salt

[sharon]

how much aquarium salt should I add as routine

[Lupin]

None. I'd suggest using salt only as part of the quarantine procedures which takes place for 3-4 weeks or as ich treatment wherein a 0.1% solution of salt equivalent to a teaspoon per gallon should destroy most flukes, possible ich, costia, etc.

[ChristinaRoss]

routinely i add one tablespoon per 5 gallons of water and only add back when i do water changes. iadd salt for only the amount of water that gets changed. salt never evaporates so dont over do it.

i have always used salt, and ive never had a sick fish or finrot. i must be doing something right

[Lupin]

Christina, the point of temporary use of salt is to avoid indirectly creating salt-resistant pathogens. Recently, there are strains of ich, flukes and costia that have proven themselves resistant to salt once they occur as outbreak thus some people had to resort to treatments much more dangerous than salt such as formalin and malachite green, both substances that are carcinogenic agents which we need to avoid as much as possible until our options run out. Of course, salt has always been a debatable subject for decades.

[ChristinaRoss]

i understand your point. especially as far as maybe a community tanks is concerned. but its working for my fish and ive never had an issue.

[Kim]

I've only used it routinely when I was having issues with bacteria in my water. It helped a bit, but not enough so I have had to resort to boiling it while I wait for my UV sterilizer to come in. When I use it I usually use a half dose and by that I mean half of a tbsp, or 1.5 teaspoon per five gallons. I also use a half dose for QT, and I use it for salt baths at a concentration of 1 tsp per gallon.

[ecoprincess]

Hi,

Recently my betta came down with a bad case of swim bladder. I added aq. salts into his tank and it seemed to help with his colour and spirits within hours. I dont usually use salts but im thinking that since Freddy does well with them maybe i should integrate them into his routine. Im not sure of any long term effects other then the above mentioned.

Ive heard someone say they do "salt baths" ... what exactly do they mean?

Anyone have any info it would be much appreciated. :) :)

[sharon]

thank you all, Il give it some thought

[Lupin]

Originally Posted by ChristinaRoss

i understand your point. especially as far as maybe a community tanks is concerned. but its working for my fish and ive never had an issue.

It does not however mean that you have to use salt routinely on a permanent basis. Really, there is no reason why salt must be dosed on a permanent basis. About the only useful thing it can do as a temporary solution is destroy the pathogens vulnerable to it. Adding it routinely is just making it more a liability than an asset by creating salt-resistant strains of parasites and bacteria. Bettas can do fine without salt except in a few instances. I've warned you earlier about its potential in recreating salt-resistant costia, ich and flukes, all three of which are common ailments around the industry.

Some fish lack tolerance for salt on a long-term basis. The added electrolytes by salt may be too much for their osmoregulatory system to handle that they eventually suffer osmotic shock in the process.

Originally Posted by ecoprincess

Hi,

Recently my betta came down with a bad case of swim bladder. I added aq. salts into his tank and it seemed to help with his colour and spirits within hours. I dont usually use salts but im thinking that since Freddy does well with them maybe i should integrate them into his routine. Im not sure of any long term effects other then the above mentioned.

Ive heard someone say they do "salt baths" ... what exactly do they mean?

Anyone have any info it would be much appreciated. :) :)

Salt bath is a temporary solution wherein you dip the fish for a small period of time to destroy the parasites that may be harboring it or rectify issues. One good example is the use of epsom salt (magnesium sulfate) for fish suffering dropsy. A fish is dipped there for a few minutes to help correct the dropsy issue. Epsom salt can be used for constipation issues as well.

[ChristinaRoss]

well considering ive even had bettas live for 6 years, ill stick with what im doing. it works