Big bubbles = bad bubbles?

[kevinbacon]

Gah, how could I be so stupid? I'm a bio major; I need to pull my act together. I thought the bacteria would settle in the gravel, but I didn't even consider the fact that it wouldn't have any O2 supply to keep them alive. I have a filter; instead of using the carbon bags, could I get some filter foam and use it to baffle the intake as well as filter the water and provide a growing ground for the bacteria? I think I might do that, the filter doesn't have a heavy flow and with some modification I think it could work. Thank you for pointing that out! I feel so silly.

[JAGalletta]

Yup! No problem. That should work!

[kevinbacon]

UPDATE

Just wanted to let you guys know that he seems to be doing much better! A lot more active and his fin rot has begun to heal, I believe. I put my filter in and baffled it nicely, so the water flow doesn't even seem to bother him. I think he'll make a 100% recovery. :)

Ended up taking the water sample from when he was having the bubble problems to the store to be tested - his ammonia and nitrate levels were a bit high, so it confirmed my suspicions that he had some ammonia poisoning that was affecting his gill function. Didn't think the levels could build up that fast, so I'm definitely upping my water changes from now on until I can get my hands on one of those fancy $30 API Master testing kits at my local store. It's not in the budget right now, but soon... lol Thanks for all of your help guys!

[efg321]

diligence in water changes should help alot, if you are the test kit is secondary!

[callistra]

I suggest 100% weekly in nonfiltered/cycled 5g. If you want to do less I suggest investing in a drops kit for ammonia and check it at week's end, after a change and then daily thereafter. If you're seeing any ammonia at all you know it's not enough.

[LittleBlueFishlets]

Originally Posted by kevinbacon

... until I can get my hands on one of those fancy $30 API Master testing kits at my local store. It's not in the budget right now, but soon...

You could check Amazon, too. They sometimes have good prices on the kits. But be careful to read the description to make sure it includes all the tests that you're looking for.