My new tank and guppies

Question
QUESTION: Hey Karen!  I'm a first time fish owner, and might be a little more stressed about fish than I should be.  However, I just want them to be happy!
I bought a 28 gallon FIN tank and filter kit.  Ran it for about a week to get all the levels right, tested the water, then bought four silver hatchetfish.  They're great!  Then, a week later, tested the water again, its fine, and bought 5 male fancy guppies in all different colors.  I didn't want any female so I wouldn't end up with babies.  And I have two snails thrown in the mix too.  Well, less than 12 hours after putting them in the tank, one of the guppies died.  Found him at the bottom of the tank without any marks on him this morning.  Also, there are some mini bubbles floating together in one spot at the top of the water, no where near the dead fish, along with a kind of film on the surface of the water.  Nothing thick, just noticeable when I look up at the top of the water from the bottom.  I had decided that the fish that died was a fluke, maybe something was wrong with it when I brought it home and I didn't know, that the bubbles are something random to do with the filter creating little bubbles, and that the film had something to do with me trying to get the dead fish out.  Maybe I had lotion on my hands or something when my fingers went into the water when the net wouldn't reach far enough.  Well, tonight one of the four guppies left just can't seem to swim fast enough.  He's swimming up and down, along the glass, as fast as he can.
Does this sound like a specific problem you could tell me and I could fix?  Please give me any advice you can, I don't want him, or any of the others, to die.

ANSWER: Hi Lyndsay,
This is sort of a guess type of answer because I cannot really answer it definitely. There could have been many things that may have gone wrong. The first is maybe you had 'defective' fish so to speak. Sometimes you run into bad batches of fish and guppies these days are not as hardy as they once were. You can't do much about this besides do your best to pick out the healthiest. I'm sure you did. But if the petstore recently received the new fish, as bad as it sounds there probably wasn't enough time for the weaker fish to 'die-off' after the stress of shipment and handling. Sometimes its best to make sure the petstore has had the fish at least a few days before you buy them.

Another thing is did you make sure to acclimate them properly to your tank water? Sometimes floating them isn't enough and many fish do much better if you "drip acclimate" which basically involves floating the bag for about 15-20 minutes then taking the bag and propping it inside a container and setting up a drip system with airline tubing. Start a siphon by filling up the length of airline tubing with running water from the tap and plugging one end of the tubing when its filled and runs out the end. Then put the free end in your aquarium and let the water flow out. Let the first bit of water drain for a second or two into another container so you don't put the tap water into the bag. Then simply place it into your open bag and tie several knots in the airline tubing until a drip is made. About 1-2 drips per second is alright. This is time consuming and requires plenty of patience but it does indeed work. After the water in the bag has been doubled in volume, you can gently net the fish out. I like to use brine shrimp nets because these are made of soft cloth and are so much nicer on the fishes skin, fins and scales.

It always wouldn't hurt also to test your tank water itself. Make sure the ammonia and nitrites are both ZERO and nitrates are 20 or less.

As for the bubbles and the film on the surface. It could be lotion so try to make sure to scrub your hands and arm you'll be using in the tank well under running tap to try to get rid of these residues.
But the film and bubbles could also be a sign of excess nutrients. Sometimes its caused by not enough water circulation or overfeeding. A few daily water changes of about 30% should eventually make it go away.

Best wishes and I hope this helps!!!
Karen~

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: This information is great!  But two more guppies have died today, and one of the silver hatchet fish is acting like he's going to die now too.  Right before the three guppies died, they all starting swimming as fast as they could up and down the tank against the glass.  Then, when they finally were on their way out, they were lifeless, but flitter their fins every once in a while till they stop breathing, like they're paralyzed or something.
The film and bubbles are gone now, but does this behavior I mentioned above sound like anything specific?  I guess I didn't think anything of this behavior with the first one that died.

Answer
Hi Lyndsay,
There must be something wrong with the water quality. For fish death to occur like this it must be an ammonia or nitrite problem. Definitely do a 50% water change and try to get your water tested as soon as possible.

If there is a ammonia or nitrite problem, something has happened to the biofilter or the 'beneficial bacteria' which normally keep these levels at a safe zero. Maybe there was an overcleaning of the tank's filter, the filter was allowed to dry-out during a water change, a temperature or even a pH fluctuation, or some chemical added to the aquarium (medications, algae chemicals, ect.) may have depleted or even wiped out the bacterial population. The only way to really know this is by testing the water.

I don't want you to loose anymore fish, the best I can advise is do a big water change and repeat these water changes if the fish continue to look sick. Never forget to treat all new water and make sure its equal in temp to your tank.

Best wishes and I hope things get better very soon!
Karen~