Pet Information > ASK Experts > Pet Fish > Freshwater Aquarium > The tank is a mess!

The tank is a mess!

23 16:28:11

Question
For the past two months, my ten gallon tank has been in turmoil- it contains one angelfish and three bleeding heart tetras.  When I was on vacation over Thanksgiving, two fish died and were left rotting in the tank for up to 5 days.    Several days after I scooped the dead fish out, a fur developed on the gravel of the tank and the water became very cloudy, which I assumed to be a result of the dead fish being in the tank for too long.  Since then, I have tried everything to get rid of the fur completely (there is a very small amount left, but it is hard to get rid of) and to get rid of the smelly, cloudy water.  I have been cleaning it very well (50%) at least once or twice a week and used a solution to break the fur up on the bottom of the tank.  On a whim, I tried Algaefix but haven't noticed a difference.  My fish are stressed, not eating normally, and one of the tetras keeps getting fin rot.  I tested the levels and everything seems normal as far as ph, ammonia, nitrate, etc.  Help!!

Answer
Heather,
algacide will not kill the fur, actually it is difficult to get rid of under the best of conditions.
You should deep clean the gravel bed as that is where the trouble is.
No more medication as it is just complicating things at this point.
once you get the gravel cleaned up , do 10-15% water changes weekly and things should settle down.
Don;t overfeed and don;t add any fish untill this is cleared up.
If you have further questions, just ask