What is this?

[Naughts]

No need to apologise, this forum is here to answer questions and we all ask them!
The thread linked above by @corylover5 explains the life cycle of ich. My understanding is that it is attached to the fish, then it forms cysts that fall off into the substrate, and finally more ich hatches out of the cysts and reattaches to fish. It can only be killed when it hatches out, not when it is on the fish nor when it is in the cyst.
Keep posting and good luck.

 

[Essjay]

The reason the treatment must be continued to the end of the course is that every last cyst must hatch when there is still some medication in the tank, or the temp is still high, or the free swimming parasites which hatch won't be killed and they'll reinfect the fish.

 

[Penelope .R]

Ok, thank you everyone so much.
I did an %85 water change today and replaced the salt I removed.
Some of my fish, mostly the dwarf gouramis, have stringy pale poop. So do a few of my mollys. Is this something or am I just paranoid?I've read that white stringy poop could be a sign of internal parasites.

 

[Penelope .R]

48 hours after I added the salt and there's no improvement, I feel like it's worse but it may be in my head. The small silver dollar's and the kissing gourami's find are looking frayed and wispy at the ends. It's my understanding that mouth rot and fin rot are caused by the same bacteria so is that what this is? I'm doubling the salt to two tablespoons per 20 liters now.
I also have the temperature raised to around 85, I don't think the heater I have can get it any warmer so I ordered a new one for the heck of it. The ich dosen't look better but it doesn't look worse, I know it takes time for the parasite to die.
Thanks again everyone for the great advice, I'm so glad I found this forum.

 

[Colin_T]

If you are using heat to treat white spot, the water needs to be 86F. Check this with a thermometer in the water, not the dial on the heater.

Mouth fungus (Columnaris) is caused by a different species of bacteria than the bacteria that infects damaged fins. I doubt this is Columnaris because the fish are still alive and it hasn't spread across the face and eaten the flesh and skin.

 

[Penelope .R]

If you are using heat to treat white spot, the water needs to be 86F. Check this with a thermometer in the water, not the dial on the heater.

Mouth fungus (Columnaris) is caused by a different species of bacteria than the bacteria that infects damaged fins. I doubt this is Columnaris because the fish are still alive and it hasn't spread across the face and eaten the flesh and skin.

Okay, the heater is all the way up and it's staying around 84-85. I ordered a new one. I have several thermometers monitoring the temperature in different parts of the tank but it's mostly the same throughout.
Okay that's good, I know the pictures aren't great but what could it be? I'm trying to learn more about fish diseases so I can deal with things myself.
Also, how long can the fish handle the heat? I feel like the gouramis are being affected, they seem sort of dreary. I know it needs to stay warm for at least two weeks.

 

[Colin_T]

You can insulate the back and sides of the aquarium with 1 inch thick sheets of polystyrene foam. Just tape them to the outside of the tank. You can also insulate the front as well if necessary.

Make sure you have a coverglass on the tank. Use glass that is 4, 5, or 6mm thick.

You can put a piece of polystyrene foam on top of the tank at night but make sure no water vapour builds up under it and gets into the light unit. If possible, remove the light at night so there is no chance of moisture getting into it if you put a foam cover on top of the tank.

In emergency situations, you can put a blanket or towels over the tank but don't let them come in contact with the water because they can drain water out of it by capillary action/ wicking. And make sure the blankets/ towels are not resting on a hot light unit otherwise they could catch fire.

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The fish should be fine for a few weeks at 30C (86F). Labyrinth fishes (Gouramis & Bettas) are fine with warm water and shouldn't have any issues with 86F for a month or more.

Make sure you have lots of aeration to keep the oxygen levels high for the other fish.

 

[Penelope .R]

You can insulate the back and sides of the aquarium with 1 inch thick sheets of polystyrene foam. Just tape them to the outside of the tank. You can also insulate the front as well if necessary.

Make sure you have a coverglass on the tank. Use glass that is 4, 5, or 6mm thick.

You can put a piece of polystyrene foam on top of the tank at night but make sure no water vapour builds up under it and gets into the light unit. If possible, remove the light at night so there is no chance of moisture getting into it if you put a foam cover on top of the tank.

In emergency situations, you can put a blanket or towels over the tank but don't let them come in contact with the water because they can drain water out of it by capillary action/ wicking. And make sure the blankets/ towels are not resting on a hot light unit otherwise they could catch fire.

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The fish should be fine for a few weeks at 30C (86F). Labyrinth fishes (Gouramis & Bettas) are fine with warm water and shouldn't have any issues with 86F for a month or more.

Make sure you have lots of aeration to keep the oxygen levels high for the other fish.

Okay thank you, I added an extra air stone today and for the most part everyone seems mostly okay. I am very worried about the white patches on the silver dollars mouths, but I guess time will tell if they'll get better or not.

 

[Colin_T]

You can try a broad spectrum fish medication that treats protozoan, fungal and bacterial infections if you like. However, you will have to reduce the temperature if you start adding chemicals. A decent broad spectrum medication like Waterlife Protozin would deal with white spot and might fix the mouth issue, but I would try to use heat, clean water and salt first. Then if that fails, use chemicals..

 

[Penelope .R]

You can try a broad spectrum fish medication that treats protozoan, fungal and bacterial infections if you like. However, you will have to reduce the temperature if you start adding chemicals. A decent broad spectrum medication like Waterlife Protozin would deal with white spot and might fix the mouth issue, but I would try to use heat, clean water and salt first. Then if that fails, use chemicals..

Understood, I know I need to give the salt and heat time to work, I'm just so impatient I hate seeing them suffer.
Are there any medications or remedies I should buy just to have on hand in the future? From now on I'll be taking care of the tank so hopefully I'll be able to avoid diseases for the most part, but I'd like to be prepared.

 

[Colin_T]

The only thing you want to have on hand is water conditioner (dechlorinator) and salt. If you buy chemicals they might sit around for years before getting used. By that time they will have gone off and be useless. Salt on the other hand lasts for years and can be used to treat most things. Dechlorinator is used for water changes.

Big regular water changes, gravel cleaning and having a clean filter will prevent most diseases from occurring.

Quarantining all new fish, plants, shrimp and snails for at least 2 (preferably 4) weeks before adding them to an established tank, will stop most diseases getting into the main tank.

 

[Penelope .R]

The ich looks better today, I know that just means some of the cysts dropped and they're in the substrate, but hopefully the free swimming parasites die and it keeps improving.
As for the patches on my silver dollar's mouths the one looks really different today, I can't tell if it's a good or bad thing. I can see pinkish tissue under the white stuff that is seemingly sloughing off. Is this a good thing or is it getting worse? I don't think it's spread at all, but the area itself is different and the wound seems deeper than before, but I don't know these fish literally never stop moving, it's hard to get a good look. They're both eating readily and haven't slowed down at all.

 

[Colin_T]

it looks infected. how much salt do you have in the water?
make sure you have 2 heaped tablespoons of salt for every 20 litres of water. If you have had that much salt in there for a week then you will probably need a chemical medication.

 

[Penelope .R]

it looks infected. how much salt do you have in the water?
make sure you have 2 heaped tablespoons of salt for every 20 litres of water. If you have had that much salt in there for a week then you will probably need a chemical medication.

I have two heaped tablespoons per 20 liters in the tank, there's been salt in the tank four days, two tablespoons per 20 liters since yesterday. Could the heat be making it worse?
What chemical medication would be best if it comes to that? I know I should give the salt more time but I'd like to be prepared. How many more days before I should consider chemical medication?
Would it be okay if I separate the silver dollars into say a five gallon bucket with an air stone for treatment or should I treat the whole tank? I ask because I imagine treating a 60 gallon tank would be expensive, although I'm willing to do it if it's best to treat the whole tank. I don't have a tank I could separate them into, although I am looking to buy a 15ish gallon tank for a isolation tank one day soon.

 

[Colin_T]

To a degree, heat causes most disease organisms to grow faster but won't cause the actual problem.

Wait 3 or 4 days with the higher salt dose, if no improvement get a broad spectrum medication that treats protozoan, bacteria and fungal infections. Something like Waterlife Protozin should probably work.

You can treat the silver dollars in a smaller tank, just make sure you keep treating the white spot in the smaller tank. A broad spectrum medication should treat white spot as well as the infection in the mouth.

You can use a plastic storage container as a quarantine/ isolation tank but it can be hard to identify diseases on the fish in them. But they are a cheaper alternative.