Entire tank wiped out

[luka]

I am writing this message to you all with a broken heart and tears in my eyes. My fish, my entire tank, has been wiped out during the past two days......
I introduced a new hippo tang to my tank after about 6 days in the Q-tank. Yet she started with ich then turn into some small, fuzzy tiny white dots all over her body. (it was not like ich any more....) then die. All this process took place in about 24 hrs. My copper band butterfly (1 month in the tank), pearlscare butterfly (3 month in the tank), nemo (4 month in the tank) are all gone !!!!
Even my trigger (3 month in my tank) now is scratching so badly, he has his body cut by the deco in the tank. In my whole 20 years of fresh/saltwate fish tank experience, I have never seen things like this happened.
What a horrible nightmare.
This disease even killed my toughest blue damsel which I kept for about 18 months since I started this tank. He has been thru the tank cycle (i know it is inhuamn to use fish to cycle the tank, i know i am guilty so do not give me crap anymore), a couple of ich infection and all came out fine. Now this morning he is sucked onto the filter inlet.
The only ones left are my fire shrimp and the two hermit crabs.
What a sad story. I have no ideas what went wrong execpt the hippo with ich to start with. I ckecked the tank and all readings are noramal and stable.
What is the disease?
Could you please give me some advise what to do next to clean up my tank and continue my "sickening" hobby. Thanks alot.
Luka

 

[oceanic110]

I would also invest in a refractometer if you don't have one. This is a great tool to have when doing Hypo treatment for fish that have ICK.

 

[beth]

Hello Luka, and welcome to Saltwaterfish.com. Sorry that you're coming here under such tragic circumstances.
Oodinium [saltwater velvet] is what I think your problem is. It is a deadly diesease that will wipe out a tank overnight.
What type of tank setup do you have?? All the fish still alive must be treated immediately in a QT. I'm going to recommend copper for this as it seems like you have a combination disease going with ich and velvet. However, if you can quickly get your hands on Marex which is manufactured by Aquatroinics great! That is the treatment of choice....but if not, immediately go with the copper, preferably Cupramine. You will need a Seachem or Red Sea copper test kit to use with Cupramine.
Your display tank should be left fishless now for 2 mos.

 

[luka]

My tank is a 125g.
Filters: undergravel filter, Mag. 350 (with carbon and denitrite media) and Rena XP3 filter (with biostar and other mechanical media for Phos....) . A Prizm pro skimmer and a heater.
I used the Saltwater Master liquid test kit from Aq. Ph. to check my settings.
Temp. =78F, s.g.= 1.021, PH= 8.3, NH3=Nitrate=Nitrite=0
I feed my fish with garlic soaked frozen food (brime shrimp, blood worm) dry food, and vegetable.
My QT tnak is 15g, bare bottom with heater and mechanical filter only. I transfer fish only when all numbers matched extactly to my main tank.
(This is not mean to brag, I got a Ph.D. in Chemistry.)

 

[luka]

Beth,
How did I get the saltwater velvet ? From the fish ? or due to water contamination ?
Thanks.

 

[elfdoctors]

The purpose of a quarantine tank has less to do with chemistry as biology. A good acclimation procedure will deal with chemistry differences. A Quarantine tank will help prevent biological problems. Many of these diseases have a quiet phase during which time they may be undetectable. Usually an illness would become apparent during a 3 week quarantine.
Welcome to the Boards!

 

[beth]

Saltwater velvet is a fish parasite. It was obviously on your most recent fish, which you introduced to the display.....this is why it is necessary to QT all new fish for at least 3 wks. As you can see, 6 days is not enough time for QT.

 

[luka]

Beth,
This is serious. Can I spot the marine velvet immediately, or I have to wait for a couple of days/weeks in the QT like ick to see the illness.
Thanks.

 

[watertite]

Did you have a UV sterilizer in place, had the same problem with ich and velvet but in combination with kick ich the problem was corrected and my purple tang is back to its beautiful self. I started slowly with a 55 gallon tank and will add more fish a my experience and judgement will allow. Again I am so sorry to hear about this.

 

[beth]

Water, welcome to Saltwaterfish.com! You must have been browsing old topics as this one is 3 yrs old.
I personally don't support Kick ich. While it may work occasionally, it is not effective enough to risk loosing fish by using it.

 

[tjake68]

my xtra large porqupine puffer that i have had for at least one year maybe longer he puffed up 3 days ago and after that seemed fine one day later he was slugish and didnt seem right next day it looked very sick just laying on bottom of the tank and wouldnt eat i took him out of the 125 gallon tank and put him in 20 gallon hospital witch had a sharpnose puffer and a hippo tang in there getting ready two be placed in one of my 5 tanks.i woke in the morning finding both puffers dead is there a certain disease that only effects puffers because the hippo tang looks fine and is eating im worried because my 125 gallon tank housees 2 other puffers a dogfacethat is 6 inches and i have forr 1 year and a huge stars and stripes that is about11 inches maybe bigger i have had him for3 years i dont want these 2 to die is this just bad luck i checked the water in hospital paramiters are all zerosexcept nitrate witch is .05 my 2 remaing puffers seem to be doing ok i also changed 45 gallons in my 125 please if any one can give me some info i would appriceate it :help: :help:

 

[beth]

How did you remove the puffer? Was he out of water at any time when you made the transfer?
Likely the sick puffer died, and there was an ammonia spike that killed the other fish, or the sick puffer released pufferfish toxins into the water, which killed the other fish.