fish looks like it had a reaction after water change? HELP!

jfingers088

Member
Hi everyone i have a 90 gallon and its been running for about a month now so i think i'm getting to the end of my cycle. I did a 10% water change today and everything looked fine i went out for a couple of hours and when i came back one of my green chromis damsel has these white spots all over him and i can tell something is wrong because his fins are moving really fast. i let the new saltwater mix sit for 4 hours. What could possibly be happening? Will he make it? The other 2 look like they have it a little to but not as bad. Its my first water change and i did it today for the first time on schedule. Ive also had the fish for about 2 weeks. Sorry for going on and on but im in panic mode.
 

chipmaker

Active Member
So what your saying is your tank is "still cycling" you did a partial water change.........first one, and your "green chromis" is sick? Why is there a green Chromis in a tank that is not 100% fully cycled.....? So that poor fish wa introduced 2 weeks into the cycle.....Why it is like it is, certianly is not hard to figure out!
 

yerboy

Active Member
The white spots sound like Ick. Im not going to flame because alot of new saltwater hobbyist don't understand how deadly it is to add fish into a tank thats isn't cycled. And some LFS tell you to cycle with fish.
For future reference let you salt mix at least 12+ hours and make sure your new water is the same temp as your tank water to reduce stress.
As far as your fish goes its more then likely going to die, because unless you have a cycled QT tank to put it in, and more water changes to your tank may cause more harm then good.
Do a search for fresh water dip and you may want to try that. Its only a temp solution for a bigger problem but may be enough to save your fish for now. " if in fact it is ick "
If anyone else reads this and thinks i gave bad information or what not please correct me. Im still pretty new at all this also.
 

hot883

Active Member
I won't flame you for having fish in a NOT YET cycled tank. They took care of that in the above posts.
This is what I suggest:
1. Do not add anything or do anything to the tank until you read and research.
2. Water DOES NOT get added the same day as it is mixed. (thats what I mean by reading; adding fish to soon and not doing a water change correctly)
3. What are your water parameters?
4. The whits spots might be salt as you did not not mix it and aerate it for 24 HOURS.
 

ct_vol

Member
Wow you guys are harsh on Newbies in this forum... Remember that this forum is for education and advice... You should try and help people that don't know any better, not slam them and make them feel ashamed... And its also inadvisable to have a newbie perform a more advanced aquarist technique such as a freshwater dip...
jfinger~ You're making many common mistakes most beginners do... As stated, let your water stabalize for 24hrs at least after mixing... This would reduce any chance of having salt left undesolved... It also might change salinity readings... Also I would doubt that doing a 10% water change would cause enough stress to cause an outbreak of ick... And if it did, most likely you bought the fish from your LFS already diseased... Once you have an established reef tank, you will discover the importance of Quarantine tanks... But that is a lesson for another day... You need to check your ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite levels... If you have any ammonia in your tank I would do another water change, and might even increase the volume of the change... If you are using a sump, don't forget to include the volume of the sump and the tank in your total percentage... Keep your chin up and we all suffer losses on occasion...
 

yerboy

Active Member
Originally Posted by ct_vol
Wow you guys are harsh on Newbies in this forum... Remember that this forum is for education and advice... You should try and help people that don't know any better, not slam them and make them feel ashamed... And its also inadvisable to have a newbie perform a more advanced aquarist technique such as a freshwater dip...
jfinger~ You're making many common mistakes most beginners do... As stated, let your water stabalize for 24hrs at least after mixing... This would reduce any chance of having salt left undesolved... It also might change salinity readings... Also I would doubt that doing a 10% water change would cause enough stress to cause an outbreak of ick... And if it did, most likely you bought the fish from your LFS already diseased... Once you have an established reef tank, you will discover the importance of Quarantine tanks... But that is a lesson for another day... You need to check your ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite levels... If you have any ammonia in your tank I would do another water change, and might even increase the volume of the change... If you are using a sump, don't forget to include the volume of the sump and the tank in your total percentage... Keep your chin up and we all suffer losses on occasion...
Lol i wasn't flaming was i ?
 

hot883

Active Member
Originally Posted by yerboy
Lol i wasn't flaming was i ?
Ha! Nor was I. Hence the "I'm notflaming ya".
 

ct_vol

Member
Nah the first guy seemed the most inflamatory... lol I just know I get frustrated at times with newbie mistakes, but try to recall how it was when I first got into SW keeping more than a few years back... There was a guy in my reef club that was doing topoff with salt water... Ugh... :( Patience is a virtue... Especially in this hobby... :)
 

beth

Administrator
Staff member
Flaming would be, "That is just dump and neglectful and you should know better BEFORE you start in this hobby." I don't think any flaming has occurred here. Keep in mind, however, that we want new members to the forum to stay, not leave, so some TLC (at least in the beginning) is appreciated.

The advise about not using fish for cycling a new tank, is good advise. A piece or 2 of live rock will cycle a new tank well, and if your tank has live rock anyway, then no need to sacrifice fish for a cycle. Just remember to feed your live rock to keep it alive.
Water should be mixed for at least 2 days using a powerhead. Otherwise, salt will not be thoroughly mixed and will cause harm to marine animals.
 
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