Finrot? Any Help Appreciated!

[mrblonde]

I have a Goldfish with what appears to be finrot. I completely cleaned the tank out only 2 days ago and used tapsafe to neutralise the tap water however he has a white flurry tail and where the fin at the end is in a V the bottom part is frayed. 
 
I only have the one goldfish in a 12L tank, I went to my local pet store as soon as this was noticed and they advised me to buy the Interpet Anti Fungus And Finrot Treatment and so I have. They advised me to first change 30% of the water through a siphon and add a moss ball, which I have done. I have added 2 1/2 pipets of the treatment as advised by the dosage for a 12L tank.
 
Is there anything more I can do? I would rather be proactive and give my fish the best treatment now rather than a wait and see approach. According to the people I spoke with at my pet store, they believe it should clear up if I follow everything they have advised. I have had my Goldfish since around August last year and this is the first thing ever to go wrong with him, so I am pretty clueless when it comes to helping him.
 
P.s we done a water check for nitrate levels etc whilst at the pet store as I took a sample with me and it appeared to be okay, however the nitrate was slightly high but I was told the moss ball will fix this.
 
Thank you for any help!
 
Here is a pic of him 2 days ago just after we gave him a full tank clean:
http/imgur.com/4ap92BO
 
Here he is now 2 days later (this pic was taken earlier today)
http/imgur.com/3CEwMvQ

 

[Ninjouzata]

I'd re-home him or buy a much larger tank ASAP. 12L is not suitable for anything except shrimp and maybe a betta.
You'd want at least a 75L for 1 fancy goldfish..and it looks like he is not a fancy. So you'll want a 280L. These are for adult sizes of course but the 12L is not suitable for any length of time IMO.
 
Can you get the exact readings for ph, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate? Are they or you using test strips or a liquid test kit?  
What is the water change schedule like? (How often & how much) Is there a filter on this tank? Is it cycled? When you say a full tank clean, what exactly do you do?
 
I'm sorry if I've come off rude, just very concerned for him. Usually for fin rot all you need is clean water but this looks severe.

I don't know anything about those medications, hopefully someone more experienced will come along soon.

 

[mrblonde]

Hi, thank you for all of your help and information! Before this happened we had started looking for a new tank already so hopefully we will have this ASAP. With regards to the readings, unfortunately they wrote it down on a sheet but they kept it. I think it was a liquid test as they poured the test water into different test tubes and put different drops in each. Sorry if I sound so inexperienced but I have never dealt with anything like this before.

I was informed the levels were okay and that on the nitrate level it was slightly high, they had a chart from light purple to dark purple, I was informed that 0 at the top was optimum (lightest purple) and that ours appeared to be between 1 and 2 and I was informed the moss ball would help this.

The water change schedule is roughly a full tank change ever 2 weeks. When I clean out I place him in some water and then thoroughly scrub the tank and put fresh stones in and clean the filter. The filter looks like a beginners one where it has a suction on the bottom to attach to the tank floor and has a sponge inside and it blows the air out the top. I screw the lid off of it and thoroughly rinse the sponge however I have been told by the pet store to wash this in the tank water in future rather than under the tap.

When cleaning the tank I pour all the water out and scrub the tank and replace and then put tapsafe in and then put him back in.

I have been told by the pet store to go back in 7 days to test the water again. They recommended me not buying a test kit myself as they said they are £32 and that with only one fish I would throw most of it away as it will expire before I use it all.

As shown in the pictures it looks like it has come on all of a sudden and that's why I want to be as proactive as I can now to help him . Thank you for your concern! If there is any other information you require i will be more than happy to provide it.

P.s I had to do a full tank change as we bought a fresh plant from an independent pet store and it had snails on it and they multiplied.

 

[Ninjouzata]

If you havn't already done so, check out some secondhand sites. They usually have good deals on tanks. The next time you go please have them write it down and let you take it..I also think you should get your own liquid test kit.
You can get it a little cheaper if you order online, and while it may be a bit expensive just for one fish..it's really necessary to making sure it's water is in the proper condition.
 
A water change every 2 weeks for a goldfish in this small of a tank is unfortunately not good at all, he should be getting a water change at least every other day, if not every day, I'd think.
I'm not trying to bash you at all, I'm really glad you've come here to get help for him. I think that may be why he has the fin rot is the water quality is probably poor.
 
It sounds like a sponge filter. The store is right that you don't want to wash it in tap water. This is where most of your bacteria is held so if you replace it/rinse in tap water then you're having to cycle the tank over again each time.
Have a read of THIS to get a better understanding of cycling, if you havn't done so already.
 

to TFF, btw. Hope you enjoy it here. Is your name from Reservoir Dogs by any chance?

 

[mrblonde]

I have my eye on a few tanks in my local area on eBay that's ending tomorrow. They are due to test the water again in 6 days time ( 1 week from yesterday when it was tested last). I will definitely look into purchasing a water testing kit, would you recommend a nitrate testing kit or the one that tests for everything?

With regards to the water change, would you suggest a 25% water change everyday from now on even if Ron is currently on the anti fungus and finrot treatment? If I do water changes every day and put some treatment in the tank afterwards, would this possibly be more effective than putting the dose of treatment in and leaving it for 7 days as that is what I have been told however I do not want the scenario that 7 days down the line he is the same/worse and I have wasted a week.

Thank you for all of this information it is a lot more thorough than the staff at the pet store. I will definitely read the link on cycling you have posted for a better understanding.

You are the correct! The name is from reservoir dogs haha!

A question with regards to tanks, if for example it is advertised as a tropical tank, can it still be used for a goldfish? Presumably I would just not use a heater? If I am wrong I'd be grateful for some info on the subject.

 

[mrblonde]

I think it has gotten worse even though I have added the treatment yesterday. I am currently in work but here is a photo I have just been sent of him.

 

[mrblonde]

Sorry for a third post in a day! Can anyone help me identify whether this is Carbon in my filter? It is fixed and cannot be removed however it is not black like in the pictures on Google but grey. I am a little worried as everywhere states to remove carbon from the filter when using the fin rot treatment and if it is carbon then i somehow need to remove it. I have also added 3 half tea spoons of aquarium salt as I have read it can be an antiseptic. Thank you for any help!
 

 
and this is what my filter looks like to help:
 

 

 
Edit:

Here are some more photos of how he is now (seems to be slightly worse that is why I am thinking it may be carbon in the filer) and a photo of a test I have done a few hours ago for the water levels:
 

 

 

 

[WILDER]

Black carbon as far as I know is usually black in the UK.
How long have you had it in the filter as carbon stops working anyway after 7 to 9 days. So shouldn't remove the
medication if you had it in a while.

Bless Him.
That's pretty bad.
 
I kept goldfish and they need at least a 20 gallon for the 1st goldfish. To be honest even more.
At least a 40 to 50 gallon  filter as there massive waste producers.

 

[mrblonde]

Thank you for the info regarding the carbon! I'm hopefully getting a new tank in the next few days and will move him asap into that as soon as I get it. I have had the same filter since we bought the tank in I think August 2013. Its fixed to the filter so couldnt change it if i wanted to, apart from buying a new filter.
 
on the last pic, the 2 white fluffy dots on his stomach seem to have gone i think, could this be a sign that the medication and/or salt and the water changes are working? 

 

[WILDER]

Bless Him.
That good to hear. Hope he pulls throw to have a bigger home.
 
Good Luck.

 

[mrblonde]

Thank you! I hope so too.

 

[WILDER]

Is the grey thing sticking out the filter hard to the feel. It's not an airstone is it?

 

[mrblonde]

the grey thing sits in the middle of the sponge in the filter as seen in pic 2 of the filter pics where there is a hole and it is hard like a pumice stone, could this be an air stone? Following a Google search after your post, it does look like that is what it is. I do not need to be worried then about any carbon taking the meds out the water then?

 

[WILDER]

Does sound like an air stone. There not very good filters either. Sorry.

 

[mrblonde]

It doesn't look very good like you have said, I am hopefully upgrading within the next few days so will get a better filter