me when he was out and figured it was the best buy. It has been opened about 3 months I would say. Is there a better brand I should get?



Temperatures- I know these are lower than what they should be. However, there again he didn't keep the temps any higher so I'm not sure at this point if I should actually raise them since that is what they are used to. If anything my temps are probably higher than what he kept them at because he doesn't believe in paying high heating bills in the winter and only kept the heat about 65F when he was not home and about 68 when he is home. He did not have a heater in the tank so I would say his tanks were kept at a cool 68F most of the time. Should I or should I not put in a heater at this point?



The tank came with sand as the substrate and I have not changed it thus far. I do try to keep it vacuumed so that the excess food and other gook is kept as low as I can keep it.



Fins being white-- They have always been a whitish color but seem to be a little more white than usual. Purple at base of tail disappeared as quickly as it appeared. I believe it had to do with my tanks levels.



I just started using the ferts. I believe what I have is API Leaf Zone. I did not know about the root tabs until after I got this so will get these in a couple days when my order comes in.



Angel fish- I know she has looked weird to me since I got her. In fact, until this last water change I did not realize her black stripes were actually black but thought they were a muddy gray color. She looks much brighter these last few days compared to when I got her.



Unfortunately I did not know what removing plants etc. would do to the tank so that is one I can't turn the clock back on but will know better about doing from now on.



I would like to treat these fish if for no other reason than to gain experience in doing so. My pictures are not very clear especially for the sick fish but I'm hoping we can figure out what to do using them. My phone does not take good pictures.



Thanks

Ferts sound fine.

Fish food might be getting on but tetra is ok. I tend to buy smaller containers which is a little more but fresher feed.

The fish with the fins stuck out seemed to sink if it stopped swimming? The rest sound ok?

 

[MamaSueD]

Update and Thanks

Thanks so much for every ones help! I am happy to say that other than putting the three fish in quarantine, I have done nothing with them and all three are acting much better. I am treating the tail rot so hopefully this fish will continue to get better also. The one with rusty colors is clearing up and going back to it's original colors. I am trying to remedy my main tanks ph, ammonia, and nitrate levels using your suggestions. I still have not found a home for the bala but will continue to look for one.
Thanks again for all your help!