Is it ok to use salt all the time?

[Shive]

I never used salt until my fish got sick...But I noticed that they really like it. After the fish recoverd I went back to dechlor water. But they(fish) were not the same. After a month I started puting about 1/2 a table spoon per 5gl bucket. That seem to make a world a difference so is ok to keep using salt???? It helps there slime coats and there breathing I'm told. So what do you think??? I'm just using pickling salt very cheap!

Shive

[Jean]

Hi Shive!

Most do not recommend using this on a constant basis.
It could be your water. You have city water? Do you know what is in it? What do you use to dechlor if so? For Example: there have been some using Prime and it is not removing all that they thought it should.

I'd test for ammonia and nitrites to start off.

Jean ;D 8)

[mikeos]

If they feel better in a salt solution then I would be looking at my water paramiters, preperation method and general tank hygene/maintenance regime.

Sounds like a water problem.

[Shive]

My water specs out fine we do not use Chloramines in Columbus Ohio.
AMMONIA....0
NITRITE.......0
NITRATE....2.5
PH.............7.0
PH TAP.......7.1
On the 40gl I change 15gl in he morning and 15gl @ night
on the 20gl I change 10 in the morning and @ night
On the 75gl I change 25gl once a day.
I use pre filters and I spot clean my tanks before each meal. They are pretty close to spotless except for a little algae. I sqeeze my sponges once every 2 weeks.

The 20gl has an AC-200 and a 35gl rated sponge filter
The 40gl has a AC-300 and 2 35gl rated sponge filters
The 75gl has a AC-300 and a 125gl rated sponge filter and a 35gl rated sponge filter.
EACH AC has 2 sponges which I squeeze every other week.

I keep my tanks heated @ 30* Celsius

I guess my question is this:
My fish are happier with a little salt will this hurt them if I continue to do this?


HTH
Shive

[fshngal]

Salt assists in maintaining a good slime coat and adds some trace minerals to the water. It also assists the discus that my have some type of ailment by providing a better slime coat to help them fight it off long enough to recover.

If you believe that this is helping your discus, it would be your call as to whether or not you want to use salt on a continuing basis. Everyone has personal preferences that they use for whatever reason they deem appropriate.

Keep in mind all tap water has sodium in it. Have you checked you local water report to see what is in the water up there??

Fshngal :)

[mikeos]

I was more concerned with disolved hydrocarbons, pesticides and heavy metals than "the usual suspects" many water companies add floculants..alum or alluminium hydroxide to remove suspended matter, can cause real probs. Recently lost 150 or so fry to pipe cleaning. >:(

[CliffsDiscus]

What is your GH and KH?

Cliff

[Shive]

Hi every one thanks for the responses, I just figured my KH and GH I don't watch that as closely as I do the other parameters. I don't know if this is good or bad but here it is and it's the same across all three tanks.

KH...53.7 ppm
GH...125.7 ppm

Hey fishngal how are you doing? How are all your new fish doing? Lastly how is D&D DISCUS doing? I hope all of your responses are positive. I hope your family is doing good too :D.

Shive

[fshngal]

Hi Shive,

Doing well here. New fish are doing very well. DD Discus is very busy. Currently selling Juve Stendkers from Joe and Han's, they are moving fast, and growing quickly :). Working on discus spawns for fall inventory. Angelfish everywhere. Family is doing well.

Best of luck to you with your discus and water.

fshngal :-* :bounce2: :bounce: :computer:

Deedee is doing the typing!! :angel: :wave:

[tony1313]

Hey Shive,
How many fish do you have in each of these tanks? Do you age your water? Is it the same temp as the tank water? Depending on your bio load you may not be cleaning your filters often enough. I clean mine every day or at least every other day(in tank water).

[Shive]

Tony, I have 5 3.5" PB's in the 40gl 7 4" to 5" in the 75gl
I really think it's the stress of the water change it's self that causes the problem. But the salt seems to make it better. I don't store water yet that is my next project ;)! I use tap that is pretty stable as far as I can tell. The PH stays stable as well. Alot of te breeders around here don't even declore there water but I do. I use this stuff called GENISIS made by AP Pro. It works on both chlorine and Chloramines. I don't think my Bio Load is too big. But I am going to start squeezing my sponges more often. The reason I haven't in the past is because I never wanted to damage the bio-filter because it's hard enough to colonize bacteria in a bare bottom tank as it is :-\. Thanks for the help every one I plan to weine them off salt as soon as I get back from vacation.

Shive

[fshngal]

Shive,

Here is a link to another thread that talks more in depth about the use of salt on discus. Jeep posted the link in General Discus Discussion. Thank him.

http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=1;action=display;threadid=5811;sta rt=msg61333#msg61333

HTH,
Fshngal