Oh no... Soap!

[Fishbro]

Dang it...I used soap




It was a very small amount on a rock (tried to get algae off )... don't judge. It took me around 5 hours to figure it out. I lost one of my mollies and the other 4 are in my other 10 gallon now with their pectoral fins all worn away. Will the soap on the fish expose my other tank to the soap too? The fish have started to show massive signs of improvement but I'm still very worried about them as well as the other fish in my 10 gallon. (Yes the 10 gallon i put them in is very oxygenated and cycled) Will the 10 gallon exposed to the soap have to recycle? It's been cycled for almost 2 years.

 

[Kat1103]

Just do water change and they should be ok. Maybe give them some salt as well to help their fins heal.

 

[Fishbro]

Hmmm I don't know if i would trust just a water change... is there anything else i can do?

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Hmmm I don't know if i would trust just a water change... is there anything else i can do?

Trouble with soap is it's gets everywhere (glass, gravel, filter, etc) and my inclination would be to break it down and give everything a good wash in a diluted vinegar solution then rinse x4 till you feel it's OK. I'd also be inclinded to replace all the media in the filter. Trouble is you're looking at a complete recycle doing that. Hopefully others will comment and have a different take/idea on the best resolution.

Good luck!

 

[adadkins1]

Other than taking the ornament out and rinsing it thoroughly, water changes are the most effective way to dilute/get rid of toxins in the water.

Just saw Mr.Limpet's post and it made me think. The safe way to go would be to take down and wash the whole tank. However you could still gamble with PWC's and rinsing the ornament to get off left over soap.

 

[Fishbro]

will apple cider vinegar work?
Thanks for the help

 

[Mr. Limpet]

will apple cider vinegar work?
Thanks for the help

White vinegar. You don't want to add to the problem. Also vinegar can be harmful to fish too (just not as bad as soap), so using it to try and do a partial clean up won't fix the problem IMO.

 

[Fishbro]

so, i really just need to rinse the crap out of everything? lol... Anyone know an effective way to kickstart a nitro cycle :/