HannaB

Wow, ok SO.... just to make sure I understand correctly: 1.) Completely get rid of the filter cartridge? 2.) I can add the aquaclear sponge into the back slot of my filter box (is this one good?: https://www.amazon.com/AquaClear-Inserts-Aquarium-Replacement-A1394/dp/B0002AQK4S). How often would I need to switch it out? 2.) Add Aquaclear Biomax 30 into the front slot? Is the 30 large enough for my tank or would I need a bigger one? 3.) So is the ceramic just meant to serve as an additional bio. filter to the biowheel? (Are biowheels in general not really sufficient for optimal filtration?) 4.) I'm a bit confused as to why (in the video), he added a sponge *below* the biowheel?

@nabokovfan87 @Colu Thanks everyone. I added some aquarium salt (about 18 tablespoons) a few days ago, am monitoring fish. I also did a water test on Mon, Dec. 26th: Ammonia: was actually normal (0 ppm) Nitrites: Purple (0.5 ppm) High-range pH: came up as a pinkish/red color, correlated with a pH of 8.2 in color chart 1.) So, regarding the nitrites: I had forgotten that I had ordered a small bottle of Fritz Complete, full spectrum water conditioner (supposedly neutralizes ammonia & nitrites along with chlorine & chloramine); I added about a capful to the tank in the morning after I did the water test; I then tested the water about 8 hours later, and the nitrite level was normalized (0 ppm). So I guess this could be a good temporary option to control nitrite levels in conjunction with the water changes? 2.) Also.... regarding the high pH level..... any thoughts or advice on this?? Should I do something to lower it? Will it probably normalize eventually? 3.) And yes; I have the MarineLand 38G bowfront kit; I posted a picture below of the filter box: 4.) Fin nipping: yes, unfortunately, I have noticed quite a bit of fin-nipping. Specifically, the yellow angelfish typically nips at the veiled/striped angelfish, while the silver dollars sometimes poke at both of them. But wow, in hindsight, it probably wasn't the best idea to put all those fish together in the same tank 😞. 5.) Do you have any brand suggestions for airstones that are better quality? I've had a long strip one for years now, but TBH even since the beginning, it's always switched between the entire strip producing bubbles, to only a small portion of it producing any; can't figure out why.

Hi again, I posted an update above 🙂 @nabokovfan87 @Colu

Hi everyone, Update: I completed the following course of treatment (2nd round); unfortunately, I've been extremely busy these past couple of weeks and didn't stick to the WC schedule perfectly, but tried to follow it as closely as possible: Thurs. Dec. 1st: took carbon filter out; 7 1/2 scoops Kanaplex; 4 Jungle Fungus tabs Fri. Dec. 2nd: No treatment Sat. Dec. 3rd: 4 JB tabs Sun. Dec. 4th: no treatment Mon. Dec. 5th: 40% WC; 4 JB tabs; 7 1/2 scoops KP; also tested water again (see details below) Tues. Dec. 6th: 4 JF tabs Wed. Dec. 7th: No treatment Thurs. Dec. 8th: 25% WC; 4 JF tabs; 7 1/2 scoops KP Mon. Dec. 12th: 30% WC; put filter back in Water test results: (Dec. 5th): I tested again for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates before doing the 40% water change; it had been 12 days since the last water change: Nitrites: zero Nitrates: color was much better this time; more of a pale orange; I'm guessing level was around 10 ppm according to chart Ammonia: color was alarming this time (light green instead of clear yellow like before); I also tested the next day (Dec. 6th), again after the water change from the previous day, and it was the EXACT same color..... no visible difference at all. This made me wonder if perhaps the color is being altered from components in the Jungle Fungus?? Fish appearance: (pics below): Luckily, it turns out that my one angel (striped/ black & white) did indeed have some fin regrowth.... since then, she's improved a lot; a huge part of dorsal fin has regrown, and her tailfin has slowly been growing back as well (although it still will take a while to regrow to 100% I'm guessing). Her ventral fins have also grown a lot..... although oddly, the left one started to regress a bit again about a week ago, and now it seems to be either the same length, or slightly longer..... My other angelfish (the yellow one in pics) has shown some improvement too (mainly ventral fins), but it's strange that she hasn't had near the improvement as the other one, despite the other one being far worse off initially. As for the silver dollars, I honestly don't know if they've improved at all (maybe a little bit on one of them?? It's hard to tell).... two of them still have the whiteness around their upper parts, and a lot of their fins are still frayed and/or are very short. And so.... I'm curious to know what everyone's suggestions for me are now? Do you think any other antibiotics are necessary? Maybe adding aquarium salt would help in healing??

Okay, thanks. I just ordered some more Jungle Fungus, it should arrive Friday.... do you think I should leave the carbon filter in for the next few days until I can resume treatment, or would it be better to let the residual meds linger in there until next round? (I just added filter back this morning)

Hi, First off, I wanted to share the results of testing the water in my fish tank (for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, and pH); I tested the water on Mon, 11/14, a couple days before I started the treatment; it had been nearly 3 weeks since I did the last water change. I will post my interpretation of results below, as well as actual pictures (of each tube/color) Results were: pH (I feel that this one was the most subjective): 7.0 - 7.2 .....?? nitrite - 0 (was blue) ammonia - 0 (was yellow) nitrate - 30 - 40 ppm (hard to tell exactly, but color was definitely a deep orange color) So, it seems that even after nearly 3 weeks, my ammonia and nitrite levels were fine. However, do you think that the nitrate level could be an issue? (As far as lowering the water quality and making my fish more susceptible to fin rot in the first place?) Update: this is the treatment protocol I did last week: Tues 11/15: 25% WC Wed 11/16: Took out carbon filter; turned off UV light; added 4 tablets of Jungle Fungus (I have a 38 gallon tank; directions say 1 tab/ 10 gallons); 7 1/2 scoops of Kanaplex (directions say 1 measure to every 5 gallons) Thurs 11/17: 4 tabs JF Fri 11/18: 25% WC; 4 tabs JF; 7 1/2 scoops Kanaplex Sat 11/19: 4 tabs JF Sun 11/20: no treatment (I didn't have time to do water change, so I just left it as is) Mon 11/21: 25% WC; 4 tabs JF; 7 1/2 scoops Kanaplex Tues 11/22: 4 tabs JF Wed 11/23: 25% WC; no further treatment; however, I left carbon filter out (I went away for Thanksgiving, so didn't get back till Sunday; I had neighbor look after fish, but mostly just feeding, no treatment). Mon 11/28 (today): put carbon filter back in tank So to summarize.... at this point, I'm not sure how to move forward. Unfortunately, I don't really see any visible improvement in my fish (and didn't before I left for vacation either). All of the silver dollars still have the whiteness around their mouths (or maybe it's just rot/missing scales, can't really tell if it's fungus or not), and I don't see any fin regrowth in silvers or angels (neither dorsal, tails, ventral, etc.). The only possible improvement is my one angelfish might have some slight regrowth on its dorsal fin, based on comparison to the picture I took right before starting treatment (it's kind of hard to tell though). So I guess my question is, do you think I should do a second round of the treatment (Kanaplex + JF), or try something else? Or just wait? On one hand, I didn't expect them to make a full recovery after only a few weeks, let alone a few days; however, even earlier this year when I had first treated the tank with Melafix (the first thing I tried), my angelfish's ventral fins at least showed significant regrowth even after just a few days.... of course, I know this time, they are much worse-off than before, so maybe the treatment is helping, and it will just take more time? I just thought I would at least see *some* improvement by now. Pictures of fish after treatment are below:

Hi again, I received my order of kanaplex & Jungle fungus today, and am about to add the first dose of each to the tank. I just wanted to confirm though, that it is fine to add the Jungle Fungus tabs (full dose) each day of treatment (5-day period)? I just wanted to make sure, because the package directions say to "add 1 tab to each 10 gallons of aquarium water," but then "second dose may be added in 4 days after a 25% water change." ...... Are there any possible adverse effects to adding JF several days in a row?

None yet, although I just ordered Maracyn 2 yesterday..... supposed to arrive tomorrow or Sunday; now though I'm trying to decide between Maracyn 2 and Kanaplex, given Colu's response. None yet, although I just ordered Maracyn 2 yesterday..... supposed to arrive tomorrow or Sunday; now though I'm trying to decide between Maracyn 2 and Kanaplex, given Colu's response. Thank you. I actually just ordered Maracyn 2 online, it's supposed to arrive tomorrow or Sunday..... although I will order the Kanaplex if it will more likely help. Is Kanaplex even more of a broad-spectrum than Maracyn 2? Also (I didn't even see this yesterday), but I see that some people have said that Maracyn 2 only works in soft water..... is this true?? (This info. wasn't on their website). I'm pretty sure I have hard water, given the mineral deposits that are frequently left behind around my tank. Also, if I do end up using Maracyn 2, can it be used with the Jungle Fungus?

Thank you! I think I will order the Maracyn 2 and definitely a comprehensive test kit; however, on the Fritz website, it says that it will most likely inhibit the nitrifying bacteria..... they do sell a product though called "Fritz Complete" that apparently detoxifies ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates, and can be added to the tank during treatment..... they also have another product (FritzZyme 7) that adds nitrifying bacteria to the tank to help out a bit.... any experience or thoughts on these products? Also, do you think it would still be worth it to use both meds (Maracyn I & II) at once? A couple of my silver dollars have white around their gills (one is worse than the other)..... I thought it was fungus at first, but now I'm not sure. Regarding the fungal treatment with Ich-X..... I do have a similar treatment at home that I've used successfully before to treat Ich, though never for fungal infections (API: Super Ich Cure; main ingredient is benzaldehyde green.... same as malachite green?). Do you think this could also work for fungal infections? I have attached some pictures below of my fish: Angelfish 1: Angelfish 2: (she's struggling the most right now..... hides in the corner all day; she only went further down b/c I was taking a picture lol) It was hard to get a pic of these guys, but their tail fins are also very short/splayed; you can kind of see the reflection of the white on the front silver dollar . . Meant to quote this before I posted my reply.

I am seeking advice on how to deal with fin rot. To start, I had bought 2 juvenile angel fish back in February. They looked healthy as far as I could tell when I bought them. However, only about a week and a half later, one started to develop fin rot (fins started splaying and then disappearing). It then spread to my other angel fish. I bought Api "Melafix," and immediately started treating tank according to dosage (& took out carbon filter). It worked like a charm, and within a week, my fish had significantly improved, and fins were growing back. Another week or so later though, and they were regressing again. To make a long story short, this started a vicious cycle for the next several months where I would treat the tank with some kind of herbal medication, the fish would improve, and then the fin rot would return. I have now tried Melafix, Top Fin bacterial & fungal fix, Maracyn Oxy (by Fritz), and even aquarium salt, according to the aquarium coop instructions (I used 1 TBSP per 2 gallons water). Over the past few months, my fish have only gotten worse, they don't even respond to the herbal treatments now (bacterial resistance?), and the disease has spread to all 3 of my silver dollars. They also look like they have a bit of white around their gills (fungus?). Maracyn Oxy didn't help with that either. So I guess I now have to resort to traditional antibiotics..... however, does anyone know whether I should be worried about erythromycin (in the Mardel Maracyn medication) harming the nitrifying bacteria in the tank (I have a biowheel filter; tank has been up and running with fish for about 4-5 years). Should I closely monitor the pH & ammonia levels daily? If so, which test kit would you recommend? And do you think erythromycin alone should be sufficient, or other meds? Also, to clarify regarding the dosing of the Mardel Maracyn: my tank is 38 gallons, and the instructions say to use "one packet per 10 gallons." The video also mentions only dosing once for the entire week, but the online page doesn't give further instructions on this. So should I probably just go with dosing 4 packets at once for the whole tank, and wait a week?? Should I do another water change and dose again to be sure that the bacteria are eradicated? (I really don't want to see the same pattern again of the fish getting better after treatment then getting worse, but I also want to minimize the damage to the beneficial bacteria). Any help would be greatly appreciated!!