robxc80
12-21-2009, 10:24 PM
Hello Everyone,
I currently have a 60 gallon heavily planted tank. I have 6 juvenile discus about 3 inches long that i've had for a few months. My water params are:
pH - 6.7 (due to pressurized co2)
Nitrates - 10 ppm
Nitrites - 0
Ammonia - 0
Temp 82F
I keep the temp at 82 as my limit sometimes jumping up to 83F since my plants and other livestock willnot tolerate the higher temps.
I do a 50% water change weekly. I do not add any water conditioners outside of Novaqua. I dose fertilizers regularly and have my 260 watts of lighting on for 10 hrs a day. My co2 shuts off when the lights go off and turn on when the lights do.
My problem:
I just sold one of my discus because he was a complete jerk and bully to EVERYONE else. I've tried waiting it out to see if he will calm down but it wasn't happening and 2 of my discus were not able to tolerate it much longer. They both stopped eating and hid in the corners most of the day. Their appetites are now gone, and they have darkened up in color.
After selling the PUNK discus, my fish are coming out. 3 of them eat just fine and are quite active. Two of them come out but are shy and are usually darker than normal. They do not eat and the stringy white feces is coming. it's actually rather long, segmented in that the diameter of the feces is inconsistent with some portions being bulbous. Their belly's are not swollen but are not concave as you would expect from a fish that hasn't been eating in weeks. it's actually round and looks like a fish's stomach would that had a healthy diet.
Now i know that without a Microscope, its impossible to be able to accurately diagnose the problem but from my experience with other cichlids that i've kept my entire life, it was almost always hex. Which is what i'm assuming here. I used to use CLOUT to treat them and they always recovered. I want to treat but here are my obstacles.
1. My tank is FULLY planted and high tech. I cannot dose the other tank since i have characins and cory cats that will not handle the meds well.
2. I do not want to treat a tank full of plants especially since the aquascape means as much to me as the fish.
3. I cannot raise the temp due to the fragility of some of my stem plants and some fish.
My response so far has been:
1. Soak FBW and Frozen Mysis in Seachem metro. Problem is, the sick fish don't eat so it doesn't work.
2. I am going to go out and buy a 20 gallon tank tomorrow to treat but i'm afraid i will have new tank syndrome until my filter becomes established. I will hold the tank at 90F and do DAILY 50% WC's.
Questions:
1. Can any of you help me diagnose? (Round bellies lead me to believe that it's either the beginning of bloat or a worm infection. White poop leads me to believe it is Hex)
2. Will the added stress of capture, especially in a fully aquascaped tank make matters worse?
3. Is metro or CLOUT harmful to plants if i decided to dose into the main tank?
4. What are the chances for survival from my fish?
Sorry for the long post. Thank you all in advance for all the great advice.
I currently have a 60 gallon heavily planted tank. I have 6 juvenile discus about 3 inches long that i've had for a few months. My water params are:
pH - 6.7 (due to pressurized co2)
Nitrates - 10 ppm
Nitrites - 0
Ammonia - 0
Temp 82F
I keep the temp at 82 as my limit sometimes jumping up to 83F since my plants and other livestock willnot tolerate the higher temps.
I do a 50% water change weekly. I do not add any water conditioners outside of Novaqua. I dose fertilizers regularly and have my 260 watts of lighting on for 10 hrs a day. My co2 shuts off when the lights go off and turn on when the lights do.
My problem:
I just sold one of my discus because he was a complete jerk and bully to EVERYONE else. I've tried waiting it out to see if he will calm down but it wasn't happening and 2 of my discus were not able to tolerate it much longer. They both stopped eating and hid in the corners most of the day. Their appetites are now gone, and they have darkened up in color.
After selling the PUNK discus, my fish are coming out. 3 of them eat just fine and are quite active. Two of them come out but are shy and are usually darker than normal. They do not eat and the stringy white feces is coming. it's actually rather long, segmented in that the diameter of the feces is inconsistent with some portions being bulbous. Their belly's are not swollen but are not concave as you would expect from a fish that hasn't been eating in weeks. it's actually round and looks like a fish's stomach would that had a healthy diet.
Now i know that without a Microscope, its impossible to be able to accurately diagnose the problem but from my experience with other cichlids that i've kept my entire life, it was almost always hex. Which is what i'm assuming here. I used to use CLOUT to treat them and they always recovered. I want to treat but here are my obstacles.
1. My tank is FULLY planted and high tech. I cannot dose the other tank since i have characins and cory cats that will not handle the meds well.
2. I do not want to treat a tank full of plants especially since the aquascape means as much to me as the fish.
3. I cannot raise the temp due to the fragility of some of my stem plants and some fish.
My response so far has been:
1. Soak FBW and Frozen Mysis in Seachem metro. Problem is, the sick fish don't eat so it doesn't work.
2. I am going to go out and buy a 20 gallon tank tomorrow to treat but i'm afraid i will have new tank syndrome until my filter becomes established. I will hold the tank at 90F and do DAILY 50% WC's.
Questions:
1. Can any of you help me diagnose? (Round bellies lead me to believe that it's either the beginning of bloat or a worm infection. White poop leads me to believe it is Hex)
2. Will the added stress of capture, especially in a fully aquascaped tank make matters worse?
3. Is metro or CLOUT harmful to plants if i decided to dose into the main tank?
4. What are the chances for survival from my fish?
Sorry for the long post. Thank you all in advance for all the great advice.