Python and gas bubble diseases

Hello! So I just lost some fish to dropsy and in my research I found out about gas bubble diseases (are there more than one type?).
Every time I refill the tank with my python I get ton of gas bubbles all over the tanks. I read that the disease can be caused by too much pressure when filling the tank. The python kicks up when I refill the tank (if that makes sense) the water kicks out in spurts when I first begin. Is it super dangerous to have those bubbles? Any way to get rid of the pressure built up when I fill with the pythons!?!

 

Gas bubbles forming everywhere on surfaces in the tank?

 

Just curious, why are air bubbles dangerous? I have sponge filters and air stones in all my tanks.

 

Gas bubble disease is sonethibg complwtely different. Kind luke disease divers can get when they surface to fast.
Gassbubbles in the bloodveins

 

Hello! So I just lost some fish to dropsy and in my research I found out about gas bubble diseases (are there more than one type?).
Every time I refill the tank with my python I get ton of gas bubbles all over the tanks. I read that the disease can be caused by too much pressure when filling the tank. The python kicks up when I refill the tank (if that makes sense) the water kicks out in spurts when I first begin. Is it super dangerous to have those bubbles? Any way to get rid of the pressure built up when I fill with the pythons!?!

That's almost an urban legend. Somebody lacking the basic knowledge about pressure brought that into existence. In this case the fact that as the tank is open to the top there can't be pressure building up in the tank beyond the weight of the water itself. In most home aquaria that's less than a meter of water, so almost the same pressure as at/above the surface.
The actual "gas bubble disease" is divers' disease, also known as decompression sickness and it occurs in human divers and in fish that are caught in the depths of the ocean and brought up to the surface too quickly. The saturation of gasses in the tissue and blood basically lets bubbles appear inside the body destroying tissue.

Decompression sickness - Wikipedia

Something similar can happen with highly pressurized industrial pump systems in commercial fishery operations, but there this is also very rare. It should not be a concern to hobbyists.

Also, let's face it, in this day and age where every manufacturer of products like the python would face court cases if that could happen more often, there would be a warning in the instruction.

 

Gas bubbles forming everywhere on surfaces in the tank?

Here’s an example:



Oh like the bends?! I’m relieved to hear it’s not a real issue considering I just realized dropsy and Malawi bloat are the same thing. I’m def still learning lol.

 

Hello! So I just lost some fish to dropsy and in my research I found out about gas bubble diseases (are there more than one type?).

Dropsy and gas bubble trauma are unrelated as far as I know. Dropsy is fluid build up in abdomen due to osmoregulatory failure.

Just curious, why are air bubbles dangerous? I have sponge filters and air stones in all my tanks.

The bubbles you see aren't dangerous but if they're forming on the glass and heaters they can also form in the blood vessels and cause injury/death.

Here’s an example:
View attachment 746336

Did you temperature match? In aquariums, gas supersaturation usually only occurs when you put colder water in the tank and then as it warms up, gases become less soluble and supersaturation occurs.

In addition, it seems that water out of the tap is already supersaturated. I measured oxygen at 120% saturation and it's likely other gases were similarly supersaturated.

When I first started, I was refilling directly from the RO filter and just letting the heater warm up the water. The fish showed some signs of stress but survived the first few times then I had mass deaths. I was also unaware that my RO filter wasn't removing chloramine so I don't know if those early mass death events were caused by gas bubble trauma, chloramine, or a combination of both.

I had a rough start in the hobby and was finding the most obscure ways to kill fish. I may have even invented some new ones.

In my experience, gas bubble trauma is a real issue but easy to spot because the bubbles are quite obvious. It's also easy enough to prevent if you know about it.

Other obscure causes include leaks on the suction side of a pump and algae overgrowth. I've never heard of either occurring in an aquarium though.

I've attached two interesting papers on the subject. In particular, I found it interesting that fish can sense supersaturation and dive to greater depths where the hydrostatic pressure helps force the gases back into solution.

 

Dropsy and gas bubble trauma are unrelated as far as I know. Dropsy is fluid build up in abdomen due to osmoregulatory failure.



The bubbles you see aren't dangerous but if they're forming on the glass and heaters they can also form in the blood vessels and cause injury/death.



Did you temperature match? In aquariums, gas supersaturation usually only occurs when you put colder water in the tank and then as it warms up, gases become less soluble and supersaturation occurs.

In addition, it seems that water out of the tap is already supersaturated. I measured oxygen at 120% saturation and it's likely other gases were similarly supersaturated.

When I first started, I was refilling directly from the RO filter and just letting the heater warm up the water. The fish showed some signs of stress but survived the first few times then I had mass deaths. I was also unaware that my RO filter wasn't removing chloramine so I don't know if those early mass death events were caused by gas bubble trauma, chloramine, or a combination of both.

I had a rough start in the hobby and was finding the most obscure ways to kill fish. I may have even invented some new ones.

In my experience, gas bubble trauma is a real issue but easy to spot because the bubbles are quite obvious. It's also easy enough to prevent if you know about it.

Other obscure causes include leaks on the suction side of a pump and algae overgrowth. I've never heard of either occurring in an aquarium though.

I've attached two interesting papers on the subject. In particular, I found it interesting that fish can sense supersaturation and dive to greater depths where the hydrostatic pressure helps force the gases back into solution.

Thank you! You all are the BEST! That picture with the bubbles is actually almost a year old and I didn’t realize why I didn’t have newer pics. It’s Bc I finally got a meat thermometer to match and test water. Prior to that I used a glass one & I would have to wait for it to read the refill temps and they clearly weren’t as accurate. So interesting that it doesn’t happen very often now that I have a much more precise way to test temps! Also on a water note. Today is Thanksgiving, and I’ve been dosing Kanaplex and General Cure to amazing results. However today is the day I’m supposed to change 25% of the water and add new carbon into the filter . I just got married in sept so I have double the Thanksgiving dinners to go to, so is it okay for me to just add the carbon and change the water early early tomorrow morning? I assume I have to do the water change today but wanted to ask! Sorry to go off topic. Thank you so much for the readings! I love this stuff!

 

those bubbles form on dirt or other surface abrasions, usually happens in new tanks. Just wipe the inside of your glass and you'll never see them again

 

So what I'm getting is the major cause of this is doing water changes with cold water? It's crazy how I've never heard of this before.

 

So what I'm getting is the major cause of this is doing water changes with cold water? It's crazy how I've never heard of this before.

I hadn’t either. Now I’m concerned about the water change after meds I mentioned above. Aka it’s always something.

 

So what I'm getting is the major cause of this is doing water changes with cold water? It's crazy how I've never heard of this before.

Yeah.

A lot of the warming of the cold water is probably due to being mixed with the warmer water in the tank not just when the heater turns on.

Discus people are familiar with them and call them "microbubbles." It might be because they do a lot more/larger water changes so they've noticed the phenomenon.

They try to filter them out which I don't think is the correct approach. The bubbles you see are the harmless ones. It's the bubbles inside the fish that have already formed that are dangerous. That, and the gas that's still in solution and not visible.

 

Yeah.

A lot of the warming of the cold water is probably due to being mixed with the warmer water in the tank not just when the heater turns on.

Discus people are familiar with them and call them "microbubbles." It might be because they do a lot more/larger water changes so they've noticed the phenomenon.

They try to filter them out which I don't think is the correct approach. The bubbles you see are the harmless ones. It's the bubbles inside the fish that have already formed that are dangerous. That, and the gas that's still in solution and not visible.

So the best way to prevent this is temperature matching water for water changes?

 

So the best way to prevent this is temperature matching water for water changes?

Yes. Just a few degrees (~5°C) difference are not a problem, though.

 

Not an expert and don't own discus but in prepping to get them and I've read that the risk of microbubbles are that they can stick on their gills and suffocate them:
https://www.diskuszucht-stendker.de/gb/BasicInformation/8.Wasserwechsel.pdf