Please Help Me Sort out My Sorority!

[ClassicCharm]

@Vay: Definitely. From what I've seen in pictures, that's it.

@Saylor: It hasn't been running since March, as I had to separate the three I had into separate tanks. I had to put them into three smaller ones as I didn't have room to have the 10 gallon as well as a bunch of smaller ones. It's only been running again since I put the five females in together two weeks ago. I did some research and talked to the fish guy at my regular pet store about the 3-stages of Ich. That's a really helpful article; Thanks!

Gahh I knew I should have quarantined. Not doing that went against everything I know about animals.

Sounds like a heater is a must, huh?

So now that I've added the salt, how often should I add it and how often should I change the water? I'm guessing every day?

Should the girls be open or covered?

@AB1: Thanks anyway :)

[Alienbetta1]

Originally Posted by SaylorKennedy

That's okay. Just have to know what you're talking about before giving advice. I'm sure some of your betta books has info about ich, you should learn about it.

Alot of other fish I had got infected with ick but I only had like one fish at a time so.....

[SaylorKennedy]

Originally Posted by Alienbetta1

Alot of other fish I had got infected with ick but I only had like one fish at a time so.....

Your bettas?

[Alienbetta1]

No....Goldfish,Silver dollar,and others.

[ClassicCharm]

Update: Charlotte's covered in white spots now :( :( Still really active though.

[SaylorKennedy]

It will get worse before it gets better. Just make sure that you keep going with the treatment 1-2 weeks after everything gets better. Ich can stay in a tank for a long time.

[ClassicCharm]

Thank you so much Saylor!

I'm sorry to bug you again, but should the tank be:
open or covered?
in the dark or light?

Should I feed?

How often should I change the water?

[SaylorKennedy]

Oh, don't hesitate to ask!

You can leave it uncovered and do your normal lighting routine. Yes, feed them if they take it.
Changing the water is tricky though. I would do a couple gallons every couple of days. The more you change the water, the less white spots that are in the water, plus you can keep the ammonia down that will increase from your cycling at the same time. I'd use a gravel vac as much as possible, just make sure you wash it out very very well after you use it. Same with nets and stuff.

[ClassicCharm]

Thank you so much. I really appreciate it :)

Alright, three of them ate. Only Clarice didn't. She's hiding in her castle all the time now, only coming up for air.

Okay, I'll be really diligent with the water, and I'll keep adding salt to the new water. Normally I do full changes and rinse out my bedding (which are glass rocks, not gravel as they're easier to keep clean) with hot water. I don't use nets either, just plastic cups which dry out after each use, so those shouldn't be a problem.

Gahh Clarice looks bad. I thought I'd lost her for a minute there!! And Margot still has moments where she has to rest on a ledge of the castle and her gills are working really hard.

I'm pretty scared to see what I'm going to wake up to in the morning.

Thanks for all your help!

[vaygirl]

Add as much salt in as you take out in water changes only. I just wanted to clarify. I was so confused by this when I first used it. :D So if you take out a gallon, add the salt dose for one gallon back in, not for the whole tank.