Hi. I just set up my first brackish tank and bought two figure eight puffers. I have had them for a week. My tank is still cycling, and I don't think this has been very kind to the fish. The pH is 7.8, temp is 79(F), and the ammonia is fluctuating up and down, mostly either 1.0ppm-2.0ppm. I have been doing partial water changes almost every day and even added some amm-cuel to take away the toxicity of the ammonia. However, yesterday I noticed a rather large bump on the head of one of my puffer fish. It is the same color as the fish, but it is making me very nervous. He is still eating normal, but could this be signs of ammonia poisoning?
Help!
-newsongs1043
weird bump on my figure eight.....
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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newsongs1043
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2005 2:21 am
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newsongs1043
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2005 2:21 am
weird bump on my figure eight.....
I do 25% water changes in a 10 gallon tank. I'll try to get a picture.
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RTR
- Mentor
- Posts: 6155
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 4:39 pm
- Gender: Male
- Location (country): East Coast, USA
Water changes are IMHO & IME, the best single technique available to the fishkeeper. When in doubt, do a partial. If still unsure, do another.
Water parameters of the tank and change water should of course be similar, but to me so long as that is checked, water changes are never bad.
For more details, see the Library on this site. There are multiple articles there on water changes.
Water parameters of the tank and change water should of course be similar, but to me so long as that is checked, water changes are never bad.
For more details, see the Library on this site. There are multiple articles there on water changes.
Where's the fish? - Neptune
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32979
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Contact:
The most common fish I have seen w/nematode worms are the F8 puffers. A pic is necessary to be sure. Also, 2 F8s in a 10g is 1 too many puffers, especially in an uncycled tank. I'd take back the lumpy one.
Add Bio-Spira to instantly cycle your tank. Do not let the shop sell you anything else--you'll be waisting your $$$ & harming the cycle further.
Add Bio-Spira to instantly cycle your tank. Do not let the shop sell you anything else--you'll be waisting your $$$ & harming the cycle further.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
I mean by not more than once every two or so days, otherwise it disturbs the fish, the water quality changes too often for them.ybenormal wrote:??????Raphael wrote:It's not good to do water changes too often.??????
Not true. Not true at all... Keep the temp, PH and other major parameters in check between the old and replacement water and change away!
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32979
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Contact:
I have done 80% water changes 2x/day, to keep a crashed tank from killing my fish. Discus keepers do 100-200% daily water changes.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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YBeNormal
- Former Staff Member
- Posts: 506
- Joined: Sat Jun 04, 2005 1:19 am
- Location: Northern Virginia
- Contact:
Same here.Pufferpunk wrote:I have done 80% water changes 2x/day, to keep a crashed tank from killing my fish.
Raphael,
Your statement is correct if the person performing the water change is being careless or not properly checking to make sure that temperature, PH and other parameters are balanced. When done properly, you simply cannot do too many water changes. More and more often is the recommendation.
--Bob