Adding salt to a tank? Will it hurt my setup?

[CBTF]

I'm currently working on a 10g tank. It's a newer setup and ive heard that adding salt can actually help some fresh water fish have longer life spans. Is this true? Can it stress them? How much should be added to 10 gallons?

Also, please tell me if any of my fish will be harmed from salt

I currently have:
-Male betta
-African dwarf aquatic frog
-neon tetras
-lampeye "tetras" (Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae)
-Mystery snail
-Small shrimp
-Unsure of this other fish, mainly because i forget it's name. It's either a type of minnow or a tetra. Resembles a platy but with standard short fins.

Thanks for any feedback. This salt thing appeals to me, but it's not worth it if it stresses anyone in the tank because it's just a personal curiousity type thing.

 

[hondaman]

The use of aquarium salt is good if you take care when using it. I personally use the one from Aquarium Pharmaceuticals. Here is a link to the product page on PetSmart.

http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023693&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302030064&PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441782165&bmUID=1137206610071&itemNo=0&Ntt=aquarium+salt&In=Fish&previousText=aquarium+salt&N=2023693

"An all natural salt, made from evaporated sea water. Helps improve gill function to reduce stress. Reduces electrolyte loss, promotes healthy gill function and temporarily blocks nitrite toxicity. Contains the seven electrolytes necessary to maintain healthy freshwater fish. Can be used with most aquarium remedies to improve recovery from disease. Use as directed with each water change."


However if you do use it, MAKE SURE YOUR FISH ARE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TANK. You do not want this to land on any fish as it can "burn" them. Also any inverts should stay well away from it also.

 

[Roan Art]

Salt is great for treating diseases, parasites, detoxifying nitrites, etc.,. but it does not belong in the tank as a long term use. Using salt long term renders it useless for fighting diseases et al.

Think of it as you taking an antibiotic every day for the rest of your life to ward off getting sick. Short term, the antibiotic is fine, but if you keep using it it will be useless in a fight against disease. You will also either become immune to its effects or will develop an allergy to it. It could also kill you, eventually.

All the salt your fish needs comes out of your tap.

As an aside, your snail and shrimp will not tolerate salt at *all* for long periods of time. Most bottom feeders won't.

-lampeye "tetras" (Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae)

Btw, there is no such thing as a "lampeye" tetra. The name you have referenced above is for the Redeye Tetra. So, either you were sold killiefish instead of tetras (which is not unheard of. Norman's Killiefish is often mislabeled as a "Lampeye Tetra") or the LFS labeled the fish incorrectly as "Lampeyes".

Roan

 

[CBTF]

ah i see. i was under the impression that some people used salt permanently.

and yes, they were labelled incorrectly. they are the redeye tetras.

 

[Roan Art]

ah i see. i was under the impression that some people used salt permanently.

Most people don't.
There are other members of AC who are far more versed than I in the uses of salt -- Daveedka is one -- who can answer you in far better detail.

and yes, they were labelled incorrectly. they are the redeye tetras.

Okay Just wanted to make sure you knew what you had there.

Roan

 

[jasonskillz]

Salt is great for treating diseases, parasites, detoxifying nitrites, etc.,. but it does not belong in the tank as a long term use. Using salt long term renders it useless for fighting diseases et al.

Think of it as you taking an antibiotic every day for the rest of your life to ward off getting sick. Short term, the antibiotic is fine, but if you keep using it it will be useless in a fight against disease. You will also either become immune to its effects or will develop an allergy to it. It could also kill you, eventually.

All the salt your fish needs comes out of your tap.

As an aside, your snail and shrimp will not tolerate salt at *all* for long periods of time. Most bottom feeders won't.


Btw, there is no such thing as a "lampeye" tetra. The name you have referenced above is for the Redeye Tetra. So, either you were sold killiefish instead of tetras (which is not unheard of. Norman's Killiefish is often mislabeled as a "Lampeye Tetra") or the LFS labeled the fish incorrectly as "Lampeyes".

Roan

roan
wut do u mean my bottom feeders wont tolerate salt?
so arent plecos bottom feeders?
if it is my problem is solved

 

[graphicdesign_r]

Salt should not be used much if at all in a tank with plecos, they have extremely low tolerance for it.

I used to use salt once every two months, but have stopped because my crayfish became sick last time I dosed with it (which never happened before, he's been in there over a year).

Since I stopped using it I have had no disease issues, and I had no disease issues when I was using it. I did notice it would bother certain fish (my kuhli would have red, swollen gills after salt dosage) I'm kind of on the fence about whether regular application helps, but for now I have decided to use it for medical application only.

 

[daveedka]

There are a buch of highly heated threads here at AC and Elsewhere about the use of salt. Plain and simple, Salt should be treated as a medication. It has it's uses when viewed for medical purposes. Long term or continual use of salt is neither justifiable nor is it good for your fish. I have yet to find one single argument that stood up to scrutiny when it comes to the long term use of Sodium Chloride in a freshwater tank. RTR wrote a great article on the Salt Myth and it can be read here:

http://www.thepufferforum.com/articles/water/salt.html

You can also run a search for salt threads here and get all kinds of interesting information and arguments. Fair Warning, a good many of the salt threads have been locked because they got Ugly.

There are still many folks that believe that salt needs to be used constantly in a freshwater tank, Chalk this up to really good marketing on the part of Doc Wellfish and other salt sellers. Like Many aquarium myths this one will probably still be around for years to come.
Dave