Toxic aquarium ornaments

[hayley3]

My daughter brought her aquarium home from college and the water smelled horrid. So we changed the water and the smell was okay til 3 days later. I finally narrowed it down to an ornament that my daughter bought for her fish to swim through.

I am assuming it's toxic to the fish...how do you know which ornaments are safe? She bought it at Walmart btw.

Thanks,
Cheryl

 

[Coralocean]

Do you know what it was made of? Plastic type, metallic?

 

[hayley3]

No, it's a colored log that the fish can swim through.

 

[hayley3]

I"m including a picture hopefully. She said it didn't smell when she first put it in the aquarium but now it is quite offensive.

 

[coralbandit]

If it is hollow it is just likely filling with water that never gets circulated and becomes stagnant ? That even sounds smelly !
It is not 'toxic' if it does render the fish ill somehow ?
Are any fish showing any ill symptoms ?
Maybe drill holes in it to allow more flow ?
Did it say it was an aquarium ornament ?

 

[hayley3]

The fish hides under the filter all the time...she didn't do that before and she has something wrong with her scales. She is eating though.

I took out the log and washed it cause we are going to get a new aquarium tomorrow, this one is leaking, but that's another story. After washing the log really well it still smelled. And I can still smell it in the water inside the aquarium although it seems less since I removed the log.

There was a white smelly residue on the lid, the filter and the heater but my daughter said it was the tap water causing that..so not sure since the fish has been gone for 3 months. The smell makes you want to vomit , it is that bad.

 

[coralbandit]

Ditch the ornament then .
For odor water changes and vacuuming should help.
Carbon can aide but should not be depended on.
The scaling [white stuff] is likely calcium build up from the water .
Good luck on new tank.

 

[hayley3]

Thanks a lot.

 

[Angellove78]

Yeah, I'd throw it. Maybe someone bought it before and used it for something non fish related and took it back. You never know. Could be anything.