Introduction
Saltwater aquariums are a real pleasure to have. But every now and then your fish may get sick. So what are some of the reasons your fish get sick and what can you do about it?
High Ammonia and Nitrite Levels
When you develop a new aquarium you will want it to go through a nitrogen cycle to create beneficial bacteria to help keep ammonia and nitrite levels down. At the start of this cycle your ammonia and nitrite levels will spike, but will then go down to zero because of the creation of good bacteria.
But even after you have established the beneficial bacteria, you could have high levels of ammonia and nitrites caused by to many new fish, medications, decaying dead fish or even over feeding.
High levels of ammonia and nitrites can cause your fish to become sick or even die. If you have high levels of ammonia and nitrites, you will need to reduce them by removing the cause of the high ammonia and nitrites and perform a water replacement of at least 25%.
Continue to do this until the good bacteria catch up and can keep the ammonia and nitrites concentrations at zero ppm.
Stress From Other Fish
Other fish in your display aquarium may become bullies and harass or chase your other fish. This will cause the harassed fish to become stressed. The condition of being stressed can lead to your fish becoming sick.
If one of your fish is being harassed or chased, then remove one of these fish from the aquarium.
pH
Saltwater aquariums should always have a pH of between 8.2 to 8.4. pH levels of less than 8.1 or higher than 8.5 can cause your fish to become sick. If your pH is out of specifications, then add a buffer to either raise the pH or lower it to get it back into the proper range.
The best way to adjust the pH in a saltwater aquarium is to add the pH buffer to your replacement water.
Specific Gravity
For saltwater aquariums, you will want to keep the specific gravity between 1.020 and 1.025. If it is out of this range it means your salt content is not the proper amount for your fish. To get the specific gravity in the proper range, either add salt or remove and add pure water to your aquarium.
J.W. Chase is an amateur Aquarist who has successfully been keeping both fresh and saltwater aquariums for over 35 years. He has extensive knowledge on how to manage an aquarium, keeping all his fish healthy and smiling. His web site has information on keeping salt water aquariums so if you want more tips, strategies and secrets on how to manage a saltwater aquarium go to his site http://homesaltwateraquariums.blogspot.com.
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