lost fish, any ideas?

Question
QUESTION: hi, we set up tank in feb 09, took our time and bought some live rock, then corals (all thriving) gradually we have added 1 peppermint shrimp, one cleaner shrimp, 1 boxer shrimp, we then bought a red scooter, went onto 2 clown fish, this was over course of 4 months, water is in good condition, we bought next a mimic tang, same time 2 blue yellow tail damsels, finaly a manderin, had the mimic tang for three weeks and it has died, followed by the next day my scooter and the manderin, all the corals are flourishing and the water stats are all fine, i am gutted, the mimic had whiteish spots?? plz help if poss

ANSWER: Hi Lorraine,
Im very sorry to hear that. There are a few things that cause whit spots that can do our aquatic pets in. Without a picture I'm not able to be 100% sure. If the spots looked like salt or sugar crystals, it is most likely cryptocaryon irritans, or Ich, and it can definitely cause enough stress on the fish to cause death if not treated. Ich can also spread to the rest of your tank inhabitants. Ich is generally introduced to a system by a recent addition to the community. White spots can also be indication of poor nutrition and diet, bacterial infection and many other problems. Tangs are primarily herbivores so if the diet does not consist of algae or seaweeds, he slowly dies of malnutrition or gets another infection while eating regularly. It is usually accompanied by reddish or raw, inflamed looking areas around the face, gills or fins. Many infections start in this manner with whitish spots, or a bleaching look. I wish I could pinpoint it exactly for you. If you have a picture or any more information I would be glad to help more.

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QUESTION: thank you for trying, its been a disaster, the mimic died on the saturday, went to shop to seek advice and bought a treatment on the sunday, too late, scooter and mandarin dies on sunday eve, and monday morning my clown fish were gone, the two damsels followed suit later, all fish have died, its devastating, the clown fish were covered in white it almost looked like they were covered in fluff, all fish had a bleached look about them, very discoloured, my shrimps and corals all look fine and well, how do we make sure the tank is cleaned out properly after this? i am very reluctant to get more fish in the future, truely devastating, thank you

Answer
Lorraine,
White fluffy stuff.... that sounds like a fungal infection. Test your water quality again. Then I would do a 25% water change(regardless of the test results), a good cleaning of the substrate(not too deep), filter media and glass and let the aquarium recover for a few weeks doing a 25% water change every 8 to 10 days. If it was indeed a fungus it can remain in the system. 4 weeks should be enough time with the water changes to clear it up. I advise against any fungicides available as they can harm your corals and inverts. Do you have a quarantine tank for new additions? Fungal infections usually come from poor water quality, or on a new addition. Get yourself a 10 to 20 gallon setup, no substrate, no more than 1 rock and preferably none at all, use a pvc tube or an artificial decoration for a hiding spot. This isnt a display so you dont want pretty, you want effective. Every time you purchase a new addition, in it goes for a week to 3 weeks. This allows you to watch for any developing problems you may not see at your LFS and prevent infection of your entire system again. I am truly sorry. Its a horrible thing tyo lose such beauty youve invested time and care in. Just follow these steps and set up the quarantine, and we'll get you going again. Let me know if I can help more.