Worried about new gourami

smellin_fishy said:

Hi everyone! This is my very first post AND tank, so I want to make sure I'm doing everything I can to help my fish thrive. About 2 weeks ago I set up a 55 gallon tank and let it cycle through. I added water conditioner and nitrifying bacteria to help it work faster, and this past Monday all the water tests came back looking good according to the API test kit (0ppm nitrates/nitrites, 0 ammonia, 7pH). So I went to a local fish store and got 6 neon tetras and 3 dwarf gourami on advice of the employees. Unfortunately, 3 of the tetras did not handle to stress of moving well and died overnight, but everyone has made the adjustment very well and their personalities are starting to come through which is really exciting! Today, however, my boyfriend pointed out a strange white line that looks similar to flaking skin on the right side of one of the gourami. I have attached pictures which show what I am describing in better detail (I also have a video but I could not attach it so please message me if you would like to see it). Anyone have any idea what this is? I have been testing the water religiously every day since we got them, the temperature is steady at 78, and they have all been acting normal and love to eat. Is this something I should be concerned about? Thank you!! View attachment 110148View attachment 110149View attachment 110150

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Perbud said:

Did you change water recently and caused the fish to be stressed due to inconsistent water temperature?

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Colin_T said:

The fish has excess mucous and a minor fungal and bacterial infection on the tail.

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Wipe the inside of the glass with a clean fish sponge.

Clean the filter if it hasn't been done in the last 2 weeks. Wash filter media/ materials in a bucket of tank water and re-use them.

Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day until we work out what is wrong with the fish.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.

Increase aeration/ surface turbulence to maximise oxygen levels in the water.

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Add salt.
You can add rock salt (often sold as aquarium salt), sea salt or swimming pool salt to the aquarium at the dose rate of 2 heaped tablespoon per 20 litres of water.

Keep the salt level like this for at least 2 weeks but no longer than 4 weeks otherwise kidney damage can occur. Kidney damage is more likely to occur in fish from soft water (tetras, Corydoras, angelfish, gouramis, loaches) that are exposed to high levels of salt for an extended period of time, and is not an issue with livebearers, rainbowfish or other salt tolerant species.

The salt will not affect the beneficial filter bacteria, plants, snails or any fish.

After you use salt and the fish have recovered, you do a 10% water change each day for a week using only fresh water that has been dechlorinated. Then do a 20% water change each day for a week. Then you can do bigger water changes after that. This dilutes the salt out of the tank slowly so it doesn't harm the fish.

If you do water changes while using salt, you need to treat the new water with salt before adding it to the tank. This will keep the salt level stable in the tank and minimise stress on the fish.

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smellin_fishy said:

I think you're right about the fungal infection. Looking at them today I see some white cottony growth around their fins and tail. Would it make sense to get fungal medication from a store rather than doing a water change as they haven't been in the tank a full week and I am worried about stressing them out too much and getting rid of too much beneficial bacteria. Thank you!

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Salty&Onion said:

Water changes won't remove the bacteria and your tank is not cycled so you have no bacteria to remove anyway, but unnecessary medication will. Don't put in any medication in the tank, just water changes and add salt just like Colin advised.

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