All Guppies Died From Disease + Cycle Crashed, How To Start Over

HI all,

First post here so hopefully I do this right.
It's a 29 gallon aquarium, Sunsun302 with biohome ultimate media, Seachem flourite substrate.

I had done a fishless cycle (2ppm ammonia would convert to 0 ammonia & nitrite in 24 hours) and started out with a handful of guppies.
At the pet store they already said "not this one.. not that one.." as they were sickly, that should have been my cue to get out but I was too excited to get fish and alas here we are.

Some of them started pooping white/clear stringy stuff, others got bloated and started having difficulty swimming, most started becoming lethargic and stopped eating until eventually all died.
On top of this, my cycle seems to have crashed/slowed down.


I am wondering what would be my best option here:

Treat the water with API general cure (or something else?) or does water itself not need treatment?

Or should I just drain the tank and sterilize everything and start over from scratch, this also due to the fact my cycle isn't quite right anymore?
On the topic of sterilizing the tank, is this a doable thing for the stuff inside the aquarium or am I looking at buying new media, decorations, substrate etc.


I'd appreciate any and all help.
Also I'm investing in a quarantine tank so I can prevent sickness in the future.

 

I’ve been having that problem too. My tank is 4 months old and I intended it to be a guppy tank. My first guppies all died from sickness. I started treating them with general cure for the stringy poop and they seem to do better afterwards. Then they got the wasting disease which only started after a month of being in the aquarium. Some are surviving and having babies. I decided to just try giving them good food and 50% water change twice a week. There’s a way to do that without stressing them out.

 

I’ve been having that problem too. My tank is 4 months old and I intended it to be a guppy tank. My first guppies all died from sickness. I started treating them with general cure for the stringy poop and they seem to do better afterwards. Then they got the wasting disease which only started after a month of being in the aquarium. Some are surviving and having babies. I decided to just try giving them good food and 50% water change twice a week. There’s a way to do that without stressing them out.

Do you think whatever the disease was has been eradicated from your tank with the use of API General Cure? Or did you also clean your tank/filter?

 

Do you think whatever the disease was has been eradicated from your tank with the use of API General Cure? Or did you also clean your tank/filter?

The parasites die off and gets suctioned off with water change. I do a thorough vacuuming each time. From what I read, sometimes they don’t die but just get knocked out enough so the fish can poop it out. Then the medicine in the water kills it.
As far as the filter go, the parasites can’t live without a host. So if my filter is good enough, it isn’t going anywhere. Plus the filter media is probably saturated with the meds too.
Some Bacterial infections can live in your filter but the best course is to keep fish healthy. Keeping the tank clean with water changes and general maintenance helps a lot. Keep the fish diet healthy to because their immune system will help them fight it off. Usually when their stressed is when infections kick in.
I never clean my filter thoroughly. I want to keep the beneficial bacteria in there. When I rinse my media, I do it in parts. Half today and the other half will be next water change. I don’t want a minI cycle, more stressful for fish.

 

Have you done anything to remove the medicine from your aquarium? For example did you use carbon? Or did you rely simply on water changes to remove the medicine?

 

I did both. Water changed 50% two days in a row ( my fish are used to it) and carbon. I also turned on my UV sterilizer which inactivates some antibiotics.
If your fish are not used to large water changes, try removing 50% water replace only 25% ( so the tank is 3/4 full) wait 2 hours then fill it all the way.

 

It sounds like worms, more specfically roundworms, capallaria or camallanus.
Maybe you should look into a better list of medications in the future, since guppies tend to get sick alot.
I keep all of my meds now in flake form, except quick cure for external parasites

 

It sounds like worms, more specfically roundworms, capallaria or camallanus.
Maybe you should look into a better list of medications in the future, since guppies tend to get sick alot.
I keep all of my meds now in flake form, except quick cure for external parasites

I researched the worms you described but they don't really match with what I was seeing.

I have upped the heat in my tank and am now treating it with API General Cure and API E.M. Erythromycin, as shown by Aquarium Co-Op on YouTube.
That combined with the fact there are no fish in the aquarium right now should hopefully clear things up for new fish in the future.
Also I got some 10 gallon tanks that I'll be using as a quarantine and pre-treatment before I put fish into the main tank from now on.

This is definitely a learning experience, I just wish they didn't have to die.


On the up side of all this, the cycle crash seems to have been fixed. Since all the fish have died I add ammonia again to keep the BB alive and every day ammonia&nitrites are down to 0ppm.