Hey guys, I've got a strange problem and I am not sure what to do about it anymore. My 30g tank got an extremely strong sulfurous (rotten egg) smell yesterday.I did some research and it seems to either be from a large die off of nitrifying bacteria creating hydrogen sulfide or a large buildup of ammonia. The former seems to occur in deep sand beds or, less frequently, in a filter. (This is from research not a diagnosis.) Of course I did tests and there is 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 10 nitrate, and pH 7.4. All normal.
I determined that the smell was actually coming from my AquaClear 70 filter though the water was picking up the smell as well. It was, however, many times stronger in the filter. Since I noticed the smell, 3 fish have died. I removed the others to a QT tank and it seems that all of the stress has resulted in an Ich outbreak which I am treating and the fish all seem to be much more active, though, some are rather pale and one has a cloudy eye.
I have been changing the water on the 30g and the smell is gone now but it was concentrated in the sponge which I had to wring under hot water to mostly remove the smell which definitely killed my BB. Today there is no odor other than the slight fish smell that it has always had but I am reluctant to move any fish back. There is another filter on it so hopefully it can re-cycle quickly. My main concern is that I still do not know the cause.
Just around an hour ago, I noticed the smell again (I've had my windows open and my fan on high since yesterday because it was overwhelming in my room). I checked the 30g and the smell was not coming from it... It's coming from a 10g that is divided with two betta fish. The fact that this has happened in two tanks in as many days is alarming. I've removed the bettas until I can figure this out and get it fixed.
At this point, I am assuming that it is something in my tap water? I use Prime to condition it. This is not Prime that I am smelling. Prime doesn't smell nearly this bad even if you press the bottle to your nose and inhale deeply.
Does anyone have any idea what this could be from? I'm worried it will happen to the QT tank too. Other than water changes, I am at a loss for what to do. If possible, I'd like to get away from this without destroying the BB in the filter on the 10g as well since it has no other filter to fall back on. Thanks!
I determined that the smell was actually coming from my AquaClear 70 filter though the water was picking up the smell as well. It was, however, many times stronger in the filter. Since I noticed the smell, 3 fish have died. I removed the others to a QT tank and it seems that all of the stress has resulted in an Ich outbreak which I am treating and the fish all seem to be much more active, though, some are rather pale and one has a cloudy eye.
I have been changing the water on the 30g and the smell is gone now but it was concentrated in the sponge which I had to wring under hot water to mostly remove the smell which definitely killed my BB. Today there is no odor other than the slight fish smell that it has always had but I am reluctant to move any fish back. There is another filter on it so hopefully it can re-cycle quickly. My main concern is that I still do not know the cause.
Just around an hour ago, I noticed the smell again (I've had my windows open and my fan on high since yesterday because it was overwhelming in my room). I checked the 30g and the smell was not coming from it... It's coming from a 10g that is divided with two betta fish. The fact that this has happened in two tanks in as many days is alarming. I've removed the bettas until I can figure this out and get it fixed.
At this point, I am assuming that it is something in my tap water? I use Prime to condition it. This is not Prime that I am smelling. Prime doesn't smell nearly this bad even if you press the bottle to your nose and inhale deeply.
Does anyone have any idea what this could be from? I'm worried it will happen to the QT tank too. Other than water changes, I am at a loss for what to do. If possible, I'd like to get away from this without destroying the BB in the filter on the 10g as well since it has no other filter to fall back on. Thanks!
