Fish Sickness

Question
Hi there, thank you so much for the help.  I am extremly
new to aquariums.  Up until this point, I have really only
ever had goldfish.  My uncle is disabled, and is no longer
able to take care of his fish, so he has given them to me.  
I aquired a 45 gallon tank, with a heater which I set at 78
degrees, an Aqua Clear 30 in tank filter, and a large
canister filter that sits inside the STAND of the tank, and
pushes the clean water back inside the tank.  I don't know
what this is called, since I am very new to the whole
scene.  The root of my problem is, in the tank are 3 angel
fish and 3 yellow mollies.  My uncle told me that the tank
had ick and he tried to cure it.  Looking at the fish now,
I cant really see any ick on the fish, however I don't
reaaaally know what to look for.  I have heard that it
looks as if the fish have been covered in salt.  i don't
see that on these fish.  However, I do see bad fin rot.  
Only on the angel fish, but it is fairly severe.  I also
noticed one of the angel fish is having some type of
boyance or bladder issue, he is constantly flipping
sideways, rolling around, etc. etc.  Finally, I also notice
that the yellow molly's have red gills, and I have heard
that can possibly mean problems as well.  

I'm sorry to throw everything on you, it just seems like
there are so many symptoms, i don't know what to do or how
to treat it.  Do I try and treat for ick again?  Do I try
salt (heard its good for the tank) etc. etc.

I have personally had the tank for only two weeks, but I do
know that he did 25% water changes every 5-7 days.  

Answer
Hi Blake,  

Sounds like you aquired a poorly cared for tank with a lot of problems.  It'll be a lot of work but you can turn this around.  

You need to first test your water parameters asap with a liquid drop test kit, found at any petstore, for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates.  Your ammonia and nitrites should always be flat 0, as anything else, even a trace, is severly toxic and will kill the fish.  They will cause disease first.  Nitrates should be between 5-20 ppm constantly.

I would also recommend a one time 50% water change and a good gravel washing with a syphon vacuum, also found at any petstore.  This will get out any leftover food and muck and ich eggs.  

I would rinse out your sponge and ceramic media (the white rocks in the mesh bag in the Aqua Clear filter) in water taken from the tank - NOT TAP WATER AS IT WILL KILL THE GOOD BACTERIA YOU NEED) and put back in the filter.  

I would double dose a product called Seachem's Prime.  This is a water conditioner that strips chlorine and chloramine from your tap water.  It will also neutralize the harmful ammonia and nitrites present in the water.

I would also add 1 tsp. per 5 gallons of water of aquarium salt.  This will help relieve stress and will help combat parasites, like ich.

You will also need to treat with a multi-spectrum anti-bacterial anti-biotic.  Fin rot and red gills are signs of a serious bacterial infection in the tank.  Try any of the Mardel brands that treat bacterial infections.  You can try Maracyn and Maracyn II in conjunction.  Remove any activated carbon (a black mesh bag in the Aqua Clear) before treating with anti-biotics as this will weaken them.  Replace with a new bag of carbon when you are finished treating the tank.

You should up the temp in the tank to 80 F.  This will also help combat parasites.  Increase aeration with an airstone or bubble wand since ammonia and high temps will suck the oxygen out of the water.

Change the water, 25%, each day while medicating and until your ammonia and nitrites are flat 0, as you need to preserve good water quality and you need fresh water for the anti-biotics.  Make sure you add Prime and aquarium salt to the new water going into the tank.

Do not feed the fish for 3 days.  When you do feed, try a fresh, thawed, skinned pea insides in bits.  The angels and the mollies will eat these and they will help your angel with balance problems.  I wouldn't go back to flakes or pellets or meaty foods for 5 days.

As long as the fish don't look sprinkled in salt then the ich is gone and you don't need to treat for it.

You should start to see an improvement in about a week.  If something changes or you have any other questions please let me know.

Good luck : ) April M.