white spots on BN

Help. My BN has developed some weird white spots. The spots aren't ick nor fuzzy. The spots are raised. No thrasing or rubbing on gravel. He's doing his usual day time thing...hiding out. No ripped or frayed fins. In the pics I took last night the white spots are on the right side only. Later today the same spots appear on the opposite side - almost dirrectily across from the right side.

Tank size and setup - 50 gallon - freshwater. Temp 73 degrees

[b]Substrate - a bit larger than pea sized gravel.

[b]filtration (Internal, external, flow rate, last cleaned and what it was cleaned in) - fluval canister for 100 gallons. Fluval HOB for 50. Internal pond pump for 25 gallons. Weekly 50% water change. Just cleaned yesterday.

[b]Airstone/sponge filter etc: Air strip. All filters are filled with sponges and ceramic thingys.

[b]Inhabitance: 2 goldfish (well fed. Each about 4.5 inches.) 5 apple snails - 1 large one. Rest are about 1 inch.

[b]Fish affected by issue (all/bottom dwellers, all bristlenose or a single fish etc) - everyone is healthy except white spots on BN

[b]Feeding system (what, how much, how often) - 6 peas in the morning. Algae waffer in afternoon. Zucinni at night.

[b]current water change system (before illness appeared): 50% weekly change. Gravel cleaned every week. Filter sponges on HOB every other week. Canister sponges every 4th week.

[b]water changes made since illness appeared: water chanes yesterday.

[b]As many levels as you know (pH, Ammonia, nitrate, nitirite, KH, GH, TDS, aanything you can find out, your local fish shop should be able to help with this): Ammonia 0/Nitites 0/nitrates 1/ PH 8.2/GH 100/KH - 11 drops (can't remember what number that is).

[b]any chemicals used (including carbon/chemical fitration inside the filter): Phosphate remover in canister. GH booster added to new water - my well water goes through a water softner. Tank is planted - every other day ferts and liquid CO2.

[b]water source and treatment: Well water. Prime for water treatment.

[b]Major changes in the last 3 weeks (new fish, new plants, new anything or changes): added BN

[b]Symptoms (gasping, not moving, bloated, spots, wounds, stressed colours etc): nothing.

Here's some pics.

Hi,sorry to hear that your bn is ill.The pics are a little blurry but it looks like an infection of some sort.I would treat the tank with anti fungal and anti bacterial.I highly recommend esha 2000,I have used it for a long time and always had excellent results with it.It is great for sensitive fish and i have used it on tanks with tiny babies in also.I hope he gets better soon.

How long have you had him ?

Thank you so much for your response. I was worried to medicate something I'm not sure about. I will start medicating him ASAP. BN has only been in the tank for 10 days....I figure he came with the infection and I didn't see it.....or maybe getting settled into a new tank did it. The right side infection has spread today....so it feels good to know what I'm treating.

Do BN bounce back from these infections?

Off to the pet store....

Yes if it is what it looks like the esha should have him as good as new in no time.

Have you got wood in your tank for him?

Yes, I have a piece of driftwood in the tank. I haven't seen him munch on it.....I'm guessing he's eating it very late at night.

After one dose of medications, he's on the mend

Thanks for your input....I feel with your input I medicated correctly at the beginning point of infection.

That is excellent news,i think it is a 3 day course.Please keep me informed of his progress.

Is the wood aquatic wood?I find bog wood is the best.

I am so glad he is already on the mend,that's great !

BN is still on the mend The fugus stuff is going away.

I'm not sure what wood I have. I bought a piece of "driftwood" - found out west on a river bed. It looks like a quarter of a tree trunk. I boiled the thing for 4 hours. Is that bog wood? Does BN need something special in the wood area?

Hi,i am so glad he is getting better As long as the wood is for water it will be fine but if it is wood that will rot in water then it is no good.I always get bog wood from aquatic stores so that i know it is correct. (bog wood is a softer wood).I also have a piece of mopani that looks nice but is harder for the fish.

Have you got a picture of the wood you have ?

That could be a big problem. Would rotting wood raise nitrates? I've been having a problem with higher than the tank's normal nitrates. I'm usually about 10...but now I'm in the 20 range. I can't figure out the reason. When I bought the wood, the website said it was safe for aquariums. But I know you can't trust everything you read. I'll post a pic of the wood. I would appreciate your opinion.

When I got home from work last night, BN's fugus looked a bit worse. I'm posting more pics. It's definitally fuzzy and white. Not not showing any other sick signs. I caught him making his rounds in the tank after the light swent off.

question for you: The white patch area - he puffed it up - it looked like fingers. He might have been upset that I'm staring at him trying to figure out if he's getting better. What's those fingers things? I'm taking a crash coarse on BN.

Hi,he has fungus,it has been caused by either infection or some other reason.It is on both of his cheek spines and really needs to be dealt with.Bristlenose have cheek spines,they use them for protection and you can sometimes see them sticking them out.Mine stick them out sometimes for no apparent reason.Did you treat with the esha 2000 for 3 days?

I think you said you have goldfish in with him which isnt really ideal as they have different requirements.Such as temperature,water conditions,tank set up and food.

Treating him could be difficult as he is in a tank with goldfish.Have you got a spare tank?

As for the wood,if it was sold for aquariums it should be o.k.Have you got a photo of it?

Thank you for the info and helping me out.

I was told by a goldfish forum that a bristlenose was a suitable companion to goldfish. I do keep the tank heat at 74 degrees. In fact today I upgraded to an external heater attached to my canister to provide more consistent heat.

I have very hard well water that goes through a water softner thus I need to increase my GH through a GH booster.
All my parimeters are very stable but high:
ph: 8.2
Kh: 11 drops (sorry I can't remember the number 11 drops is)
GH: with booster at 100

Can you tell me if you think my tank is making him sick? I did research BN before buying him (but I didn't find this site until after purchase). I thought the environment of the tank would be ok. Is there something else he needs? I want to provide him with a good home. The pet store I bought him from is crappy. Lots of sick fish there. I got him one day after he arrived, so I was hoping their environment wouldn't make him sick.

I've been using Pimafix and melifix to medicate with. But I went out today and got tetra fungus guard (sorry my pet store didn't sell the brand you recommended). I have in storage a 16 gallon tank that I can put him into.

Once again thanks for the help

I'll get a pic up tomorrow of the wood.

Hi again,bristlenose need a gh range of between 2 and 20 and a ph range of 6.5 to 7.5.The temperature is o.k for him at 74.The food that you feed your goldfish could be a problem if he eats too much of it.

Pimafix and Melafix are said to be excellent but i can't stand them and threw mine away.

Has he got places to hide in or under?

Do you gravel vac regularly?

The high nitrates need investigating.

What do you feed your goldfish?

I can lower my GH. Since I control that...it's not a problem. I can't change the PH. Our local water has a high PH. Do you think the BN will be able to cope with a higher PH?

I'm not crazy on the pimafix and melafix either...not very effective.

He's got a flower pot on it's side to hide in. He appears to like to hang out in between the potted plants (all my plants are in terracotta pots).

Yes, weekly gravel vac with a WC of 50% every week.

I agree about nitrates. I found some info about marine poly fiber you can put in fitlers. I use it. Apparenlty it can get clogged up and increase nitrates. Today I got rid of it and replaced with sponges. The wood needs to be ruled out. Then I need to rule out feeding. I check my nitrates everyday. If they get in the 20 range I do a WC with no cleaning. My fish crew will always have a clean water. I'm developing toned muscles from lifting water buckets.

I feed my goldfish primarily veggies. My one goldfish has swim bladder issues...so 90% veggies for them. 6 peas in the morning, pinch of flakes in afternoon, zucinni or kale or beans in the eveing. Algae waffer every other day. I never have left over food. Just a lot of poop.

Once again, thank you for taking the time to help me. I greatly appreciate it.

Here's pics of my wood.

Hi again,I would lower the gh quite a bit if you can.The ph can be lowered by adding more wood and it may also help with the gh a little too,but i recommend getting bog wood from an aquatics store if possible.I am really sorry but i cannot tell what wood that is that you have.It is possibly bog wood but i really cannot tell.Anyway as i said adding more wood will lower the ph but not as soon as you add it,give it a few days.Soak it first like you did the other piece.I am not sure how goldfish do with wood in the tank though as i have never kept any.

As for feeding,the food you feed will be good for the bristlenose so that is a good thing.As long as he doesn't eat too much flake which if you only feed a little of it he shouldn't.A little flake now and then will do him no harm.The rest of the foods are ideal for the bristlenose.Just to make sure he gets some put his share in at night time when the lights go off.

Bristlenoses like tight dark places to hide in.You can buy bristlenose caves or if you get some more wood just prop it up at one end so that he can go underneath it.

Is that fishing line holding your plants to the wood? Or is it the roots i can see?

How is the little fella doing?

I will do that. Easy enough - more wood for the tank. I really like the wood - its very pretty in the tank.

I've been worried about BN getting enough food. So I ordered screwcumbers (sp?) - so the veggies will sit at the bottom of the tank. Goldfish are truely pigs. That said, I do have a ton of algae. Unfortunately my tank gets sunlight. I can't move it - tha tank has to stay in it's location. The algae has been relentless. BN has done a wonderful job of cleaning. I'm hoping he's happy.

I will lower the GH. Easy enough.

He's 50% better today. Right side is almost cleared. Left side is still an issue. But we'll see what the next day brings - as this fungus seems to come and go.

It's fishing line holding the plant in place. I'm trying to get the plant to anchor to the wood.

Hi,the fishing line could be dangerous if the bristlenose was to get entangled in it.I use elastic bands to hold mine to the wood.I am glad he seems to be on the mend.Please keep me informed of his progress and you are very welcome for my help and advice.

If the tank has lots of algae then he will be eating that for now.I use plant weight to weigh my cucmber down so that it sits on the bottom or stick a stainless steel spoon through it

Sorry for a late reply. I'm close to NYC and I have been preparing for the big storm. So far nothing, but it's coming.

I will take off the fishing line.

BN is much better. He's still has a bit of fungus but 95% gone. I caught him eating the wood one late night.

Can you help me figure out if he's getting enough food? I'm still concerned he might not get enough food. Everynight I put in the tank zucchini. All my fishes and snails eat it - the zucchini is usually gone in 15 hours. If the zuchini is out and the BN wants it - he will eat it? I haven't seen him eat it but he might be doing a very late munch.

Is there anyway to tell if your BN is not getting enough food?

Hi,firstly i have been seeing on our news about hurricane sandy and just want to say i hope you will be o.k and everyone else too.

If your bristlenose isn't getting enough food he will start to look thin and start sinking in but you would be able to tell just by looking at him.As you say your tank has lots of algae then he will definately eat that.Put a algae wafer right near where he hides immediately before the lights go off if you think he isn't getting enough.Hikari wafers are good as they don't dissolve too quickly,he will also munch on the zucchini but try to put it near where he hides and at night time.Weight it down with something like plant weight or put a spoon through it.

I am very pleased to hear that his fungus is clearing up that is great news.

My thoughts are with you and your family

Well, my town survived the storm. The town I work in has over 100 roads closed due to tress town. NYC is a mess. Public transporation has shut down due to flooding. In the end, I'm glad to have power and no home damage.

BN is healed

So another question: How do you keep your tank water warm when the electricity goes out? My snail and goldfish can handle a drop in water temp but not BN. Do they make a gadget to heat the tank when the electricity goes out? Something battery powered?

Hi,I am glad your home and town is o.k.I have seen the devastation on t.v that it has caused,it is awfull.

If you have no generator or cannot afford one,best thing to do if the power goes out is wrap the tank with lots of layers of newspaper (you need to see the thermometer though ) Make sure you also wrap the hood and block any holes with newspaper as heat rises and will escape through the hood.Newspaper is best as it is very insulating but if you have none then use towels.This has to be done as soon as the power goes out if possible as that will retain the heat already in the tank.

If the power is out for a long time and the temperature drops too low then you need to add some hot water to it to bring the temp back up and re wrap it.Don't raise the temp too quickly though.You can also fill a receptacle ( one that will not melt ) with hot water and place it into the tank at the bottom.This can be covered with rocks etc if you wish or just left on the bottom (don't forget to remove some tank water first ) Don't use boiling water in this receptacle but quite hot water and only if the temp has dropped too much.

While doing this a very close eye must be kept on the temp as a temp too high is worse than a temp too low.Too hot water will have a lot less oxygen in it.

You may need to take tank water out in a big jug and pour it back in at a height to create some oxygenation a few times and re wrap the tank and hood.

There are a few other methods but these are what i have always known.

Just want to say that bristlenoses can tolerate quite low temperatures,even as low as 20c,although this isn't ideal they can still survive for some time in it.

Excellent news that he is healed,I am happy that he is Keep a close eye on him

Just want to say my thoughts are with you, I have family in the Toronto area. Keep you and yours safe and well!
Bristlenoses had excellent tips for you and your BN.

Hoping you and yours are doing well.
Sincerest strength and good energies I send to you and everyone in the USA during this difficult time.

's and good thoughts go your way from your neighbor to the north.

Hope all is well with you and your's...keep well our wishes are with you all

To keep tanks warm in the past I have used 2 methods. 1) heat water with a propane grill or I'm sure a coal burning grill would work too. I then bagged this water and floated it in the tank. This created warm pockets in the tank which the fish would hover in. This is not ideal but can work in a pinch. 2) I have used my car as a "generator" using A power investor to run a heater and air pump when the tanks temp got too low.

Did you use Esha2000??

Its never failed me, but melefix and pimafix have on a few occasions....

I always stock Esha 2000 and Esha Exit as a must...