how to clean and take care of water and ick on algae eater?

Question
My boss has this tank at work.  His assistant use to take care of it and we had to fire her (she was stealing).  He is so upset because he loves his fish and I want to help him(he is very old).  Can you tell me how to take care of the fish and tank.  He said there is a film over some of the fishes eyes and some ick on his algae eater, what do I do?  Thank you so much for your help I really need it!  Lori


Answer
Hi Lori;

All tanks need a 25% water change once a week, so start there. Vacuum the gravel to get it clean too. There are aquarium vacuums available at fish stores and they should be able to show you how they work. Remove only 25% of the water and be sure to use a water conditioner before adding the new water. The new water should be the same temperature as the old water. The water conditioner should remove chlorine/chloramine, help with stress and bind dissolved metals. You don't need any other additives, just a basic water conditioner. A water change is very helpful in treating disease because it boosts the immune systems of the fish.

If the algae eater has salt-like specks on him he needs some  medicine for ich and aquarium salt. Follow the directions on the labels.

Take a sample of the water to the fish store for testing. Ask them to check the levels of ammonia (NH3), Nitrite (N02), and Nitrate (NO3). Don't let them tell you "it's okay", or "slightly off", etc. We need actual numbers. Once you get the, contact me again. Also give me as much additional information as you can, such as the size of the tank, how many fish, how big the fish are, filtration, water temperature, etc.

If you can't send a followup question through the system because I am "maxed out" write to me at;

AllExperts_Fish_Guru(a)yahoo.com  

I hope to hear from you soon...

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins