How important is slime coat?

[discushobbies]

Every time I do water changes, I notice the discus slime coats come off. Why is this happening? How vital are they to the discus?

[Kyla]

do u age ur water in barrels before adding it to the tank? if u do water changes straight from the tap u can add microbubbles to the tank which irritate the discus and result in the shedding of the slime coat. aging the water from the tap in a holding container for a day, esp while aerating it, will allow the pressurized gasses to release from the water before u add it to the tank.

u can also try to rig up a device to dissipate the bubbles before they enter the tank. im in the middle of a water change and im using this to decrease the microbubbles from the tap water. i crammed sponges into the long tube and they catch a lot of the bubbles while the water passes thru them into the tank during a refill. best option is def an aging barrell tho, which i am working on setting up soon.

http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm182/kylasfish/Mobile%20Uploads/8638BBCE-87C0-41A4-A53D-6B2E20FE7716_zps9ltu2fyf.jpg (http://s296.photobucket.com/user/kylasfish/media/Mobile%20Uploads/8638BBCE-87C0-41A4-A53D-6B2E20FE7716_zps9ltu2fyf.jpg.html)

[Wes]

search "winter water"

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?116668-Water-swap-straight-from-the-tap

[discushobbies]

Is it bad that it gets stripped off the discus? What is it suppose to do for the discus?

[SNap0283]

Yes its bad. You need to figure out a way to stop it from happening or itll ultimately kill them.

[Second Hand Pat]

Yes its bad. You need to figure out a way to stop it from happening or itll ultimately kill them.

The slime coat is the fish's first line of defense against anything that is harmful in the water. You might need to age, aerate and preheat your water before a water change.
Pat

[discushobbies]

Does it affect its growth?

[modealings]

I notice that if I fill up my tank using buckets from the bathtub then i don't get the microbubbles like i do with a hose from the sink. Probably the increased agitation hitting the bucket. (I actually think its faster too bc water comes out faster from the tub.)

[Filip]

Does it affect its growth?

I don't think it is related directly to growth inhibition,
But on the long run it affects discus immune system and overall health of discus.

[DISCUS STU]

Yes it's not good. Even though it grows back, the Slime Coat is there for a reason and its loss will affect the fish's health. Being an apartment dweller I don't have a way of storing large amounts of water prior to my water changes. It's Prime straight from the tap.

This seems to happen more when the water coming out of the tap has "micro bubbles" in it. For some strange reason the micro bubbles occur more in the winter and colder weather and less or not at all in the spring or summer.

The slime coat can slough off my fish to the point where it looks as if they're encased in a whitish cocoon. Lately I'm using a 180 micron media bag attached to the end of the Python scoop but it's not as effective as I'd like it to be. Running slower flow out of the faucet is also effective as the bubbles tend to stay more toward the top or the middle while my Discus stay towards the bottom.

[pitdogg2]

I notice that if I fill up my tank using buckets from the bathtub then i don't get the microbubbles like i do with a hose from the sink. Probably the increased agitation hitting the bucket. (I actually think its faster too bc water comes out faster from the tub.)

No matter how slow or fast I run water I get microbubbles from the hot water side. While running into my 5gal. bucket it will look clear for a second then cloud up a bit as they surface.

[modealings]

Hmm that's interesting. I guess for my own edification, what exactly are microbubbles? My understanding is that they are the tiny bubbles I see attached to the walls of the tank (and discus' slime coat) when I fill up the tank with a hose. But are they always visible if they are going to cause a problem? My bathtub faucet is the kind that really sprays the water vigorously into the bucket so I don't see any bubbles in the tank after I fill it up. (It's also a nice cardio workout to run a few buckets in tandem filling up a 75 gal tank haha).

[DISCUS STU]

Micro bubbles are very tiny air bubbles that look almost like a cloud or turbidity in the water. Given a few minutes they settle out of solution but not before they do their damage. They somehow adhere to the slime coat of the fish and cause it to slough off. To my eyes when I can see 'em they're a problem, otherwise they're not.

Here's a picture of a what it looks like. Disregard the bubble wand, the visual effect is the same. 93239