[font=Comic Sans Ms][size=2][color=#333399]Hello, I have had a 30 gallon freshwater tank for about two years now. In the tank is 4 good size feeder goldies. One of the goldies has this weird bubble growth on the gill. At first I thought it was just an air bubble, but it doesnt appear to be that. I havent had any problems in the tank other then ich here and there. Any ideas as to what this bubble is??

Ammonia-0
Nitrate level-5 ppm
Nitrite level-0
PH level-7
Tank size-30 gallons
Running time-2 years
Filter-Emperor 280 Bio-wheel for 30 gallon tanks
Water change-once a month

The goldies in the tank now are about 4 inches...new fish. (we moved and the others died on me)
I feed them new life spectrum goldfish food. The plants in the tank are...two wendtii greens, two green tiger lotus and two florida beauties. I also have a large bubble disk in the tank.

Does it look like a clear blister on the gill plate covering the gills or a blister on the gills itself?

Also could you look at the scales of the fish... do they look raised/pineconed?

Just trying to eliminate some things.... And if you had a picture.. that would help big time.

I cant get a picture right now, but I took the fish out of the water layed it on a paper towel so that I could get a better look at what was going on. Yes it appears to be a blister on the bottom side of the gill plate. It has something black in it. It swims around just fine, fins are up, eating just fine....None of the other fish appear to have anything on them. Could it be just a part of the fish?? He/she doesnt seem to act like it is a bother and it hasnt spread to the other fish. No the fins arent raised or pinconed, looks like a healthy fish to me other then the blister thing.

a clear picture will tell us a lot.

Can you look closely at the blister like thing... does it appear to have 2 tiny black dots right next to one another? I'm trying to rule out a parasite or fish lice. Sometimes fish lice look green in appearance too.

As they're feeder fish - they're most likely commons so it may be a case of carp pox. If this is indeed what he has, it's not fatal but there's no real known cure. Something that can make it worse is poor water conditions and overcrowding. If you have 4 in a 30 gallon, then as a suggestion, you could up the waterchanges to weekly which is better for them anyhow - especially as you're overstocked - it may help resolve the problem..

Hopefully this helps

What ever the bump or blister was its gone now. It never appeared to have two black things next to it, just one in the middle. The goldies in the tank are only 4 inches long, it doesnt appear to be overcrowed to me.

I have another problem though. The power went out because of a storm today, when the lights finally come back on, the pump that was on my 10 gallon tank housing two convict cichlids had burnt up. I think it was the motor or something. Any way I didnt want to leave them in the tank without a pump running so I put them in with my goldies for right now. I noticed that they were nipping at the tail fins on the goldies. Which has frayed them. I didnt know what to do and I didnt have a divider so I put a screen between them. Will they be okay overnight?? I certainly dont want them dying on me. How long can they stay like that? Because I dont get paid for another couple of days which means NO new pump.

Ok, so my pump wasnt burnt up. Something was stuck inside it, still dont know what it was. But I moved the convict cichilds back to their tank. Before I put the screen in they had really hurt a little albino catfish that was in my tank with the goldies. I was wondering if all the nipping and frayed tailfins on the goldfish was going to lead to some kind of infection? Will the tails fix themselves??

Well now you know not to do that again with the cichlids. In fact I don't think there is any type of fish that is compatible with them but their own species. That's what I was told anyway. They are truely an aggressive fish. You are lucky that your goldies aren't more injured.

Now to address your torn fins... Best defense is PERFECT WATER CONDITIONS. So make sure you test your water and give us your paramaters if you aren't sure what they mean. But I would make sure you test often. But YOU MUST change your water more frequently. At the least... once a week. Especially now. If you're water is in great condition... your fish's fins will heal quickly. I personally change 20-30% of the water weekly, some others change 50%.

You can also use meds like MELAFIX to help heal the fins. It's kinda stinky though... smells sorta minty and will stink up the room that the tank is in. However just try keeping your water perfect and see if you notice improvement over the next couple days. You could also add salt to a make .3% solution in your tank. This will aid in healing and prevention of infection. If you are unsure of the salting of the tank, let us know. Remember to NOT use table salt. Keep a close watch on fish to check for signs of deterioration or secondary infection. And if wounds get worse or more wounds appear then and infection should be suspected. We will be here to support you if that occurs.

Please post back after a while and let us know how your fish are doing. For now... PERFECT water conditions is your answer.