Does this look like Whitespot to you?

[Malabar Front]

As per the topic title. I'd like a second opinion before I start treatment. I only have Protozin — is this okay?



Thanks a lot in advance.

[side19]

yeah it looks like white spot to me. the bright white dots are the cysts and those really light ones are his spines. you should try the salt method to clear it up. it will take about a month to treat, but it works really well. there's an article in the library on how to treat for ich that you should go read. good luck, keep us updated, i hope you can cure him! i'll keep my fingers crossed for you two.

[Malabar Front]

yeah it looks like white spot to me. the bright white dots are the cysts and those really light ones are his spines. you should try the salt method to clear it up. it will take about a month to treat, but it works really well. there's an article in the library on how to treat for ich that you should go read. good luck, keep us updated, i hope you can cure him! i'll keep my fingers crossed for you two.

Thanks, chap. I'll raise the temperature and add some aquarium salt in. Hopefully it'll clear up without a hitch over the next few weeks then.

[side19]

it looks like a mild case so it could have just started. here's the article on treating ich

library/hospital/fwich/

i hope you can cure him, again keeping my fingers crossed for you.

[Malabar Front]

it looks like a mild case so it could have just started. here's the article on treating ich

library/hospital/fwich/

i hope you can cure him, again keeping my fingers crossed for you.

I'm guessing he was already infected when I got him, as my tank has been clean of it and I haven't had him very long (just over a week.) Either way, it looks like I spotted it early, so hopefully there won't be any problems. I've had a read of that article, and there's plenty of great information in there — cheers.

[mrgreen]

Good luck! I'm treating mine for ich and IPs right now. The water changes every other day are getting OLD! Then again, the time it takes seems to go by faster. Make sure you have a bubbler in your tank while the temp is up at 86. My puffs started gasping for air at the surface because of the reduced oxygen in the warmer water and I had to go get one asap!

[Malabar Front]

Good luck! I'm treating mine for ich and IPs right now. The water changes every other day are getting OLD! Then again, the time it takes seems to go by faster. Make sure you have a bubbler in your tank while the temp is up at 86. My puffs started gasping for air at the surface because of the reduced oxygen in the warmer water and I had to go get one asap!

I tend to do a partial water change every two or three days anyway, and I don't find it particularly time-consuming, so that doesn't bother me too much.

I've got an airstone running the along the back wall of the tank for about 20cm, as well as a few plants so I shouldn't think it'd be an issue. Any sign of gasping and I'll pop some oxygenating tablets in.

Cheers for your advice

[mrgreen]

Oh good.

These water changes need to be LARGE, though - 80%! And you need to do a thorough gravel vaccuuming/stirring. This means taking out all the decore and really having a go at the gravel! All in all, a w/c like this has been taking me about an hour.

I'm not sure about the oxygen tablets. I'd wait until one of the mods comes and tells you if those are okay. Do you have anything for water movemnent- besides the filter? A powerhead aimed at the surface is a help. The bubbler is great- I'm not sure what size tank you have or how big 20 cm is, but I would guess that the bigger the better, in this case. I don't think the plants are going to create enough oxygen. You'd need LOTS and LOTS of them and even then, your tank is using up oxygen at a huge rate. Reduced oxygen in the water from the higher temp is one thing, but then your puffs have their metabolisms on high, too, and this makes them need MORE oxygen, when there's LESS in the water! The decreased oxygen level will also affect the nitrogen cycle because the bacteria need oxygen to thrive.

[Malabar Front]

Oh good.

These water changes need to be LARGE, though - 80%! And you need to do a thorough gravel vaccuuming/stirring. This means taking out all the decore and really having a go at the gravel! All in all, a w/c like this has been taking me about an hour.

Ah, that's a but more awkward. I'm sure I can spare some time each day or two for that, though.

20cm is about 8 inches, but my mental guessing is way off. I've just measured it, and it's 14 inches long and powered by a pump suitable for 100 lires. The tank is only a 55-litre while he's young, and I'll upgrade it when he gets a bit bigger and I get a bit more money.

I'll keep a good eye on him for the next few weeks. His tank's in the office, so I'm with him for at least eight hours a day regardless.

[mrgreen]

Oh okay. So you probably have the same size bubble bar as I do.

How big is your F8? They grow quickly - to a max of 3 inches only- and although they need a miniumum of 15 gallons each, if I were you, I'd get a 29 or 30 just because. It will cut down on your maintance, believe it or not. (Well not while you have ich. lol) So yes, keep an eye on him for sure, especially with the temp up and the lack of oxygen that goes with it.

By the way, he does look pretty happy in that pic- not too thin, fins intact, etc.- aside from the ich.

[Malabar Front]

Oh okay. So you probably have the same size bubble bar as I do.

How big is your F8? They grow quickly - to a max of 3 inches only- and although they need a miniumum of 15 gallons each, if I were you, I'd get a 29 or 30 just because. It will cut down on your maintance, believe it or not. (Well not while you have ich. lol) So yes, keep an eye on him for sure, especially with the temp up and the lack of oxygen that goes with it.

By the way, he does look pretty happy in that pic- not too thin, fins intact, etc.- aside from the ich.

What can I say? The little bugger likes to eat

He's about 1.3 inches at the moment, so not too big. I'm not sure what their rate of growth is, but I hope to move up to a 300-litre or so tank within the next 6 months. If I have to get a stopgap tank between now and then, so be it, I guess.

[mrgreen]

That would be a nice-sized tank for him! You could even try to add a 2nd F8. In the meantime, I think what you have now is just a bit too small- its 13 1/4 gallons. Better than a sharp stick in the eye, though. He's about half size, but as I said, keep your eye on your water parameters and temp. Do you have test kits? (I hope!) And yes- they LOVE to eat and are very messy. Another reason to keep up on your water changes- 50% per week, when you DON'T have ick!

[mrgreen]

What is your SG?

And how much aquarium salt are you adding for the ick?

[Pufferpunk]

Forget aquarium salt. Since this is a BW fish, use marine salt & raise the SG .002 each week you are treating. By the end of the 3 weeks, you'll have reached your desired SG for the fish. Do continue with the heat/WC too. Add Melafix to sooth the skin.

[mrgreen]

Dadof4, said to add aquarium salt in addition to the normal marine salt regimin- I thought?