internal parasites questions

[pluchinsky]

our fish-only tank got wiped out twice by, i believe, internal parasites. (all the symptoms fit.) my question is, will the parasites die off if i leave the tank unstocked for a period of time or do i need to do something else to it to ensure that they're out of there before i try adding fish again & have it happen again? also, can a starfish be a carrier? that's the only thing in the tank that's survived all of this.

 

[elfdoctors]

What symptoms are you talking about? Internal parasites are not particularly common.
Most infectious fish diseases will die off if the tank is left fishless for 4-6 weeks. You can keep the starfish in the tank as it is not likely to be a carrier.

 

[pluchinsky]

They died very quickly after we noticed the first symptoms. Our foxface looked healthy but started having jerky movements. We had just commented on how he was fattening up which i guess, now, may have been a swollen abdomen. (Another fish had the belly as well.) When the last ones died (our annularis angel and a damsel), they had just started bobbing around the aquarium (from something affecting their swim bladders) without any previous symptoms. They'd all been quarantined & seemed healthy prior to being added. We added them slowly. I'm not really sure how the disease could have gotten in the tank unless it, either, didn't show up in the QT period or could have come in through the food. We keep on top of the water changes, though, our pH has been running a little low with the RODI water. Any ideas?