New here, from WI. Sick GSP.

[LongGrain]

Yea I suppose theres not much I can do now, its already at the bottom of the tank. I just figured it can't hurt..

The weird thing is that I've been able to keep my green iguana alive, happy and healthy going on 18 years now. He's probably one of the oldest and largest iguanas in north america at a solid 74", yet I'm getting my butt kicked trying to keep a fish in decent shape. crap..

[wagner7123]

I can't recommend that you estimate, different batches of the same mix can yield very different levels. I suggest you wait until you can get a hydrometer before you try to mix salt water. also, make sure you are mixing in a separate container as unmixed salt can burn your fish. take care of it as soon as your pet store opens in the morning. I would put him in the 37 gallon now, it will at least dilute the waste better. leave the filter out of the tank for the moment and get to the store as soon as it opens. The truth is, once they start getting sucked into the filters, they are pretty much done.

[trekenk]

Is he/she still eating? I wish you all the best. If they dont make it you now know your on the right track and can take your time to set up the proper tank for your next GSP buddy. Fingers crossed for your guy you sound like a caring person with your pets. It isn't your fault many people have fallen for the Walmart sale people.

[wagner7123]

Your iguana probably didnt come from walmart, and was most likely not full of lethal parasites

[LongGrain]

Yes he still eats like a pig. I feed him every day with blood worms, and i usually throw a few small snails in there, which he LOVES. I feel like I could feed him 20 times a day and he would probably not miss a single bite. He has yet to let anything settle on the bottom of his tank. I feed him just enough for his belly to poke out a bit, then let him be.

I don't think I've said this yet, but I appreciate all the advice from you guys/girls. I know very well I should have done more research before diving into this, but all I can do now is the best I can.

[LongGrain]

If y'all really think that I should put him in the bigger tank right now, I will. However, that tank is definitely not cycled and the water is pretty cloudy.

[wagner7123]

what do you have in your fluval? decor, sand, filters etc.

[LongGrain]

just gravel and a double arch rock in the center. It has the stock lighting, filter, and the optional fluval compact heater.

The tank was planted with some live plants when I got it, but I was instructed to remove them by the owner of the lfs when I started having water problems a little over a week ago. Since then, I overcame an ammonia spike, then a nitrite spike (normal cycle), and now the water parameters are good, yet it seems like as the water is getting better, he's getting worse. Its not so bad during the day when his lights are on, he's normally still active and swimming around. He even will chase my finger around the glass or nip at me when I have to put my hand in the tank/do water changes. However, at night he seems to become rather disoriented, this is when he will sometimes get himself stuck to the filter tube, or just lay on the gravel/top of the heater and be generally lethargic.

[LongGrain]

This is a picture of the tank when the plants were still in it. You can see Jerry swimming at the top. It looks the same now, minus the plants, obviously.



And here's the new tank that I just filled today. Yea, I know. No stand yet, or decor. I was going to wait to set it up, but with him being in such poor health, I want to get him into the bigger tank as soon as I can.

[wagner7123]

GSPs tend to sleep like that. The fact that he eats and is active is very encouraging. it sounds like the only thing in your tank that is holding your bio filter is the bio wheel and your gravel. You could move all of that into the 37 and that tank would instantly be cycled. You could probably move just the biowheel and have the same effect if you don't want to move the gravel. after that, get a hydrometer and raise the sg over the next few weeks etc. if your puffer dies you will at least be on your way to a cycled SW tank, and if he survives, even better.

[LongGrain]

the edge doesn't have a biowheel, the bio element is a bag of pellets in the filter. The big tank has a penguin 200 biowheel.

So you think if I moved that rock and some of the gravel over, I could move him into the new tank right away? I would rather not speckle my sand with black gravel, but I'll do what it takes to make sure he's happier. And what about the cloudiness of the water? I think that should go away by tomorrow, but i'm not sure.

As far as his behavior goes. Sometimes I'm optimistic, and other times he worries me. His mood/activity seems to change so rapidly, one minute he'll be laying on the heater or gravel with his tail and fins clamped. The next he will be fluttering around the tank like nothing is wrong. I haven't seen any real improvement in his ich, and his eyes seem a bit clouded at times.

So is that a no on the melafix? I'm going to pick up a hydrometer tomorrow, and maybe some live rock if the lfs has any.

[trekenk]

Could just be sleeping and when you approach tank wake him and he is disorientated. That tank does look pretty cloudy some floss in your filter might clear it up quicker. The sooner he is in the bigger tank the better, would be better if you could set it up full salt within the next couple of days and drip accumulate him to it that way, but you have to work with what you have. Moving the gravel ornaments ect over is a great way to cycle at tank but only at the sg that the small tank is cycled at once you raise the sg in the bigger tank more than .002 (or if the sg is already higher now it won't work). That is why the hydrometer or refractmeter is so important. So you have to decide go full salt in the larger tank ASAP then introduce your guy or do it slowly, more him over now, but then you still have to deal with the ich. If not treated he will die from it. You can still treat if you are keeping the tank brackish the same sg as the smaller tank. Him eating is a great sign, there might still be hope.

[J-P]

Personally, since the fish is sick it is touch and go....

Having the 2nd tank at full marine and a fast drip aclime will (should) take care if the ich. Keeping in mind that FW ich and SW Ich are 2 different things. However this may add additional stress to the fish and put it over the edge.

I am wondering if Fenbendazole (Panacur-C) will work in this situation.

[Pufferpunk]

Even if that sand was live, 2 tsp salt/g isn't going to keep it alive.

Get yourself a hydrometer or better yet, a refractometer. 1 1/2-2lbs live rock/g (best purchased from an established tank). Good protein skimmer. Several powerheads for flow. That's it for SW.

[LongGrain]

Well this is great, I woke up this morning to find my biowheel in the new tank has stopped working after only running for 12 hours or so. What the hell?

what could be the problem here? It makes no noise whatsoever, plugging it in does nothing. I woke up this morning to find it a little bit louder than before, I figured i just needed to top the tank off a bit with more water, I got out of bed, and started walking over to the tank when it just quit, no noise, no hum, no nothing. I took it apart and rinsed it out, but still nothing.