API Stress Coat - cause of slimy film?

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

dapellegrini

Aquarium Advice FINatic
Joined
Sep 10, 2003
Messages
870
Location
Phoenix, AZ
I am wondering if anyone else out there uses API Stress Coat during PWC... I only use it when the mood strikes me (no real rhyme or reason) and it seems that when I do, I get a slimy film on the top of my tank... Anyone else had this problem? I think I have factored out DOC build-up...

Hmmmm
 
I use it when I do my PWC's, and for about 8 hours after there is what looks like a small oil spill on the top of the tanks, real thin but is multi colored under the lights.
 
I'm not a big fan of Stress Coat. In most cases the extra additives for helping with the fish's slime coat are unecessary and are probably irritating to the fish which is why it encourages the production of the slime coat. Aloe Vera is one of the ingrediates and a good canidate for causing the film on the water's surface.

I prefer to stick to Water Conditioners that neutralize chlorine, chloramines, heavy metals, and when necessary detoxify Ammonia. The rest is extra stuff that I don't need to have in my tanks. Nine times out of ten good clean water is the best cure for fish.
 
Ya. I got a gallon of this stuff before the tank was converted to heavily planted, and have not used it often. Never really thought about the different types of water conditioners or studied what was in them. The couple of times that I have used it, I seem to get slimy water on top of the tank.... Hmmm... Might be another casualty of the learning curve.

Otherwise, I don't use anything, just re-dose my ferts after PWC... Haven't seen any problems doing it that way, but am wondering if I should be more concerned about this...
 
It has been suggested that "Stress Coats" with aloe are not good for Gouramis. Something about mucking up the labrynth organ. I have seen this in the training materials from one of the "big box" pet stores.
 
Back
Top Bottom