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229 Posts
I may need to disinfect my tank soon. My neons have white spots, and I have absolutely no money to get medication. I’m seriously pondering just putting all my fish to sleep, so they don’t have to go through slow deaths of being sick (I’ve already lost 5 neons, but they didn’t have spots). This is my first tank, I was awfully ignorant, and only after setting it up, did I bother to do any research about how to take care of fish...so now, I’m paying the price.
Although, I do want to try again, doing everything right! I plan on totally cleaning out everything (new gravel, but I’d like to keep my plastic plants and decorations), so it’s a fresh start again. I’ll let the tank cycle for at least two weeks (maybe a whole month), and get all my chemical levels evened out, etc. But I don’t want microscopic diseases to be there, if they don’t have to be, so I figure disinfecting would fix that. But how?? I heard you’re not supposed to use any kind of soap for fish stuff. Boiling water might melt the glue stuff in the corners of the tank and make it not as sturdy, and melt my plants.
Anybody know how I can get my tank ‘new’ without actually purchasing another one?
Also, I have an algae sucker (pleco?)...I assume they’re rather sturdy, since they seem to survive when others are dying. But he might be a carrier of whatever this is...should I get rid of him, if all my other fish end up going kaput? I bought my fish from three different stores, so I dunno who the culprit is. I could quarantine him for a while (such as when my tank is cycling)...if he seems okay after a few weeks, would it be safe to put him with a new batch? (This time, I’m gonna buy from one place, so if something happens, I can tell them their fishies are sick!)
Aurgh...
Although, I do want to try again, doing everything right! I plan on totally cleaning out everything (new gravel, but I’d like to keep my plastic plants and decorations), so it’s a fresh start again. I’ll let the tank cycle for at least two weeks (maybe a whole month), and get all my chemical levels evened out, etc. But I don’t want microscopic diseases to be there, if they don’t have to be, so I figure disinfecting would fix that. But how?? I heard you’re not supposed to use any kind of soap for fish stuff. Boiling water might melt the glue stuff in the corners of the tank and make it not as sturdy, and melt my plants.
Anybody know how I can get my tank ‘new’ without actually purchasing another one?
Also, I have an algae sucker (pleco?)...I assume they’re rather sturdy, since they seem to survive when others are dying. But he might be a carrier of whatever this is...should I get rid of him, if all my other fish end up going kaput? I bought my fish from three different stores, so I dunno who the culprit is. I could quarantine him for a while (such as when my tank is cycling)...if he seems okay after a few weeks, would it be safe to put him with a new batch? (This time, I’m gonna buy from one place, so if something happens, I can tell them their fishies are sick!)
Aurgh...