white film on fish and deaths?

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Hawaii Predator

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Jul 28, 2008
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Hawaii, Big Island
Okay, i have tested my water for ammonia and it read zero on the color chart, my ph is 7.6 and my temp is 79.2. sorry these are the only test kits i have now. my dojo loach had died and i lost a catfish the other day. the rest of the fish are fine as far as eating and activity goes, but i see a white film on two of my eight glass catfish. i understand that these are sensitive fish but can i get some information on what this could possibly be? and ill get a master test kit in a few hours or possibly tomorrow i feed my fish tetra min tropical flake food and for the bttom feeders a mix of hikari algae wagers and shrimp pellets. sometimes bloodworms and brine shrimp. i have sufficient filtering in my tank (a rena XP2, a coralife uv sterilizer, and a bio wheel 75 gallon filter). i do have live plants and alot of snails. could this be the problem? catfish have also been laying eggs in my tank recently and i mean alot of eggs. i will get a master test kit in a few hours or tomorrow depending on how much spare time i have. please help. i dont want to lose anymore of my fish. theyre sort of my kids. :help: sorry and my tank size is a 55 gallon with alot of bright lighting.
 
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Hawaii Predator

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Jul 28, 2008
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Hawaii, Big Island
wow nobody can help.......................sucks for me :)
 

BettaFishMommy

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Mar 17, 2008
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wish i'd seen this earlier. time for glasses, me thinks.

the white film sounds like fungus to me. but until we know for sure after looking at the photos you're about to post for us......hint, hint. lol, just bugging, but pics would help.

i'd do a large volume change asap. at least 50% or more if you can. what is your water change schedule normally? and your tests, are they drop kit tests or strips? strips suck. And how long has the tank been set up? has there been any recent additions lately? answers to those questions could help figure out the problem.
 

Arakkis

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Apr 7, 2008
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yeah.. possibly fungus.. maybe mixed with bacterial infection.. salt and raise the temp? Otherwise you can always set up a seperate tank for quarantine to treat them seperately.
 

Kashta

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Jun 24, 2008
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Okay, i have tested my water for ammonia and it read zero on the color chart, my ph is 7.6 and my temp is 79.2. sorry these are the only test kits i have now. my dojo loach had died and i lost a catfish the other day. the rest of the fish are fine as far as eating and activity goes, but i see a white film on two of my eight glass catfish. i understand that these are sensitive fish but can i get some information on what this could possibly be? and ill get a master test kit in a few hours or possibly tomorrow i feed my fish tetra min tropical flake food and for the bttom feeders a mix of hikari algae wagers and shrimp pellets. sometimes bloodworms and brine shrimp. i have sufficient filtering in my tank (a rena XP2, a coralife uv sterilizer, and a bio wheel 75 gallon filter). i do have live plants and alot of snails. could this be the problem? catfish have also been laying eggs in my tank recently and i mean alot of eggs. i will get a master test kit in a few hours or tomorrow depending on how much spare time i have. please help. i dont want to lose anymore of my fish. theyre sort of my kids. :help: sorry and my tank size is a 55 gallon with alot of bright lighting.
Welcome Hawaii... if what you see is truly a white film on the body as you described this, then this would be bacterial (columaris) and not fungus. That makes a big difference in how you go about treatment.

When it's actual fungus... there's usually an injury somewhere with a fast-growing white/grey colored fuzz growing that spreads rapidly from that area. Fungus looks very much the way food does when left in the refrigerator for too long and it starts growing mold/fungus. Here's a visual example of true fungus on a fish.



A "white film" doesn't look like this at all.

Columnaris can be either a filmy coating or have a fuzzy appearance. But this would look more "cottony."

Here's a visual example to show the "cottony" or "spider web" like appearance of columnaris.



Would it be possible for you to show us a photo? That would help us be more accurate with our identification of cause and suggestions for treatment.

Also, did you get the liquid test kit yesterday? If so, what did the test results show on your water parameters?
 

Hawaii Predator

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Jul 28, 2008
93
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Hawaii, Big Island
okay. wow thats alot of posts. i checked my nitrate and it read 10 on the color chart so that isnt something to worry about. thank god. i cant get anymore test kits because the 2 lfs's here are totally out of them. ****!!! i just ordered one from petsmart yesterday when i drove to kona for nothing.
okay, the salt treatment is a bit iffy for me because im afraid that if i do it again itll kill of my glass cats, and corys and not to mention plants. but if its a last resort then id do it.
im pretty sure its not fin rot based on what ive experienced in the past because its just a discoloration if you will, on the glass cats body. nothing 'fuzzy' or anything like that. so yeah thanks for diagnosing it for me kashta :).
i regularly do a 25% water change once a week for my tank. i siphon out the water, run my rocks in warm water and get off all of the snail eggs and excess algae. FYI i have fine white sand as my substrate.
i have no other tanks to quarantine the fish so its kinda hard. i only have my 280gallon and a smalll 10 for gupy fry. and i think some of my other fish have it too because of my panda cat looking "grey" and pale. my algae eaters are also rubbing off on rocks and the sand frequently and losing scales here and there.

ive had my tank for a little over a year now. I use drop test kits only. i have about 20 something fish in my tank because of all of the unhealthy fish ive gotten (my fault too). and i have not added any new fish in the past two or three months or maybe longer. so its been awhile. oh yeah, my temp is around the high 70's.
ive tried to post pics in the past but i cant seem to do it. i have a new camera but still....... ill try again but if i cant do it then this info is all that i can give you guys for now. sorry.
 

Hawaii Predator

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Jul 28, 2008
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Hawaii, Big Island
how should i go forth treating this bacteria in my tank? i did a 50% water change, cleaned most of the gravel by hand, removed the most of the snails, and cleaned my filters.
 

shawnhu

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Oct 31, 2008
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If it's columnaris, you'll need cirulation, increase air and possibly treat with an antibiotic targetted from gram negative bacteria. Marcyn II is one, and Tetracycline is another. You should act fast though, as this bacteria isn't patient. It'll paralize your fish until they are consumed by this bacteria.
 

KarlTh

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Feb 15, 2008
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Kashta - wonderful photo. If that were seen more often I think we'd see a lot fewer bacterial infections misdiagnosed as fungus.
 

Kashta

Always Niko's fault.....
Jun 24, 2008
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Kashta - wonderful photo. If that were seen more often I think we'd see a lot fewer bacterial infections misdiagnosed as fungus.
Google is my friend... :) And I think you're right, Karl. I knew what the difference was so I just kept looking until I could find photos that would show this. The (true) fungussy one reminds me what it looks like when mold on bread or that old "mystery" food we might find hiding in the back of the fridge.
 
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