Salt? or no salt?

[Lotocus]

Good day all, I'm hoping you can provide me your recommendation. We have a 75 gallon tank with 14 zebra danios, 3 tiger barbs (plans to add another 6-7 soon), 2 Gold dust mollys, 11 various cory cats (albino, bronze, speckled and pandas), and will be introducing 6 giant danios in about 2 weeks (will pick these up tomorrow and QT them for 2 weeks).

My wife really wants to get some more mollys, but I know they like some salt in their water. Would it be good to add some salt to this tank with its current inhabitants, or can any of them not handle it?

Thanks for you opinions.

 

[orangepunkins]

I have 3 gold dust mollies 1 male and 2 females. I do not use salt in my tank it is a heavily planted tank. Also the salt makes my ph rise. (Yes it does that) If u have male and female just wait they will breed like crazy! One of my females is always pregnant.


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[irdajoh]

Most people use salt to help treat ick or help stress, its not needed but it csn help. Winter months you may not need to add alot of salt because the temp will slow down the ick life cycle. Warmer months and summer you could easily load up the salt and have happy mollies. Do note that other fish may not like salt like the mollies so do your reasearch!

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[BBradbury]

Your Fish

Good day all, I'm hoping you can provide me your recommendation. We have a 75 gallon tank with 14 zebra danios, 3 tiger barbs (plans to add another 6-7 soon), 2 Gold dust mollys, 11 various cory cats (albino, bronze, speckled and pandas), and will be introducing 6 giant danios in about 2 weeks (will pick these up tomorrow and QT them for 2 weeks).

My wife really wants to get some more mollys, but I know they like some salt in their water. Would it be good to add some salt to this tank with its current inhabitants, or can any of them not handle it?

Thanks for you opinions.

Hello Lot...

Mollies as well as other livebearing fish will do a little better with some standard aquarium salt. Now, the debate is probably on. Anyway, for other species, the salt will likely make no difference. I keep Platys, Guppies, Corydoras, Danios and Plecos in large planted tanks with a little salt added to the water and all is well.

If you want to add a little salt, keep the dose to roughly a couple of teaspoons for every 5 gallons of treated tap water.

B

 

[Lotocus]

The lady at the pet store (who has given pretty decent advice in the past) says the tiger barbs will like a little salt too. I guess there is some discussion that Cory cats might have issues - but obviously, that hasn't been the case for you?


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[BBradbury]

Your Tank

The lady at the pet store (who has given pretty decent advice in the past) says the tiger barbs will like a little salt too. I guess there is some discussion that Cory cats might have issues - but obviously, that hasn't been the case for you?


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Hello again Lot...

A couple of teaspoons in 5 gallons is hardly noticeable to the fish and plants, but a little keeps the fishes' internal organs healthy. I believe the correct term is "osmoregulation".

Just one reporter's opinion. "You should vote your conscience". In other words, make the choice that makes you feel the best.

B

 

[aqua_chem]

Obvious question is: are you fish doing ok with your current setup? If everyone is thriving, why would you want to mix things up for something that is purely speculative?

 

[Lotocus]

The fish are doing fine, however the Mollies are reclusive - always hiding and not moving around a lot. This has been ongoing for some time - around the time the 3rd of the trio died. The other two are much less active now. I would want to get a few more mollies, but worry about the salinity requirements for them.


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[dalto]

Mollies as well as other livebearing fish will do a little better with some standard aquarium salt. Now, the debate is probably on.

This is long held belief of aquarists that has turned out to be a fishkeeping myth.

Unless you are trying to solve some specific temporary problem there is no need to add salt to a freshwater aquarium.

 

[aqua_holic]

This is long held belief of aquarists that has turned out to be a fishkeeping myth.

Unless you are trying to solve some specific temporary problem there is no need to add salt to a freshwater aquarium.

Agreed.

 

[trennamw]

I used salt for a long time because I felt it had made a difference in my little betta tanks. I used it in my community tank for awhile (tetras, danios, Otos, rasboras, loaches, snails, shrimp, plants) with no harm done. I forget why I stopped. No harm done then either. I transitioned it in and out slowly.

It never raised the pH.


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[aqua_chem]

Also the salt makes my ph rise. (Yes it does that)

Salt does not make pH rise in the slightest, unless you're using some weird salt like CaCO3 or such.

 

[aqua_chem]

I always think of this picture when people make claims about "I've used salt for years and my fish look great!" It really sums up the argument well, imo.

 

[trennamw]

I always think of this picture when people make claims about "I've used salt for years and my fish look great!" It really sums up the argument well, imo.

Funny. But couldn't the same be said for the opposite argument?

Like most of this stuff, isn't there a lack of significant study one way or the other?




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[aqua_chem]

Funny. But couldn't the same be said for the opposite argument?

Like most of this stuff, isn't there a lack of significant study one way or the other?

True, but the default position when discussing whether or not there is an advantage to a substance should always be that there isn't, until there is. I think salt is very useful in a number of circumstances, most notably ich and nitrite toxicity, but there really not much in the way going for chronic use of it in any environment. While yes, there's not much going one way or another with respect to literature on the matter, there's not much going for it with respect to the biology either, whereas the above two reasons have good biological explanations for their use on top of observational evidence of efficacy.

 

[aqua_holic]

Agreed with my aqua brethren The widespread use of salt is a remnant of the dark ages of fish keep IMO

 

[BBradbury]

Salt or No?

Interesting. I'm convinced there's a benefit to using a little salt. I keep mostly livebearers and use a teaspoon or two of standard aquarium salt in roughly 5 gallons of treated tap water. I use it for the following:

A good source of electrolytes, which reduces osmotic stress (relieves breathing stress) on the gills, speeds healing, immune system protection, reduces the toxicity of nitrite. Many skin pathogens don't tolerate traces of salt in the tank water.

If you decide to use it, maintain large, weekly water changes. Aquarium salt doesn't evaportate and should only be added during large water changes and not with small changes.

If you're a beginning water keeper, then do your research on the use of salt so you can make an informed decision. I've used it for roughly 10 years and never had a disease in any of my tanks. I'm a firm believer in using it.

B

 

[BillD]

The salt myth lives on! Freshwater fish have evolved to osmo-regulate in fresh water. Upsetting that by adding salt is bound to be more taxing for the kidneys. While the make up of surface waters vary around the globe, with some having traces of salt (NaCl) and some having none, most tap waters, the addition of salt is neither necessary nor is it to be recommended.
As to the previous statement of salt being an ich preventative, that is nonsense. Your tank either has ich or it doesn't. If you get rid of it, it is gone, until you re-introduce it. The statement that is often made that there is always ich in the tank and adverse conditions, such as temperature drop will cause an outbreak is not true.

 

[aqua_holic]

The salt myth lives on! Freshwater fish have evolved to osmo-regulate in fresh water. Upsetting that by adding salt is bound to be more taxing for the kidneys. While the make up of surface waters vary around the globe, with some having traces of salt (NaCl) and some having none, most tap waters, the addition of salt is neither necessary nor is it to be recommended.
As to the previous statement of salt being an ich preventative, that is nonsense. Your tank either has ich or it doesn't. If you get rid of it, it is gone, until you re-introduce it. The statement that is often made that there is always ich in the tank and adverse conditions, such as temperature drop will cause an outbreak is not true.

Agreed on all points.