Blue Crayfish

[whehudeh]

Hi everyone, I've been MIA due to the passing of my mom.
I was away from home and came back to this, can anyone please enlighten me? My water parameters are great so I'm clueless. It's almost covered with this black thing.
View attachment 1

 

[finnipper59]

A little hard to identify from the pictures, but if it's actually black and not brown, it's possibly a type of fungi or mold. There are no known types of black algae or protozoa. I would be careful of the unknown. I have not done any research to know if black mold can grow underwater, but if it's black mold, it is deadly toxic to humans. I have a friend whose son died because of black mold in his room. Don't panic because I'm not sure what it is...but be cautious.

Hi everyone, I've been MIA due to the passing of my mom.
I was away from home and came back to this, can anyone please enlighten me? My water parameters are great so I'm clueless. It's almost covered with this black thing.
View attachment 1

 

[coralbandit]

Without knowing water parameters I would say try increasing the hardness..
Most shell issues if not illness are water related..

 

[whehudeh]

Without knowing water parameters I would say try increasing the hardness..
Most shell issues if not illness are water related..

Thank you. How do I increase the hardness of my water? I have naturally soft water?

 

[finnipper59]

If it's a hardness issue, adding crushed coral to your filter is a natural approach. If you would like the product approach, Seachem makes a good mineral suppliment.

Thank you. How do I increase the hardness of my water? I have naturally soft water?

 

[whehudeh]

Thank you, I'll try the coral 1st.

 

[finnipper59]

Most people do try the coral with good success. It hardens the water and buffers the pH from bouncing around, and it may actually raise the pH a little bit.

Thank you, I'll try the coral 1st.

 

[whehudeh]

K. How much would you recommend for a 10 gal tank? I also have 2 red tail sharks in the tank. I isolated them because they were attacking the fish in my 38 G.

 

[finnipper59]

I would start with just one tsp in a filter bag and check the hardness within 2 days. If no change, add one more tsp, if a little change, then 1/2 tsp additions until you get the reading you want. But check every other day. It takes a good 24 hours to get an accurate reading.

K. How much would you recommend for a 10 gal tank? I also have 2 red tail sharks in the tank. I isolated them because they were attacking the fish in my 38 G.

 

[whehudeh]

I truly appreciate.......