White spots on new pleco

[wherestoad]

Hi. I’m new to keeping fish. I currently have 7 neon tetras, 6 zebra danios, 1 gold mystery snail, 1 black racer nerite snail, a rubber lip pleco and a new pleco my friend gave me because she could no longer care for it all in a 20 gallon tank. The new guy I don’t know what kind he is because she couldn’t remember. He was in a tiny tank that had three goldfish that all died within a span of 3 days. He had white spots that I thought were nothing but have become very noticeable. I separated him and then noticed the same white spots on my rubber lip pleco. I’m really concerned now. Any idea what they could be? I did a water change today when I separated them so I’m hoping that’ll help prevent my other fish from getting this if it’s not too late. Please help!!!

 

[BrianK]

Looks like Ich to me but I really don't know. What I do know is the you need a ginormous tank to take care of him as unless it is a smaller type of pleco, it can get to be a foot long if he lives.

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

I can't see any white spot on the unusual pleco, but its fins are a bit clamped, which could be poor water quality or a disease.

I can't tell anything about the bristlenose pleco because the fish isn't in focus. If you post a decent picture it might offer more information. Check pictures on your computer to make sure they are in focus before uploading here.

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How long has the tank been set up for?
What is the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH of the water?
What sort of filter is on the tank?
How often and how do you clean the filter?

How often do you do water changes and how much do you change?
Do you gravel clean the substrate when you do a water change?
Do you dechlorinate the new water before adding it to the aquarium?

You can ask your friend with the goldfish these same questions. We might be able to work out why their fish died.

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If you think it has white spot, do a 75-90% water change and gravel clean the substrate. Clean the filter too. Then raise the water temperature to 30C (86F) and keep it there for 2 weeks, or at least 1 week after all the white dots have gone.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.

Filters should be cleaned at least once a month. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens.

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

 

[wherestoad]

Hi and welcome to the forum

I can't see any white spot on the unusual pleco, but its fins are a bit clamped, which could be poor water quality or a disease.

I can't tell anything about the bristlenose pleco because the fish isn't in focus. If you post a decent picture it might offer more information. Check pictures on your computer to make sure they are in focus before uploading here.

---------------------
How long has the tank been set up for?
What is the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH of the water?
What sort of filter is on the tank?
How often and how do you clean the filter?

How often do you do water changes and how much do you change?
Do you gravel clean the substrate when you do a water change?
Do you dechlorinate the new water before adding it to the aquarium?

You can ask your friend with the goldfish these same questions. We might be able to work out why their fish died.

---------------------
If you think it has white spot, do a 75-90% water change and gravel clean the substrate. Clean the filter too. Then raise the water temperature to 30C (86F) and keep it there for 2 weeks, or at least 1 week after all the white dots have gone.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.

Filters should be cleaned at least once a month. However, if the filter is less than 6 weeks old, do not clean it. Wash the filter materials/ media in a bucket of tank water and re-use the media. Tip the bucket of dirty water on the garden/ lawn. Cleaning the filter means less gunk and cleaner water with fewer pathogens.

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

The tank has been set up for 3 months now. I haven’t checked the levels in the tank in about two weeks (I will check when I get home from work tonight). I have a whisper tetra filter. I clean the filter every 4 weeks (more if needed) and I clean it with a sponge and rinse it out thoroughly.

I change out my water every other week about 10%. I always vacuum the gravel when I do a water change and I always dechlorinate the water before adding it to my tank.

My friend had just gotten a new tank, put tap water in, used a dechlorinate and put the fish in without even acclimating them. She also did a full water change the day her third fish died (before it died) and that was the day she gave him to me. She also had to tape the inside of the bottom of the tank to prevent leaks which I thought was a horrible idea.

I will be raising the water temp tonight. I did a 50% water change yesterday will that be enough? Thank you so much for the help.

 

[wherestoad]

The tank has been set up for 3 months now. I haven’t checked the levels in the tank in about two weeks (I will check when I get home from work tonight). I have a whisper tetra filter. I clean the filter every 4 weeks (more if needed) and I clean it with a sponge and rinse it out thoroughly.

I change out my water every other week about 10%. I always vacuum the gravel when I do a water change and I always dechlorinate the water before adding it to my tank.

My friend had just gotten a new tank, put tap water in, used a dechlorinate and put the fish in without even acclimating them. She also did a full water change the day her third fish died (before it died) and that was the day she gave him to me. She also had to tape the inside of the bottom of the tank to prevent leaks which I thought was a horrible idea.

I will be raising the water temp tonight. I did a 50% water change yesterday will that be enough? Thank you so much for the help.

 

[Colin_T]

It doesn't look like white spot but raise the temperature to 30C (86F) for a couple of weeks just to make sure. It shouldn't harm the fish but will make sure there are no white spot parasites alive in the tank.

 

[wherestoad]

It doesn't look like white spot but raise the temperature to 30C (86F) for a couple of weeks just to make sure. It shouldn't harm the fish but will make sure there are no white spot parasites alive in the tank.

Alright good. So it should be fine to put him back with the others right?

 

[Colin_T]

yes