Very hard to see white fussy film on fish

[AquaC19]

Hey guys,

I have been in the hobby for a little over three years now and I have experienced a few different illnesses but right now I am seeing something new and need your help.

My adult Boesmani are covered in this very light and hard to see grey/white film that seems to be tiny dots or fuzzy. Also, at times they are acting differently by swimming directly into the filter current (more on that later). Other fish do not seem to be affected.

I had some changes lately. Last week I did a large water change and cleaned the canister filter that seemed a little clogged. After the cleaning the
out flow from the filter has been stronger and I figured the rainbow fish would enjoy the current. I do have two filters and I only clean one at a time and I use tank water to clean it and I do not replace all of the bio media at the same time.

Second, I recently got a new LED light that is brighter then what was on the tank before. It makes me wonder if I am just seeing the fish better and there might be nothing wrong? When the fish are not directly under the light I can not see the film. However, they are still behaving a bit differently.

They are currently in my 75 gallon planted community tank. All Nitrates, PH, Ammonia, Nitrites, etc are normal. I do about a 40% water change ever two week.

I did a 40% water change earlier today and still haven't seen much improvement. Currently, they are all eating fine (fed them last night)

Please help!
I will try to link a video.

 

[54seaweed]

looks like a fungus called columnaris , it has the look of a white cottony film over the fish

copper sulfate is a common treatment. But, copper can be just as damaging to fish as the disease. another option Terramycin and Trypaflavin both of these can do an effective job on columnaris . this is how I would begin to treat.

1. Pull carbon.
2. Gravel wash and water change to reduce pathogen population.
3. Terramycin bath.
4. Add salt to the water to aid gill functions.
5. Treat food with Terramycin to fight internal infection.
6. Treat tank with chloramphenicol + acriflavin (trypaflavin) per dosage on container.
7. Gravel washes/water changes every other day. Replace salt and meds.
8. Treat for an additional 10 days after symptoms are no longer present.

When fish are infected with this pathogen, the following signs can be anticipated:
There will be necrotic lesions on the skin, which often are white/gray colored with an edging of red. These will quickly in one to two days, transform into ulcers with have an orange/yellow color, caused by the bacteria decaying the underlying tissue.

Similar effects very typically occur on the gills, but may for the average hobbyist be somewhat harder to observe at least in the early stages. The progression of these ulcers, causes the fish to have great trouble with its respiration, and thus can quickly lead to fatalities. If the gills are examined, excessive amounts of mucous, are to be expected.

The fish will become very listless and lethargic, often will hang at the surface, trying to breath there, although on occasion, the fish will rest on the bottom of the tank. Reluctance to feed is very typical and the fish will become anorexic. Respiration is often rapid, as the fish fights to overcome the damage done by the infection to its gills.

In some cases, the lips of the fish, will become swollen and macerated, and a milky slime like film can be observed with the naked eye on parts of the body.

Large milky patches can be seen quite easily on the fins of the fish, and this is usually an indication that the disease has progressed to a degree that cure will become much more difficult. One typical sign is the appearance of a "saddle" shaped lesion usually around the area of the dorsal fin, and this occurs so often, that the name "saddle back disease" is often used in aquaculture to describe this infection.

A "bath" is an immersion treatment with concentrated medications. Usually a small vessel (like a bucket) is filled with tank/fresh water and dosed with medication (following bottle instructions). Once the meds are diluted evenly within the bucket, the affected fish are netted out and placed in the bath for several minutes (again...according to the med instructions).

Foods (dry/frozen/fresh) can be treated with medications to target internal infections in a fish. The meds (usually liquid but, can be powder) are added to regular foods (per med instructions). For a disease, such as columnaris, internal medication is important since the disease can cause gill damage/necrosis.