Tank smell with Med Trio

[JT Zamora]

Hello all, 

i recently treated three tanks with the med trio. One tank i started treating yesterday and the other two i started today. 
So one of the tanks i treated today is making my room smell god awful, somewhat like an algae smell. The only difference between all three tanks is the one that has the odor does not have live plants(it has sand with multis) 

Is this normal? Should i be concerned? 
Im doing the preventative method of treatment as well. So one full week of treatment; not whats on the back of the boxes. 
Thanks for the help. 

Edited January 9, 2021 by JT Zamora

[AnimalNerd98]

Hi JT! 
 

I myself use the Med Trio in bare bottom tanks with a sponge filter from an established tank whenever I am quarantining or treating fish. I have sometimes noticed an unpleasant odor, but that may be due to other things that I am not aware of or familiar with. 

I would say: what are the water parameters like? Are nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia at safe levels? How do the fish look? Are they in any way acting differently: sluggish, seem to be gasping for air, blood red gills? If your fish are okay, I would give it some time/wait for advice from other people before changing out a bunch of water and possibly having to re-dose the tank. But, if any parameters are off or you see die-off/fish acting weird, I would do at least a 50% water change and make sure to add an air stone. If there isn’t an air stone in there already, I would put one in just to be safe, even if the fish look okay (keeps oxygen levels high in the tank). 
 

If the water parameters are fine, I would say the best way to mitigate the smell is to put a lid on the tank. You don’t need to do anything fancy, you can cut out coroplast or even put Saran Wrap over the top to keep it in. But leave a crack/air out the tank at least once a day. Maybe you could even add some floating plants! 
 

Good luck! I hope someone else can give you a more definitive answer, but my advice is to check your fish, check the water parameters, and do what makes you feel the most comfortable/at ease. If it means changing out a bunch of water and re-dosing somewhere down the road, by all means. 

[FishyThoughts]

4 hours ago, JT Zamora said:

The only difference between all three tanks is the one that has the odor does not have live plants(it has sand with multis)

I can’t say this is the problem for sure. The meds can effect the beneficial bacteria. From my experience tanks with plants even have a stronger smell while doing treatments. But I guess the plants are helping counter it enough that it’s not as bad as without plants. 
 

You could try adding some floating plants, or maybe float some stem plant trimmings. Maybe that would help. Other than that I’m not sure. 

[JT Zamora]

30 minutes ago, AnimalNerd98 said:

Hi JT! 
 

I myself use the Med Trio in bare bottom tanks with a sponge filter from an established tank whenever I am quarantining or treating fish. I have sometimes noticed an unpleasant odor, but that may be due to other things that I am not aware of or familiar with. 

I would say: what are the water parameters like? Are nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia at safe levels? How do the fish look? Are they in any way acting differently: sluggish, seem to be gasping for air, blood red gills? If your fish are okay, I would give it some time/wait for advice from other people before changing out a bunch of water and possibly having to re-dose the tank. But, if any parameters are off or you see die-off/fish acting weird, I would do at least a 50% water change and make sure to add an air stone. If there isn’t an air stone in there already, I would put one in just to be safe, even if the fish look okay (keeps oxygen levels high in the tank). 
 

If the water parameters are fine, I would say the best way to mitigate the smell is to put a lid on the tank. You don’t need to do anything fancy, you can cut out coroplast or even put Saran Wrap over the top to keep it in. But leave a crack/air out the tank at least once a day. Maybe you could even add some floating plants! 
 

Good luck! I hope someone else can give you a more definitive answer, but my advice is to check your fish, check the water parameters, and do what makes you feel the most comfortable/at ease. If it means changing out a bunch of water and re-dosing somewhere down the road, by all means. 

Thank you for the response, ive had the tank up for 3 years with a sponge filter and hang on back. I do weekly 30% wc on all my tanks. Also that tank currently has a lid. 
Im not sure about my perimeters since i havent tested in a very long time. My fish have been acting fine. The only things ive noticed were the smell and  the water was getting cloudy. Weirdly enough the cloudy part didnt seem to be the average “misty white” type. It almost seems like the meds are having a hard time desolving almost like clear oil in water type of look. Its odd thing to try and explain! 
 

i ended up changing out about 20% tonight because i dont want to lose any of my stock. I’ll probably change out water tomorrow afternoon as well just to be safe. And maybe try the meds a different time in that tank, possibly one med at a time. 

Stuff always happens on your favorite tank i swear 🤣.  

[AnimalNerd98]

Sounds good to me! Maybe you can take a photo of it? I agree with @FishyThoughts, it may have caused an imbalance in the aquarium, allowing a certain type of bacterial bloom. But it sounds like you have it handled 👍🏻

[KaitieG]

I noticed a similar smell treating with General Cure (couldn't get ParaCleanse at the time).  I sniffed the med packets and the smell is similar to what the powder itself smells like, so I'm guessing (if the it's the same smell we're smelling!) that it's the meds themselves.