GBD Gone

[laga77]

I have had my ponies for just under a year now. In that time The male has had GBD in his tail and pouch 3 times. The first two times he was pulled and treated with Diamox in a 5G bucket for about 2 weeks until it went away. When it came back a third time I tried something different. The skimmer I was using created a lot of fine bubbles which I thought I was controlling with a filter sock and partition in the sump, but there was still a few fine bubbles that made to the return pump. I believe these bubbles were being dissolved under the pressure of the impeller. Four months ago I switched brands of skimmers and not only has there been an increase in stuff being skimmed out, there are fewer micro bubbles making to the return pump. The brands of the skimmers are not important because I am not here to bash any brand over another. There was never a large amount of micro bubbles in the DT, just the stay fine air bubble that you would see in any tank. I have a lot to compare to as I now have six tanks setup now. The male has been clear of GBD since and is doing great.

 

[vlangel]

That is interesting. I know from things I have read in the past that it was thought that too many micro bubbles could contribute to GBD. Most keepers now think that it might be an inbalance in the seahorse as a result of too many dissolved organics in the water column. Its possible the your new skimmer is more effectively removing organics and that is why your male has been free of GBD?

 

[rayjay]

I've not been a believer that skimmer bubbles have anything to do with GBD at any time, especially when non pouch related.
I personally feel that it is either co-incidental, or, as vlangel mentioned, that your water is better quality now not because of no micro bubbles, but more organics are being removed by this skimmer