My tank is dead
My beautiful tank is dead. Im so upset. I dont know what I did wrong, please help me understand.
40 gal breeder, fx6 filter, co2 injected, been going for about 4 years.
3 days ago I did normal maintence. I pruned plants and topped off the tank (edit: gh tested regularly). I accidentally broke the lid and replaced it with a new lid (did not wash). I cleaned the canister filter as I normally do (swish sponges in declorniated water). Tested levels. All groovy, everyone alive and happy.
This morning at 3 am, my 5 inch SAE jumped out of the 2 inch gap of lid and was found dead this morning. I did not get a through look at the tank.
I got home at 12:00 and found my 4.5 inch yoyo loach dead and 3 smaller yoyos heavily struggling. I checked parameters thinking I crashed the cycle, 0-0-15. I saw that my air pump tube was detached. I fixed that and put in another air stone and shut off the co2. The yoyos perked up, i fed them and everyone was fine.
I check in 2 hours later, everyone is floating and appeared dead. I gathered everyone I could and put them in a 5 gal with new water and a bubbler. Came back about an hour later and a few perked up. All of the khulis, 5 harliquin rasboras and a L333 pleco survived. Everyone else died.
What could have happened? What did i do wrong? I understand why the first 2 died (no air stone) but I dont understand why the rest died. I'm so devastated, this is my main tank, my centerpiece.
What do I do with the survivors? I dont want to put them back in that tank without sterilizing it. Do I keep them in a tub while I do that? Please help me, im wrecked and my tank is ruined.
RIP:
13 Harliquen rasboras
1 SAE
4 yoyo loaches
2 serpent loach
1 orange bristlenose
2 l333 plecos