xXInkedPhoenixX

There are lots of pages on the internet about this disease that's being referenced and it seems @Danabana that because of how fast they died it could have been the culprit. A lot of people on here like to use aquariumscience.org (I personally do NOT) but most of the pages about the disease say the same thing: https://aquariumscience.org/index.php/10-15-dwarf-gourami-disease/

@Colu since the swordtail died do you think treatment is prudent or should she change out the salt water and watch the inhabitants?

@Danabana try to get everyone to eat it if they are all sick, you can focus on Big Blue to make sure he eats it. Focus and Garlic Guard are Seachem products. The Garlic Guard attracts the fish so they eat the medicated food. https://seachem.com/garlicguard.php Focus is similar but helps with bacterial infections: https://www.seachem.com/focus.php

"Nailed it" 😳

I've seen your post floating for a few days. I didn't answer because I don't have the experience with keeping 2 different Hillstreams together. I have a loner in my Flex9 and I love the little thing. However my impression is that Hillstreams, while somewhat territorial, don't seem to be aggressive to the point of hurting each other- they do a lot of pushing and posturing. Before I got one I've watched a lot of youtube videos with them in breeder tanks (read: "overstocked") and nobody got hurt. I think they're relatively peaceful and once they determine who is in charge they'll be fine. Personally I would try it. That said, I'd probably either have a backup plan for moving them out or if that's not possible, ask the fish store before I buy them if I could bring them back (likely with no refund but worth trying)

Blue green algae is actually a bacteria that photo-synthesizes. There are a few methods, blacking out your tank, using h2o2 (hydrogen peroxide) or an antibiotic like Maracyn2. If it were to hit me I'd go with the maracyn as I've seen disasters (dead fish and fast) with the peroxide method and it will kill your good bacteria. Blacking out if you have nothing on hand would be your only option, risk here is possibly losing plants. I would probably go with Maracyn 2 if it were me- while it could also kill beneficial bacteria it seems like the most manageable choice. Before you do any of the methods do your research. Clean the tank like you have been first. And then go for the treatment you pick.

@Colu she's waiting on an order that contains maracyn and para-cleanse. Since salt is the only thing on hand advised to dose and start the Maracyn when it gets there. 😞

Hopefully I'm going powerless on this one 😄 @Beardedbillygoat1975 Our fearless leader @Streetwise is my current inspiration. Watch me massively fail 😄 Do we have a massive fail category?! Catastrophic Beauty maybe?

@Colu her other fish are showing similar signs now as a female swordtail passed but no signs of bloating. I'm leaning towards a bacterial infection, what do you think?

...of the meds you have coming if we still have hope start with the Maracyn as it has Erthromycin.

@Odd Duck making it sound like the rose in the story The Little Prince.

Aww. I'm so sorry. Put your seatbelt on, it sounds like it's going to get bumpy in that tank and brace yourself for some losses.

Ugh. Salt that tank if you haven't already. 😞

Absolutely that's a good way to do it. Usually in my case I have small QTs so I just do a huge water change and use a piece of Polyfilter to soak up the rest.

Ahh @Guppysnail bonsai and succulent pots are awesome they both come in sets the wood look comes in 2, the rock look in a set of 3 courtesy of our friends at Amazon: Check this out at Amazon.com happy bonsai 2 pc Cement... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08JTJV59T?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share Check this out on Amazon T4U 5.5 Inch Ceramic Succulent Pot Planter with Drainage Hole Set of 3, Stone Shape Rectangle Window Box Cactus Plant Containers Gift for Mom Sister Aunt Best for Home Office Table Desk Decoration https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B071GRCXJV/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_glt_i_ECM59N4JJ0XAE6205Y7F?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

It's an antibiotic containing kanamycin. It is very effective in treatment of bacterial infection, like columnaris (a scary one) also fungal. There have been times I had no idea exactly what was going on but Kanaplex fixed it. Can be used in the water column and use it to medicate food. It's just a good all-around to have.

Pots are your friend. My original 20 gallon tank I had to rearrange but didn't want to "re-do" the tank so I got pots that looked like wood and rock and viola! This is my bare bottom tank where I use bamboo pots: Our lovely forum member @Guppysnail does all sorts of bare bottom pot things so she's a good source of inspiration for that style as well!

That's got to be nice and stimulating for him, keeps him busy and occupied. Looks cool!

I do. We all have different philosophies on it- a lot of people here of course do use the med trio being Co-op fans. Personally I just QT and observe. I don't use medication unless it's needed. My QT fish stay a minimum 4 weeks and up to 6 if healthy. If I need to treat them I keep them in QT at least 2-3 weeks AFTER all signs of illness had gone and if I don't trust it, longer. When you get a chance I'd recommend adding Seachem Kanaplex to your med box (and an Ich med like Ich X). Kanaplex has saved my a.... um behind many times.

Don't beat yourself up over the meds. One of the things in this hobby even when you are prepared is that there are some hard lessons learned- but trust me once you make a certain mistake you will NEVER do it again. I realize in some cases that's little comfort- say in the case that fish die because of it- but it is in HONOR of those fish that you strive to be a better fish keeper. At least that's how I look at it. I think the salt will be one of the better treatments anyway- though it would be nice to have another option. What meds do you have coming? I'm not sure we've talked about that.

@Greg Stewart yep exactly (about the red). I'm ok with this pretty green bushy plant as it is- it still does well though it's not what most people are looking for in that particular plant. Red plants definitely need more than what my low tech tanks can give so I've accepted those limitations- I just go with "texture" trying to balance narrow long leaves, small rounds, needles, broad leaves, long and short stems, whatever I can find. 🙂

That is Caribsea EcoComplete. I have 6 tanks and it's in 5 of them (the last is bare bottom but has eco complete in pots with plants). I actually use no fertilizer at all, just rely on my little boxed ecosystem to support itself. Just use filters (sponge mostly) and light. No heaters, no fertilizers, no co2.

Yeah I like to keep life simple as I can Don 😄 The other stem plant that works well for me is Ludwigia Red Needle Leaf (which doesn't turn red in my low tech tanks) - it gives a different texture to the typical easy care plants, I trim tops and replant!

I can't speak to the pearlweed as I don't have any. I run low tech so I only do "easy" plants. The Bacopa you can leave in pots- in fact I grow my bacopa IN a pot, I trim it and replant and it just keeps going! You likely could plant it in gravel, you can float it (it grows roots). It's probably one of the easiest stem plants I've had.

@laritheloud is one of our excellent Gourami keepers she may be able to help us too, if nothing else id'ing what kind of Gourami you have. 😉 😃 to get rid of tannis in a piece of wood? Nope, just what you are doing. Boiling, dumping, boiling dumping @Streetwise would be rolling over in pain to see that though. Tannins ARE good for your tanks, but I get not all of us are going for that look. If you have indoor or outdoor plants I hope you are using that water on them though- they'll appreciate it.