I think I am nearing the end of the cycling of my tank (Ammonia=0, Nititres=0, Nitrates=5 today) and my fish started to shows some fin rot and some black spots on his fins and body about a week ago. While cycling, I made sure to change the water almost daily at one point to keep the levels down. He is eating well and swimming around fine, just has black marks all over him and fins a little ragged. I understand that he could have got some fin rot while the nitrites were high which is why I did frequent water changes at that point.

Should I medicate? Add more salt?

Any ideas?

pH of water is around 7.2-7.6.

Hi there,

The black marks you are seeing are what is known as ammonia burns. Its basically like a scab on a human as it signifies the healing process has begun. As long as your goldie continues to eat and swim around normally, he should be just fine. They have a very good immune system and once the water quality has been fixed (wich it seems to be fixed already), they begin to heal at a pretty rapid rate. I would say within a week, you should begin to see smooth edges growing out from the raggedness left behind on his tail. The black marks will also subside pretty quickly.

Just make sure that your water remains good, as it is now, and your goldie will be as good as new in no time flat. If you like, you can add aquarium salt @ 1 teaspoon per gallon. Then, when you go to perform a waterchange, you will need to add back one teaspoon for every gallon you are adding back to the tank. Salt cannot be filtered out nor can it evaporate, so, pay close attention to the amounts you are adding. You can safely run that salt solution for 2-4 weeks. I would suggest that you run the salt for the full 4 weeks. If this is a new fish, it is VERY likely that he brought some parasites in with him from the pet shop. Pet shops are notorious for having parasites infesting every tank they have. This is why quarentine and a salt treatment is highly recommended for ALL new arrivals.


I don't want to freak you out or anything, I just want to make sure that you curb any parsitic infestations before they occur. There is MUCH merit to the old saying, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure"..........


Hope this helps!

Paul

Paul

Thank you so much for the help with this and the water conditions I posted a little while ago. Quick question about the aquarium salt.....

I replaced 4 gallons of water today (12 gallon tank) and I normally add a little less than a tablespoon of aquarium salt to this 4 gallons as the container states a 'rounded tablespoon per 5 gallons'. Today I also added a teaspoon of aquarium salt on top of this to help the healing.

Now I am getting all confused with my tablespoons and teaspoons!!!! How much water should I replace in a 12 gallon tank and how often (based on nitrate levels?) How much aquarium salt should I put in normally, and for the next 4 weeks???

Sorry, math is not my strong point, I need help!

Rachael

No worries.

Salt is best left as a medicinal application. In knowing this, you won't need to be adding any salt during your normal tank maintenence. If salt is always kept in the tank, then, when you REALLY need it, it won't be nearly as effective.

Okay, discard the directions on the packaging of salt. They will no longer pertain to you and your goldfish. Instead, you should only use salt when it is needed. For the rest of the time you need salt in the water, use my instructions above.

Basically, if 2 1/2 LEVEL teaspoons are added for each gallon in your tank, then you should add 2 1/2 level teaspoons to EVERY gallon you add back to the tank during waterchanges.

Did that help clarify?


Keep us posted on your progress!

And should water changes be based on nitrate levels getting high, or once weekly? What is a good % to replace everytime?

Thats probably one of the very best questions that can be asked about the finer points of water quality.


Waterchanges have many other reasons for being an institution in aquatics. Of course, nitrAtes are the first thing that comes to mind. below are a couple more that are the main reasons:

Next in line is pH of the water. If the KH (carbonate hardess) of the water source is low and no buffers are ever added, waterchanges are the only way to ensure that the KH remains high enough to hold the pH steady. This isn't a problem when the water source has a good KH level unless crustaceans are kept in the tank. Crustaceans can suck up quite a bit of the KH on the water assimilating their shell structure.

Another good reason is the hypothesis of a growth inhibiting hormone that is expelled by fish. When the population of a fishpond is high, growth rates seem to be reduced, regardless of nitrAte levels. When the water is changed more frequently, regardless of nitrate levels, the growth rates explode and sizes are increased. There have been a lot of experiments about this but I don't know if they have isolated any hormones in question yet. But, it IS proven that waterchanges are the best way to provide excellent water quality so I don't really think you can do too many.


All in all, regardless of how low the nitrAtes are, I think its probably a good idea to change out 50% of the water once a week. I mean, that is, if the tank in question isn't so big that this becomes an all day affair........

Thanks for the advice.

Unfortunatley, my fantail was eating and acting just fine up until last night and I woke up this morning and he is barely moving and backed into a corner. I am fearing the worst, and have no idea how this change came about so quick.

Did you immediately test the water?


Perform a nice big waterchange and add back the salt that is removed.

Are there ANY other visual symptoms other than bottom sitting?

Can you purchase some medication such as furan two tablets or erythromycin (maracyn 1). If so, get it and dose him immediately.


Paul

Too late I am afraid. Thank you anyway. I will check levels once I remove him from the tank.

Sorry about your fish, Rach1. Unfortunately, some fish respond better to ammonia and cycling than others and in your fishie's case the ammonia may have done just too much internal damage for him to pull through. Definately keep an eye on your params ifyou have other fish in there or if you intend to add a new fish. Whenever, a fish starts acting listless like that, do a test of your water. Even if the params seem normal, it can't hurt to do an immediate partial water change anyway because there can be something in the tank causing distress (chemicals etc)