Epsom Salt Freshwater Tank

[markmyword2022]

Hi Experts. I would like to ask for your insights regarding my experience. I decided to put a epsom salt for my aquarium with the recommended dosage. Day after, i tested my water and my ammonia suddenly spiked! I lve maintained it on zero level for quite some time.

does the epsom salt affect my water quality?

 

[Frank the Fish guy]

Any significant change to water chemistry can cause your system to select for a different bacteria in your bio filter. Your bio filter is adapting to the new chemistry and will resolve itself. But in the meantime check the pH, and find your toxic ammonia level: http://www.blueridgekoi.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/pH-and-Ammonia.pdf

Change the water to keep ammonia below the toxic level, and be consistent with the water chemistry.

 

[mattgirl]

Welcome to Fishlore

I do have to ask, Why are you adding Epsom Salts to your aquarium? normally it is only used as a dip in certain circumstances. I really recommend several water changes to get it out and parameters back in check.

 

[markmyword2022]

Welcome to Fishlore

I do have to ask, Why are you adding Epsom Salts to your aquarium? normally it is only used as a dip in certain circumstances. I really recommend several water changes to get it out and parameters back in check.

Thank you for the response. One of their tankmates have swim bladder disease, ive made a mistake not isolating him on my hospital tank and decided to put the salt on the community tank ‍♂️
T

Any significant change to water chemistry can cause your system to select for a different bacteria in your bio filter. Your bio filter is adapting to the new chemistry and will resolve itself. But in the meantime check the pH, and find your toxic ammonia level: http://www.blueridgekoi.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/pH-and-Ammonia.pdf

Change the water to keep ammonia below the toxic level, and be consistent with the water chemistry.

Thank you very much for the reference. My ph are within the safe range. I will also do a water change, sad that my decision to put epsom salt affect my cycle, i should have done it on a separate tank. will charge this to my experience

 

[MacZ]

Adding Epsom salt adds magnesium to the tank. This is not a medical treatment.

The medical use for Epsom salt in fish is using it as a higher concentrated bath for fish with the symptom of Dropsy, no matter what the disease. It is not a disease itself.
Dropsy is basically kidney failure, leading to liquid filling the tissue and the body cavity. Epsom salt baths have a higher concentration of a mineral, hence the osmotic pressure takes out the water from the fish, relieving the insie pressure by the liquid on organs and tissue.
It has no value as a precaution and only messes with your water parameters. It also has no influence as a med on buoyancy problems (often called swim bladder disease, which is factually nonsense), as those are also just a symptom of a whole array of diseases.

You want to treat the problems you have to find out what is actually going on and then treat as is indicated for what your fish have.

Please first do waterchanges to get your water parameters back to "before" status and then open a new thread using the emergency template, to find out what is really going on.