Antibacterial Help, Please!

[swood202]

My 4yo is obsessed with our fish tank; last week he emptied an 1oz bottle of hand sanitizer into the tank so the fish would have clean hands! I freaked, took out half the water from the tank and replaced it with new, conditioned water, changed the filter and waited. The fish are still alive and well, with their clean hands, however there is a white mucus looking substance that is overtaking the tank now. It all started with a film on the inside glass, but now this stringy stuff has multiplied all over the live plants, it's growing on the substrate, up the air lines, and our little sucker fish won't touch it. Do I need to tear the tank down and start over or is there something I can add to kill this stuff? What is this stuff?

 

[charliebankston]

Do you know what was in the bottle? Like ingredients? It could be the alcohol/ sugars or the oils/emulsifiers either causing a bacterial bloom or straight out sticking to the surfaces. I'm not sure what the glycerin in it would do. ?? Maybe try to wipe it out with clean sponges or cloths or even sturdy paper towels

 

[charliebankston]

Honestly, I'm surprised the fish have survived it, lol

 

[Delapool]

What’s the speed of growth?

Bacterial blooms can be quite quick. There’s slime moulds and fungal growths but a bloom would do it. Unfortunately I don’t really have a solution.

 

[charliebankston]

What’s the speed of growth?

Bacterial blooms can be quite quick. There’s slime moulds and fungal growths but a bloom would do it. Unfortunately I don’t really have a solution.

Nor do I honestly. Sorry short of breaking down the whole tank and cleaning it well. Sorry this happened OP, but at least they have "clean hands"!

 

[Caliban07]

I wouldn’t break the tank down personally. I’d just keep replacing water. Potentially could have upset your cycle with the alcohol? It’s hard to say but starting over is rarely the answer. You can fix by manual removal and replacing large amounts of water.

 

[charliebankston]

I wouldn’t break the tank down personally. I’d just keep replacing water. Potentially could have upset your cycle with the alcohol? It’s hard to say but starting over is rarely the answer. You can fix by manual removal and replacing large amounts of water.

[emoji106][emoji106]

 

[Rutrag]

It’s more likely than not a bacterial bloom. Folks in the reef side of the hobby sometimes dose alcohol (normally vodka) to help grow heterotrophic bacteria to consume nitrates and phosphates (and thereby starve out nuisance algae). An overdose usually looks something like this.

Your best bet is patience and partial water changes.

 

[charliebankston]

Oh cool, good to know info!