Illness/Sickness: White spots

[Sweetie]

Update: I have been adding Special Blend bacteria to the tank, which is what I used to cycle it in the first place, and it doesn't seem to be working at all. The ammonia is at 0.25ppm every day and I'm still having to do water changes every day. Now there is also a ton of planaria in the tank that I'm trying to control. I don't know what else I can do, he's still eating and his spots look a little better but they are still there. Thanks for any advice anyone can provide.

Be patient. It will take time to cycle the tank again and it will also take time for him to heal. You may find that some Indian almond leaves added to the tank will help soothe his skin and promote healing. The fact that he's still eating is a great sign, so just try to think positive and not panic. You are doing all you can. Just keep monitoring the parameters and doing the necessary water changes until you get things back under control.

 

[kevintaco]

So my axolotl seems to be healing pretty well, but I just can't get the tank to cycle. I have to change the water at least every other day because of the ammonia, and this is after putting in gravel (in a mesh sack) from a well cycled tank. The planaria also seems out of control and I just have no idea what to do about that. Please help! Thanks!

 

[keiko]

Cycling takes time, even with seeding material. Especially when you're doing fish-in cycling and need to keep the ammonia down. Try testing the water right after a water change and then again right before the next water change to see how the cycle is coming along/if there's any progress.
Cycling might be faster if you put your axie in another container (with daily 100% water changes) and add pure ammonia to the tank so that it stays at about 4 ppm. Once the cycle can convert 4 ppm ammonia into 0 ammonia and nitrite (only nitrates have a reading) in 24 hours, it's ready.
The planaria outbreak suggests there's some leftover food or wastes in your tank. Once you get rid of that and make sure there's nothing for them to eat, they'll disappear.

 

[kevintaco]

Ok, so should I put him a tub while the tank cycles, will it really help the tank cycle? About what size? I can get two and just switch him between them, changing the water every day. I plan to treat the water with Seachem Prime, which is what I've always used to treat the water for all of my tanks. Is there a better water conditioner to use? Also, is it ok to feed him in the tub?

If I do keep him in the tank, should I just keep up with daily water changes of 25%?

Thanks for everyone's help and advice.

 

[LSuzuki]

It might not make it cycle any faster to have him in the tub, but it will allow you to do less work changing water while the tank cycles, since it is easier to do a large change in a small tub than a large change in a large tub.

Also, you won't have to worry as much about the cycle, so you can relax and see if the ammonia continues to rise with him not in the tank. If it keeps rising while he is not in the tank, then there must be another source of ammonia. Is anything else in there organic? Perhaps in the filter? (Once, years ago, I used an old cotton diaper in the filter to get sediment out of a new tank I was setting up. After about 2 weeks, it started to rot ... Fortunately, no fish were in there.)

You can also help the cycle along while he isn't in the tank by adding ammonia. See some fishless cycling search results on the web, such as wiki Guide on How to Do a Fishless Cycle.

 

[keiko]

Fishless cycling is usually faster than fish-in cycling because you can keep the ammonia level high. The bacteria basically feeds on the ammonia and if there's a lot of it, they multiply fast. But when you have to keep the ammonia below 0.5 ppm there isn't much for them to eat so they multiply slower. You can also let the tank heat up a bit when doing fishless cycling and that'll help too. If you decide to try fishless cycling you need to get pure ammonia and add it to the tank so that it stays constantly at about 4 ppm.

I use big plastic storage containers if I have to remove my axies from their tank for some reason. They're about 30 liters I think. You can feed the axie just like always when they're in the tub. Just make sure the temperature stays fine - less water heats up faster. I had my axies in those containers in my basement for a little while during summer because of a bad heat wave. Everything went really well and I didn't even have to change the water every day because I was able to put some fake plants in with them from their tank, that provided enough bacteria to keep the water parameters fine a couple of days.

If you decide to keep him in the tank you need to keep doing water changes as necessary until it's fully cycled. The ammonia has to be under 0.5 ppm at all times.

I think many people on here use Seachem Prime..? But I don't know much about that since I don't need to use any water conditioners.