Posted BySteve Gray on October 15, 2003 at 12:15:02:
In Reply to: Re: My fish were ruffed up! posted byJason Hughes on October 15, 2003 at 02:02:09:
Yes, water softening salt is what you want to purchase. I have a water softener for my house and I too purchase my water softener "rock salt" at HEB in the 40 pound bags. I have used the salt pellets and rock salt in my pond. I think rock salt dissolves faster than the pellets (my opinion). You don't have to strain the salt with a spaghetti strainer or put it in panty hose and hold it under a waterfall. Slower dissolving is really better for the fish. Just dump the salt (rock or pellets) into your pond where the water is moving, so that it does dissolve.
A side benefit of a 0.3% salt solution, is that it kills the following parasites commonly found on fish: Costia, Chilodinella, Epistylis (the white puffy blisters), Scyphidia, Glossatella, Ichthyophthirius (aka Ich), 30-40% of Flukes, and North American Trichodina. Ich is cleared in 3 days and Flukes take up to 14 days to clear.
A salt "dip" for new fish will rid any fish of these problems as well. It's a fast way to treat a new fish if you don't have a quarantine tank. A salt dip is made of a 3.0% solution, which is much stronger than the 0.3% solution we've been discussing. I've used the 3.0% solution when treating my Koi upon return from a koi show, to make certain I don't introduce new "bugs" into my pond with the returning fish. At a 3.0% solution, a koi will "pass out" in a matter of seconds. These parasites will die instantly, except possibly ich, which requires at least 3 days of 0.3% solution to kill the parents and babies after they hatch because the salt can't get inside the eggs. Once the fish passes out and rolls on its side, remove the fish and place it in your pond, holding on to it and pushing it forward and backward to push water through the gills. Within a minute or so, the fish will be able to swim on its own and can be released.
Koi can live forever in a 0.3% solution. Some experts say it's healthy for them to do so.
Good luck with your fish.