# Aquarium salt?????



## midnight1 (Sep 30, 2008)

I have a mixed cichlid tank consisting of mostly new world cichlids. I use aquarium salt in my community tak and the fish seem more active and bright any ideas as to if the new world cichlids would react the same?


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## illusions2281 (Jan 25, 2009)

what are new world cichlids?? i have south american & maliawi & clown loaches and they all love the added salt


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## smellsfishy1 (May 29, 2008)

midnight1 said:


> I have a mixed cichlid tank consisting of mostly new world cichlids. I use aquarium salt in my community tak and the fish seem more active and bright any ideas as to if the new world cichlids would react the same?


I never heard of aquarium salt making fish brighter.
It does have benefits but mostly for illness reasons.

It probably wouldn't hurt in any case but it really isn't needed at all.
As for the new world cichlids, I think the same reasoning applies.
I wouldn't use aquarium salt unless it was in an attempt to remedy a health issue so if your fish are healthy otherwise I wouldn't add any.


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## under_control (Jan 9, 2008)

midnight1 said:


> I have a mixed cichlid tank consisting of mostly new world cichlids. I use aquarium salt in my community tak and the fish seem more active and bright any ideas as to if the new world cichlids would react the same?


"seem" and "does" are two different things. There is no reason to add aquarium salt to any of yoru tanks unless it is a requirement of said fish. It is NOT a requirement for New world cichlids.


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## mncherie1 (Mar 27, 2009)

I always add a few spoons of salt with my water changes. They all seem to like it, I have even caught the jewels and fire mouths picking on the salt before it dissolves. opcorn: 
It has never hurt them and as long as they like it I figured.....why not. I do use it to treat illnesses such as ich, but on a much larger scale.


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## RyanR (Apr 29, 2008)

Doesn't hurt to use in non-excessive doses.... Aquarium salt is basically just electrolytes, making things a little easier on gills and repairing nipped fins and scrapes.... though the fish certainly don't *have* to have it.

I've not really seen much benefit from using it everyday.

-Ryan


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## kjhydock (Apr 28, 2009)

I usually add a tablespoon per 10 gallons at water changes. I don't really notice anything about 'brightening colors' and any of the other bologne on the box, but they seem to like the water better when salt is added, if nothing else than to play with the salt while it dissolves.


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## under_control (Jan 9, 2008)

mncherie1 said:


> seem





kjhydock said:


> seem


um.... Beings we are doing something here and not even KNOWING if it does something, why are we doing it?


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## mncherie1 (Mar 27, 2009)

Up and foremost we are all sharing our experiences, which is what a forum is about. Learn from others mistakes and build your own opinion. But if you want scientific reasoning....here it isâ€¦â€¦â€¦

"Salt is a useful remedy for the prevention and treatment of several freshwater fish diseases. It assists in the healing of injuries, promotes formation of slime coating, improves gill function, reduces the uptake of nitrite, and is effective against some parasites.

Salt adds natural electrolytes, improve gill function, and reduce fish stress. Freshwater fish actively maintain a natural balance of electrolytes in their body fluids. Electrolytes such as potassium, sodium, chloride, calcium, and magnesium are removed from the water by chloride cells located on the gills. These electrolytes are essential for the uptake of oxygen, and the release of carbon dioxide. The lack of electrolytes can cause serious health problems for fish. During periods of disease and stress, healthy gill function is disturbed. This can lead to loss of electrolytes and osmotic shock. Osmotic shock reduces the ability of the gills to take up oxygen and release carbon dioxide and ammonia. Aquarium Salt reduces the risk of osmotic shock by replenishing natural electrolytes fish need. 
Aquarium Salt can also be used to reduce the toxicity of nitrite to freshwater fish. Nitrite (NO2-) enters the gills and prevents the blood from carrying oxygen, resulting in nitrite toxicity (methemoglobinemia). Aquarium salt will temporarily block the toxic effects of nitrite until water quality can be improved.

Additional Information

Salt Concentration 0.3%-0.5% (3-5ppt) 
- upsets the osmotic balance of some parasites, killing them. 
- detoxifies nitrate 
- controls some forms of algae (ie string algae)"


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## edouthirt (Jan 22, 2008)

> mncherie1 wrote:
> seem
> 
> kjhydock wrote:
> ...


In essence everything we think we know is really just a theory anyway, so using the word "seem" is probably more appropriate in most cases. Do we really know if the sun will rise tomorrow morning? No, but it "seems" likely that it will, so I'll put my money on it.

Personally, I add a homemade buffer recipe to my tanks to try to reach close to natural water parameters for the fish that I have. I also add a teaspoon of salt per 5 gallons of water in an effort to help them fight off parasites (and whatever else I've read about the benfits of salt in the freshwater aquarium). Do I know if it really benefits the fish significantly? No. Does it seem like it helps? Yes. Does it seem like it hurts them? Not at all. Am I going to keep doing it? Absolutely. Spending $5 for a 6 month supply of buffer and non-iodized salt "seems" worth the risk IMO.

We do however know that 2 + 2 = 4.

That's why mathematics is the only field where proofs exist. Everything else we just take our best guess given the evidence at hand.


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## mncherie1 (Mar 27, 2009)

Go edouthirt, that was my point exactly :thumb:


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## edouthirt (Jan 22, 2008)

btw, a couple people on this thread have mentioned their fish "playing" with the salt as it dissolves... I find this odd and thought it was common practice to dissolve salts/buffers in seperate glass of tank water and then slowly add that water to the tank??!!


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## mncherie1 (Mar 27, 2009)

I just dump mine in and they loooove to nibble on it. I make sure that none of my bottom dwellers are around though, would hate to chemically burn them.


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## prov356 (Sep 20, 2006)

Here's some info on salt from The skeptical aquarist site.

I'm of the opinion that it does neither harm, nor good. The only true benefit is it's ability to detox nitrite, 
but like said in the link referenced above, most tanks already have the 'salts' needed to do that, and you 
shouldn't need to add more.

My experience has been that fish do great without the addition of aquarium salts. Just another 
viewpoint from another's experience.  .


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## boredatwork (Sep 14, 2007)

I've always marveled at the constant anthropomorphism of fish behavior. In reality, there is no way to know if salt is better or worse without some scientific explanation - which I have yet to come across. With the exception of them dying or getting sick, there is no indicator of a fishes mood - or at least none that I am aware of. So we cannot say whether or not something is beneficial or not, outside of speculation.

Coloration is not a legitimate indication of a "happy fish", neither is breeding. And the behavior of eating something really means nothing. I have seen one fish poop and another fish come behind and chomp down on it - only to spit it out again. I wouldn't use that observation to say that poop makes fish happy.

I don't think salt is lethal to fish at the commonly used concentrations. But I also don't think there is any proven benefit or disadvantage either. Anecdotal observations just don't meet any objective standard that anyone should be willing to believe.

Having said that, the one aspect of salt use that I find most crucial to know is that salt, unlike carbonates, do not evaporate out. So when you dose with salt, you need to take into account the amount of water lost due to evaporation, otherwise the salt concentration will slowly but surely continue to increase. The proper way to do a water change if you add salt is to first add water back into the tank to account for evaporation loss, then do the water change. For me, once I learned this it became too much of a hassle to add salt, so I just stopped using it. However, if you are using it, this is something that really should be taken into consideration when you add salt to your tank.


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## midnight1 (Sep 30, 2008)

by the word "seem" I just simply mean that before the addition of the salt my community tank fish were less active than they are now and the only parameter that has changed is the salt . I am very appreciative of all who have responded and am only considering using the salt in my cichlid tank as a buffer. I was just worried they may not be able to handle it like the friendly fish I have. I was directed by my local pet store to try it in that tank due to some of my friendlies prefering it and or needing it. does antone have any experience with breeding of Jack Dempsey cichlids?


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## illusions2281 (Jan 25, 2009)

same here my fish perked up when i added it


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