To salt of not to salt a freshwater tank?

[Rebel1970]

I am in the cycling process right now. What is the straight poop on salt in a freshwater tank. DO or Do not add salt? I am sure that I don't need to ask anyone at Pet Not So Smart. They are in business to sell stuff!!!

[cabezon]

Depends on the fish and your water. I never salted a fresh tank.

[Retired_AF]

I dose mine with aquarium salt. I also keep the temps at 80 degrees (27 C) to help control ich. I also keep live plants and neither the fish or the greenery seem to suffer for it.

[alex07]

Originally Posted by Rebel1970

I am in the cycling process right now. What is the straight poop on salt in a freshwater tank. DO or Do not add salt? I am sure that I don't need to ask anyone at Pet Not So Smart. They are in business to sell stuff!!!

No need to add salt unless you are treating for ich.

[BillD]

The need to regularly add salt is one of those myths in the hobby that won't go away. Fresh water fish evolved to live in fresh water and should be kept in it. Salt does have a benefit in certain treatments. I don't use it, I don't heat half of my tanks (66F to 73F) and don't have any ich, nor I have I seen it since I had a case when I got back into the hobby in 1992.

[Bubble_B0y]

save the salt for when treating sick fish - it will be more effective that way.

[steez]

I've only ever added salt when my fish got Ich.

82 and salt = fish clear up quickly.

[Retired_AF]

I use the salt and I havent had an issue with ich in over a year....

[Aces11]

I use salt and have luckily never gotten ick. Knock on wood.

[BillD]

Originally Posted by Retired_AF

I use the salt and I havent had an issue with ich in over a year....

One has nothing to do with the other. I'm getting close to 20 years with no ich, without the use of salt, and low tank temps.

[Polar]

It is true that salt inhibits parasites, it can make up for low dissolved salts in your water, it's harmless to all fresh water species, livebearers and brackish water species thrive with salt, also stressed/sick fish benefit from the sodium and chloride that salt provides.
This is just my 02 but there is no downside (except cost) to adding salt and lots of upside. The amount recommended ranges from 1teaspoon per gal. to 1 tablespoon per 5 gal.
Sea salt is different it has minerals that will affect your ph and hardness, aquarium salt is straight sodium chloride.
No offense BillD I respect your opinion and experience, I'm just relaying the research I've done on the subject. Ref. http://www.bestfish.com/fwsalt.html , idiots guide to freshwater aquariums (great book btw), etc.

P

[steez]

I thought Pleco's couldn't tolerate much salt at all?

[eco23]

There are many freshwater fish which are not tolerant of salt...types of Tetras, scaleless Catfish, etc...will not deal with it well. Low dosages might not be the end of the world for them...but it is not recommended and really serves no purpose unless you are treating a specific illness.

Saying that you use salt and have never had Ich, would be like me saying I've never had a fish with dropsy...so it must be my ceramic octopus decoration preventing it. There's really no relation. If you look at the life cycle of Ich...it is only susceptible to salt at certain points...not as a full time preventative measure.

Salt can serve a purpose when treating specific illnesses, and also preventing nitrIte uptake when a tank is cycling. Again though, the type of fish in the tank must be taken into account for dosages.

This is another one of those fish-keeping myths which doesn't hold water IMO. In my local PetCo they have a little cup of aquarium salt in each tank, and proudly advertise "We use and recommend API aquarium salt in all of our tanks for the health of your fish!". In that case it all comes down to $. When I was a teenager I worked in a shoe store, and corporate was all about add ons. Selling a $5 can of water repellent to each customer adds up on the bottom line very quickly...but in this case it really has no bearing on the health or welfare of your fish.

Another point...brackish water is not created using aquarium salt...it requires products like Instant Ocean for marine tanks...a different type of product entirely.

One of the mods (rookie I think?) had a great line about salt...it's great for treating specific illnesses and for French fries...nothing else.

[Polar]

Originally Posted by steez

I thought Pleco's couldn't tolerate much salt at all?

Research the species that you have. I don't want to steer anyone wrong, a quick google check confirmed that plecos are sensitive to salt but a 1 tablespoon per 40 gal. was recommended as a preventative measure in tanks with plecos.

P

[Polar]

Eco,
I didn't say add salt to produce brackish water (please reread). I also attempted to show/relay the information I have read in books/www regarding salt in fw aquariums (also stated in original post).
Another point..... Although neither proponent nor opponent to dosing your aquarium with salt I did reference the information I presented (no anecdotes of my childhood) and in the interest of being a part of the AA community just wanted to help. Perhaps I'll go back to lurking

P

[librarygirl]

I have a FW tank and don't plan to add salt. I personally don't think it's needed unless I need it to treat an illness and it could cause problems if the fish you have don't like the salt, I guess. I know PetSmart and PetCo are required to use a small bit of salt in their tanks (an employee told me) but I'm guessing it's b/c they don't maintain their tanks very well nor do they properly cycle tanks so they probably use it to keep the toxins from hurting the fish too much. Just my opinion though.

[steez]

Originally Posted by Polar

Research the species that you have. I don't want to steer anyone wrong, a quick google check confirmed that plecos are sensitive to salt but a 1 tablespoon per 40 gal. was recommended as a preventative measure in tanks with plecos.

P

That's what I thought, aka the couldn't tolerate much part.

[eco23]

Originally Posted by Polar

Eco,
I didn't say add salt to produce brackish water (please reread). I also attempted to show/relay the information I have read in books/www regarding salt in fw aquariums (also stated in original post).
Another point..... Although neither proponent nor opponent to dosing your aquarium with salt I did reference the information I presented (no anecdotes of my childhood) and in the interest of being a part of the AA community just wanted to help. Perhaps I'll go back to lurking

P

Hey man, I wasn't addressing you specifically...I was speaking generally to the topic and addressing several posts. No offense intended. We're all welcome to share our advice / experiences.