Salt for the sick loach???

Discussion in 'Freshwater Fish' started by tara, May 12, 2012.

to remove this notice and enjoy 3reef content with less ads. 3reef membership is free.

  1. tara

    tara Astrea Snail

    Joined:
    May 11, 2012
    Messages:
    46
    I was thinking about the ghost fish feeding, but I also think that might be how I got the white fuzz problem? Am I suppoed to clean the old food out?
     
  2. Click Here!

  3. sailorguy

    sailorguy Torch Coral

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2009
    Messages:
    1,186
    Location:
    new jersey
    Yeah I was thinking that you were starting fresh which might be a good idea given your white fuzz problem.When ghost feeding to build up your biofilter(bacteria)you need only to add a very small amount of food,such as a very small pinch of flaked food every other day.
     
  4. DevinH

    DevinH Montipora Capricornis

    Joined:
    May 18, 2012
    Messages:
    1,015
    Location:
    Louisville, Kentucky
    Slow down. You come off as if you rush every decision. I did too when I first started and had losses. Patience is key. Dump all the old water out, clean everything, get rid of the biowheel and current floss and buy replacements for both. Use biospira to cycle while putting in a small pinch of food.

    Once cycled, add fish, slowly. Add one or two at first and then add one per two weeks.

    Get a routine going

    Do monthly water changes.

    Keep the gravel vacuumed. If you see any accumulated detritus on it, suck off the detritus.

    Monitor parameters weekly.
     
  5. tara

    tara Astrea Snail

    Joined:
    May 11, 2012
    Messages:
    46
    Lol im really not in a rush. Just trying to do my research like im supposed to, gathering as much info as I can at this point. Anyway..
    The Ph is holding, im happy about this ;) I took my water to the fish guy to test again, he was so nice to give me one of his used sponge filter things to put on my intake tube, and a buch of little sponge pieces to put down in the bottom. He said this should be all I need to do a cycle. Hes on MY level of the less chems the better ;) btw, I did look at all his tanks, out of 250 tanks I only saw 2 that didnt look so healthy, 19 yrs experience, he is the owner and sole maintenance keeper... I think hes good n trustworthy ;)
     
  6. Brian Andrews

    Brian Andrews 3reef Sponsor

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2013
    Messages:
    3
    Location:
    Australia
    Salt has many virtues - don't miss out!

    I was very sorry to hear salt get such a bad rap. Coarse salt, (non-iodised sodium chloride), is cheap, easily available, and has some extremely useful applications with fish, even if it may not have been the correct treatment for your loach. I will just give a few facts about salt in case they can be useful to you and possibly other readers, although this is admittedly somewhat more useful in the commercial fish breeding context.

    1. Whether salt will or will not irritate fish will depend on the concentration of salt in the water, and to a lesser extent on the species. A small amount of salt (sodium chloride as well as a few other minerals) can and does in fact reduce stress. See 2.

    2. Freshwater fish have to work constantly at maintaining the correct salinity of fluids in their body tissue, due to osmosis and the resulting inward flow of surrounding fresh water (of lower salinity) through the skin and gills, or wounds. Adding 2 parts per thousand (2 gm per litre) of coarse salt to the water of sick fish during treatment, or for a day or two after they are handled (and hence stressed) helps enormously in their ability to cope with this stress. As a farmer, I have shipped millions of fish of many species of fish (including scaleless) in a salinity of 2 ppth, and even higher. I would not ship fish without it.

    3. Here’s a more surprising one! In production, where practically possible, I use 2 to 3 ppth of coarse salt on a permanent basis (that is, for 3 to 4 months of grow-out) in the culture water for white spot- or velvet-susceptible species of fish. (These diseases are a real pain in production.) This will not cure the diseases, but will prevent outbreaks. Mystery snails tolerate it without ill effect, and it does not affect the function of biofiltration at this concentration. I would expect aquatic plants to be intolerant of salt, again depending on the concentration and species of plant.

    4. Salt can be extremely useful as an addition to the water when treating some parasitic diseases with other medications, though I find it to be a poor and slow medication on its own. I use it at 4 to 5 ppth on a long term basis, meaning 4 to 6 days. Whenever using salt at these concentrations, watch the fish periodically after treatment for signs of stress. There may be intolerant species – though I have yet to find one. This initial observation is good practice when undertaking any treatment – it is very easy to miscalculate and overdose!

    5. I recently advised two importer/wholesalers in Australia to use 2 ppth of coarse salt as a preventative against white spot (which were causing major headaches at the time) with a range of species, including clown loaches, in quarantine and holding. Both are extremely happy with the results. Here is one response:
    Hi Brian,
    Sorry to be a pain. Any idea if all the plecos, bristlenose and corries can put up with salt at 2ppt ? Just a bit cautious as I have never used salt at these levels before. It is working wonders on the tetras. No white spot since we started. Thanks a lot. Regards,
    Marty Bell.

    I replied in the affirmative for the other species, but always to watch for any negative reaction.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 28, 2013