White lips

FishForums.net Pet of the Month
🐶 POTM Poll is Open! 🦎 Click here to Vote! 🐰

Built2Prfctn

Fish Fanatic
Joined
Dec 23, 2006
Messages
81
Reaction score
2
Should I be concerned about this?
 

Attachments

  • IMG_8954.JPG
    IMG_8954.JPG
    81.2 KB · Views: 836
How long has the tank been set up for?

Have you checked the water quality for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH?
If yes, what were the results?

How long have you had the fish for?
Have you added anything to the tank in the last 2 weeks?
How often are you doing water changes and how much water do you change?
Do you gravel clean the substrate when you do a water change?

-------------------------
Rainbowfish that have only been added to a tank in the last few days often swim into the glass or objects and damage their lips/ mouth. It can look like mouth fungus (Columnaris) but usually turns out to be bruising (a fat lip).

The fish in the picture has a clamped pectoral (side) fin and this is an indication of poor water quality.

Make sure the pH of the water is above 7.0 and the GH (general hardness is above 100ppm).

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week and both problems should clear up.

-------------------------
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt), sea salt or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 1 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water. If there is no improvement after 48 hours you can double that dose rate so there is 2 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

If you only have livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), goldfish or rainbowfish in the tank you can double that dose rate, so you would add 2 heaped tablespoons per 20 litres and if there is no improvement after 48 hours, then increase it so there is a total of 4 heaped tablespoons of salt per 20 litres.

Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.

The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria but the higher dose rate will affect some plants. The lower dose rate will not affect plants.

After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that.

If you add salt and do water changes, you will have to add more salt to the new water that you add to the tank.
eg: you change 50% of the tank water, you add enough salt to the new water to keep the salt levels in the tank stable.
 

Most reactions

trending

Staff online

Members online

Back
Top