Melafix

[mimifish]

All,

I have a 75 gallon tank that I started recently, it contains 4 platys & 6 zebra danios. Yesterday I noticed that one of the platys had a small white fuzzy growth on it that i diagnosed as Flexibacteria (learned from this forum BTW). This morning I noticed that on another platy's tail, it had a very small growth of the same fuzzy white stuff. I think that I caught this stuff early, because for a few days after adding my fish the nitrites were high. Now the water is just fine (ammonia & nitrite are zero).

Today I went to the petstore and bought a bottle of Melafix and added it per instructions (1 tsp/10 gallons) do this for 7 days and then do a 25% water change. Reason why I went with Melafix instead of an antibiotic is because I am afraid that I will harm the beneficial bacteria. I am treating the whole tank just in case. Does this stuff work or should I go with Maracyn (erythromycin)? I would like to add some aquarium salt, but do not know how much to add and whether this would have an adverse affect on my fish. What do you all think about Melafix? How long does it typically take for it to work?

Thanks,

 

[Ron]

IMO Melafix works great. I use it with my bettas, cures them up after about 3 days. For my mollies, I use aquarium salt to treat most things, I like to stay away from chemicals to treat for ich, shimmy, fungus ext. I use 1 teaspoon of salt per every gallon of water. I'v enever treated an entire tank, I just put the sick fish in my hospital tank and treat them with the salt it there. I also raise the temp up to 82, seeing thats ich and other fungus related things can't live in temps above 80. But I don't knwo if you would want to put salt in your 75 gallon, maybe just take the infected fish and put them in another tank, and treat them there. Good Luck,
Ron

 

[freshmike]

Ron I think raising the temp just accelerates the life cycle of ich, not that it can't exist in that temp range. I could be wrong, but I think I am right!

 

[Ron]

LOL, people on my first forum told me to raise the temperature, to kill off the ich. It worked for me, but it could have been some good luck! LOL!!! We'll have to see who's right, can anybody tell us who's right!? LOL!!!!
Ron
P.S.- Mike, dogs are the best!

 

[mimifish]

The Flexibacteria appears to be subsiding, I do not see the small fluffy white spot on my platy's head anymore. I also don't see the small white fluff on my other platy's tail. Just to be thorough, I will continue with the treatment per instructions.

I've read other posts on other forums that essentially said that Melafix is useless, however, I think that if the disease state is detected and correctly diagnosed early, then Melafix is the way to go, assuming that the particular disease condition can be treated with Melafix. If the disease state is not detected or correctly diagnosed early on before the infective agent takes a good hold of the fish, then antibiotics should be used.