Year Old Fin Rot...

[GraphiteTurtle]

I have had my Halfmoon Betta for about a year and a half. For most of his life I have battled fin rot. Not severe fin rot no blood or anything.

I have tried.
Jungle Fungus clear
Aquarium salt
Melafix

I feel really bad for him but I just can't seem to get him to heal...

He is in a 5 gallon filtered tank (sponge filter) by himself though I do have a small Pleco that visits to clean the tank every once in a while. I feed him Bettamin, Hikari pellets and the occasional bloodworm.

Water parameters
Temperature 78
Ph7.5
Ammonia 0.00
Nitrites 0.00
Nitrates 25
And this is a planted tank if that matters. I just don't know how to help him. The fungus clear kept the fin rot at bay but didn't heal much. The melafix seemed to be better than nothing but not much help. (I am diluting the Melafix as I heard its too powerful for Bettas)
I change one gallon of water a week.

Could I mix Jungle Fungus clear and Melafix safely? I think that might work. Or is it time for antibiotics?

Thanks for any and all help.

 

[DoubleDutch]

Some time ago I reacted on a Betta, which in my opinion was in a terrible state and dying. I was slaughtered because some Bettas look as if they have finrot but that appears to be quite normale for the species woehahahahaha.
Could this be the case here also? Treating a non-illness will never succeed offcourse.
Can you place a pic so the real Betta-specialist (not me) can give their opinion.

 

[GraphiteTurtle]

I know its some fin issue. Since he got it since I bought him. And his fin length varries and becomes occasionally tattered looking.
I might be able to post a picture later though. Who knows maybe he bite his own tail or something.

 

[Meeresstille]

You could try upping the water changes! 50% weekly rather than the 25% you've done so far. 
 
Fresh water is often best! Sometimes we go to meds and chemicals when we should try fresh water first. If you provide a clean environment the fish's immune system may do the rest. Do you gravel vac?

 

[GraphiteTurtle]

Yes I gravel vac. I have been told elsewhere to up my water changes.
I am going to start using Jungle Fungus Clear again.
I know you are normally not supposed to mix medicine but with Melafixe just being melaucca oil I think I could us it with Fungus Clear do you think that would be safe? And I do know to dilute Melafix as its a bit too much for bettas.

 

[Meeresstille]

You don't want to give just fresh water a try first?

 

[GraphiteTurtle]

I will bit if he continues to decline within the first two weeks I would like to have a back up plan. And I know Fungus Clear kept him from getting worse so maybe if I can safely use it and Melafix along with bigger water changes it might be enough.

 

[KasumiBetta]

Are you sure he isn't biting his tail? I haven't seen your betta so I don't know, but some bettas, especially the super long finned ones, will bite at themselves. Just a thought, sorry if I'm no help!

 

[PrairieSunflower]

I am really new to having a betta.  But in one of my threads I had asked about safe medications should I ever need any and was told things ending in "fix" tended to contain oils which can adversely affect the bettas labyrinth organ and their ability to get air at the surface.  Someone needs to chime in on that but that is what I was told and I tossed my pimafix and melafix just so I'd never make the mistake of using them.

 

[DreamertK]

Well those two are more of "herbal remedies" anyway. I have used melafix with my gourami (half dose) and they did just fine.
 
I'm no betta owner, but I have seen other users on here encourage their betta from resting on the substrate where they're more prone to getting finrot. Perhaps a gander over there would help?
 
I am also an advocate on clean water.

 

[GraphiteTurtle]

I started doing three gallon water changes (every five days is my plan) and his fin rot halted. So hopefully they heal up. Thanks everyone.

 

[r.w.girard]

I used to have the same problem: I was gifted a Betta [horrible idea to give someone a live creature without previous discussion] that suffered from chronic fin rot.  Every month or two he would lose most of his tail and then grow it back.  I would treat it with aquarium salt and that seemed to work pretty well.  I was never able to decide if he was ripping his fins on the hardscape or plants in the tank, if he was ripping them himself [one hear's stories] once they got a certain length, or if he was suffering from some kind of illness.  All I do know is that I eventually set up a larger tank for him and transferred some Trigonostigma hengeli into with him and he has been fine sense.  I don't know if the bigger tank has better [i.e. more stable] water chemistry or if he is distracted by the other fish or if the new hardscape is more fin-friendly. But I do know that it worked.  I am sorry that I cannot give you an answer, except trying some salts. That and moving him to a bigger tank.