Hi

ok so i have read all about diseases fish can get and have come across some general tonics that claim to help in the prevention of disease. now im natually skepitcal as i will be parting with hard earned cash for these.

i change around 20 - 30% of my water each week i rinse the filter insides (in the removed water) once a month.

so my question

what do you guys use or do if anything to prevent disease?

Personally, I think the biggest cause of disease is stress. Stress weakens a fish's immunity system and makes them susceptable to things that are more than likely already present in your tank or could be (ich, dropsy, etc..). Strong health and the fish can fight off these things. Do things like overcrowd your tank, too many of one species in a tank, not do regular water changes to keep nitrates down, maintain temp and ph, etc.. The list could go on. All of the factors come into play when keeping your fish healthy, but it's the little things that usually cause the larger more noticeable things to get to your fish to begin with. Pay mind to the subtle things and more than likely you'll have healthy fish. Just one of the things I have learned in the last year or so and it has helped me.

My methods is to prevent.Like Ben said,stress is a big cause in illness.If the tank is fluctuating in the params and temp,or the tankmates are not compatable,the fish will eventually come down with something.Best way it to keep the stocking low,live plants,stabile environment,and a routine cleaning schedule.If any of my fish seem stressed the very first thing I do is test the water,then I do a 30% change.In order for my water changes to be less stressful,I remove my water slowly and add back just as slow.My lights are on timers so the fish have know when its going to come on.I have a routine I follow,and any new fish are quarantined for a month before adding with my current stock.And if after that month the new fish seem a little off,yet show no signs of illness,they still stay in the quarantine.I have a net for each tank,and feed the fish from a spoon,not my fingers.

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http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"

some great tips thanks guys

I use live plants to balance out and stabilize the aquarium and have little to no diseases.

my .02

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fw leiden since 1979, fo salt since 1979, mixed reef 55g 2002-2009. Strong emphasis on the tank taking care of itself. Balanced with plant life, no water changes, tap water, no filters in FW. Only dosing calcium, alk, mag in marine reef tanks. http://www.aquariumforum.com/f15/my-...ods-26410.html
recent tanks (till 2009) 7 years- 10g FW leiden 7 yrs, 55g mixed reef 7, 2 yrs, 20g FW leiden, 10 g fw leiden , 29g mixed reef, current tank 55g leiden

wow Mag, obsessive much LOL!!! I admire your dedication I'm sure your fish must love you!!!1

I balance my tanks with plants, test the water regularly and pay close attention to the fish to ensure they are all acting normally. Make sure your fish are all compatible and not overstocked. As to the cleaning- I think that depends on the fish. I purchased a doomed tank from a private seller-a 55gal with a black shark, full grown oscar, tinfoil barb, pleco and a convict. Naturally, only 2 fish made it past the first week (I purchased sight unseen and was told they were all young but were actually all full grown). So, because of the mini cycle of the tank (I took lots of tank water and kept the sand and the filters), the dying fish and the waste from the others I was doing major water changes every day and when I was finally down to just the Oscar he developed aggressive hole in the head disease at which point I stopped doing the water changes because he did not seem to like them at all and I figured he was doomed anyway and the HITH stopped progressing right away!! He was fine after that and I had him for well over a year after that before I gave him to my sister. So, sometimes I think that the water changes can stress out the fish more then the water quality by not doing them (ensure to keep an eye on the water prams though and be sure to still change the water before the nitrates get out of whack whether they like it or not)

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10gal fry tank planted with Wisteria, Java Moss, Anuabis and Anacharis
35gal Sponge Bob tank with live bearing tropicals (daughters tank)
15gal planted with Swords, Java Fern, Wisteria and Red Rubin housing 10 fry and 2 bladder snails
55 gal with Oscar (future planted tank with angels and flowerhorns)
55 gal Community tank (platys, mollys, guppys, glass catfish, angels, phantom tetra, red eye tetra and swordtails)

General things to avoid:-

1) Introducing a sick fish
2) PH and Temperature swings
3) Interfering with the nitrogen cycle
4) Letting the water quality drop
5) Improper diet
6) Incompatible tank mates
7) Not taking the fish's needs into consideration (its natural habitat should be used as a guideline for basic tank decor/arrangement, currents/flow of water)

Like the others said its basically all about avoiding unnecessary stress on the fish itself so its immune system stays strong and thus able to stay healthy.

Hope this helped

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195G Pleco - 13" Clown Knife - 14" Silver tinfoil barb - 7", 7 Clown loaches - 4-5" 1 Black ghost knife - 7" 2 Tilapias - 4" 2 GT's - 3"

Well,in my case I house some endangered species,so I cant really afford mistakes.Just to give an idea on the price of some of these guys,look here:AquaBid.com - Your Aquatic Auction Website
I dont have $200.00 to replace any if they die on me,lol.

__________________
http://bountifulbettas.blogspot.com/

"Come to the dark side....we have cookies...and filters/heaters/and water changes!"