Moderate Fin Rot in Betta

HI all,
I'm trying to take a bit more aggressive approach to treating my betta Chewy's fin rot. I picked up some "Fluval salt for freshwater aquariums" and my plan is to do a 40-50% water change every other day with a touch over 1/4 tsp of the salt according to the packaging directions which say to use 1 tablespoon/10 gallons so that would work out to about 1/4 teaspoon/1 gallon. I added an indian almond leaf the other day as well. He is acting normally, being his usual swimmy boi self, just has the fin rot. Not sure what could have caused it because his water parameters are always pretty well under control and there isn't anything sharp in his tank that he could have ripped his fins on.

Tank size: 2.5 gallons (will be upgrading to 5 gallon when I can)
Filtered, heated at approx 78 degrees
Using prime as a conditioner as I have 0.5 ppm of ammonia present in my tap water
PH, nitrites, and nitrates look good
Tank is cycled

I'm wondering if anyone has used this salt before (my local pet store was out of your typical API aquarium salt) and/or if anyone knows if it is safe to use a higher dose/is that necessary? Or am I totally missing the mark and doing everything wrong? I'm willing to humbly accept any correction and/or advice. How long should I continue this method until I hit him with the harder stuff (bettafix or melafix)?

 

You said you have .50ppm of ammomia I'm a 2.5gal? That will give him fin rot for sure. Also since you do have ammomia present and 0 nitrates, your tank is not cycled. I would look into the Nitrogen cycle and fish in cycling

Keep up with the water changes and use prime when adding match temp water back. For the salt, dont add salt every time you do a water change. Salt does not evaporate so therefore the more you add, the more it builds up in the water and lowering the oxygen levels for fish. I suggest Roobis tea along with the IAL.

Do not use Melafix/Betafix. They are basic oils that do more harm than good and there are no reviews on it actaully helping, just harming the bettas labyrinth organ. I would look into Seachems Paraguard for now and Kanaplex when it gets severe.

just stick with very frequent water changes, additional tannin, and seachem paraguard.

 

I personally don't like to use salt directly in tanks. Once it's in the water the only way to remove it is through actually removing the water so it's really easy to overdose. You'd want to be careful to dose for the amount you're replacing and not the whole tank.

The current state of his fins should actually be curable without using anything really. If you temporarily increase your water changes in both volume and frequency it should clear up. I'd suggest doing this regardless of whether or not you use the salt just because it can't really hurt.

An alternative is a salt bath. In a salt bath you can use a higher dose of salt without too much stress because he will only be in it for a max of about 15 minutes. To do it you'll need a container, just about anything will do so long as it's clean and hasn't help chemicals. I use a tupper ware bin with measurements on the side for the sake of ease. Measure out how ever much water you want to fill it with and dose it with the appropriate amount of salt. Try to match the temperature to that of the aquarium. If you have an odd amount of water that makes it difficult to know how much salt you need it may be easier if you mix up a full gallon in a bucket and bottle it for later use. Make sure you mix the salt in and that it is completely dissolved before you move on. Next you'll want to carefully net out your little friend and place him into the salty water. Wait about 10 minutes and then scoop him back out and into his own tank. If he shows signs of distress such as gasping for air or erratic swimming it's best to move him before the time is up.

When you say parameters seem alright could you specify what their actual levels are? Sometimes when a tank is still cycling it can cause minor finrot.

 

0.5ppm in your tap water AND your tank water? If there is, I would suggest a water change, to get all that salt and ammonia out of the 2.5 gallon as fast as possible.

If you have 0ppm of nitrate that could be a little suspicious and a hint of an uncycled tank. Unless you have live plants of course. How long was the tank cycling for?

 

Salt is helpful in some cases. But honestly I think your guy is looking pretty good.

I’d stick to frequent, as in daily, 20% water changes and see how he does for 5-7 days. Get that ammonia down and your cycle stable perhaps.

Please don’t ever use the ‘fix’ products for a betta. I’ve never had good experiences with them and the internet is full of reasons why bettas should never be subjected to it.

 

You said you have .50ppm of ammomia I'm a 2.5gal? That will give him fin rot for sure. Also since you do have ammomia present and 0 nitrates, your tank is not cycled. I would look into the Nitrogen cycle and fish in cycling

Keep up with the water changes and use prime when adding match temp water back. For the salt, dont add salt every time you do a water change. Salt does not evaporate so therefore the more you add, the more it builds up in the water and lowering the oxygen levels for fish. I suggest Roobis tea along with the IAL.

Do not use Melafix/Betafix. They are basic oils that do more harm than good and there are no reviews on it actaully helping, just harming the bettas labyrinth organ. I would look into Seachems Paraguard for now and Kanaplex when it gets severe.

just stick with very frequent water changes, additional tannin, and seachem paraguard.

Thanks for your response!

My tap water has 0.5 ppm ammonia, but I condition it with prime which detoxifies ammonia. I never see ammonia above 0.25 ppm in my tank water. The tank is cycled. Nitrites are 0 ppm nitrates at 20 ppm as of last week, but have done 2 water changes since then. Whenever I add water I match the temp.

Salt doesn't evaporate yes, but if I'm taking out half of the water and replacing it would I not need to add salt to that new water?

I'll look into the rooibos tea. I also added a piece of aquarium driftwood which has been releasing tannin as well. So that helps. That is what I had read about the "fix" products which is why I went for the salt instead. Was gonna save them as a last resort, but thank you for the other medication recommendations!

I personally don't like to use salt directly in tanks. Once it's in the water the only way to remove it is through actually removing the water so it's really easy to overdose. You'd want to be careful to dose for the amount you're replacing and not the whole tank.

The current state of his fins should actually be curable without using anything really. If you temporarily increase your water changes in both volume and frequency it should clear up. I'd suggest doing this regardless of whether or not you use the salt just because it can't really hurt.

An alternative is a salt bath. In a salt bath you can use a higher dose of salt without too much stress because he will only be in it for a max of about 15 minutes. To do it you'll need a container, just about anything will do so long as it's clean and hasn't help chemicals. I use a tupper ware bin with measurements on the side for the sake of ease. Measure out how ever much water you want to fill it with and dose it with the appropriate amount of salt. Try to match the temperature to that of the aquarium. If you have an odd amount of water that makes it difficult to know how much salt you need it may be easier if you mix up a full gallon in a bucket and bottle it for later use. Make sure you mix the salt in and that it is completely dissolved before you move on. Next you'll want to carefully net out your little friend and place him into the salty water. Wait about 10 minutes and then scoop him back out and into his own tank. If he shows signs of distress such as gasping for air or erratic swimming it's best to move him before the time is up.

When you say parameters seem alright could you specify what their actual levels are? Sometimes when a tank is still cycling it can cause minor finrot.

I did already add the salt to the tank so I guess I've committed to doing it that way now. Will definitely be cautious when adding new salted water to not overdose. I definitely will be doing more water changes!

Last time I checked, which was about 1 week ago (2 water changes ago too) ammonia was 0.25 ppm, nitrites 0 ppm, nitrates 20 ppm. I will re-test next water change.

0.5ppm in your tap water AND your tank water? If there is, I would suggest a water change, to get all that salt and ammonia out of the 2.5 gallon as fast as possible.

If you have 0ppm of nitrate that could be a little suspicious and a hint of an uncycled tank. Unless you have live plants of course. How long was the tank cycling for?

Sorry, I should have explained better. My tap water has 0.5 ppm ammonia (ugh), but I use prime. Last time I checked my tank water, which was about 1 week ago (2 water changes ago too) ammonia was 0.25 ppm, nitrites 0 ppm, nitrates 20 ppm. I also did have a live plant, but I removed it before adding the salt. I will re test next water change. The tank has been cycling for months without fish and I've had him for 1.5 months.

Why do you say to get the salt out? Do you have a bad experience with using salt?

Salt is helpful in some cases. But honestly I think your guy is looking pretty good.

I’d stick to frequent, as in daily, 20% water changes and see how he does for 5-7 days. Get that ammonia down and your cycle stable perhaps.

Please don’t ever use the ‘fix’ products for a betta. I’ve never had good experiences with them and the internet is full of reasons why bettas should never be subjected to it.

Thank you very much! It is reassuring to hear from people on here that it isn't too severe. Will keep up the water changes! Thank you!

 

too much salt can lower the oxygen levels in the tank and cause gill burns, kill fish. that's why some people dont use salt at all or very lightly dose it