what is and do i have HLLE

[tzenda]

i have two clowns in a
75gal
0 amm, nit, nit
380ca
7alk
we noticed one of the clowns lips are eroding away and that the same one has what looks like an iritation on his side, ive been reading around and think its hlle but am not sure, its like part of his lip is missing, does hlle do that
i did find 4 volts AC in my tank which will be taken care of before the night is out
the clowns both seem pretty happy they have been swimmin around more than usual but they dont eat the best.
what im askin i guess is, what are the symtoms of hlle and if putting them in a sick tank with copper is a good idea

 

[beth]

How long have you had this clown? Can you post a picture? Take a look at the fish in the FAQ Thread with HLLE and see if what you see on your fish matches the problems those HLLE fish exhibit.

 

[tzenda]

we have had him for a year
i could post a pic but the blemishes dont really show up on the pic
ive looked at the pics in the posts but i cant tell for sure
its moslty his upper lip is missing a chunk but i doesnt look like it got ripped out just that its missing and he has a small spot on his side that is starting to dimple in
when we fed him tonight he ate better than he has been but it was only flakes
im just not sure if i should try to catch him and stick him in a sick tank or not, it might make things worse if what ive read about hlle is right, and if thats what he has

 

[beth]

What kind of tank do you have this fish in and what are the water readings? What are you feeding him and how often?
Basically HLLE is an eroding of exterior flesh revealing the layers of flesh beneth. Like when you get a scrab and the top layer of your skin is scapped away revealing the layers beneath.

 

[tzenda]

he is in a 75gal reef tank
readings are
ammonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates 5
calcium 390
alk 7
he is beeing fed flakes, we tried brine shrimp but he wont eat it (live or frozen), he will eat zooplankton but not much of it.
and the eroding of the flesh is what it looks like is happening, but its only really hapenin around his lips, eating his lips away.

 

[pyro]

I'd avoid copper if at all possible - its generally "bad mojo".
Do you have any inverts or anythign else in the tank?

 

[tzenda]

yea there are a bunch of inverts
snails, corals, stars, crabs, ect
i have a separate hospital tank with copper in it but i dont think im going to go that route anymore
im lookin for other methods