I've had green chromis fish from three different venders and all started getting red sores in the middle of there body or at the base of the tail. starting out small and getting bigger day by day all dying in the end. they went a week before showing these signs. Note.... three different venders three different tanks.. how common is this, what is this, and how can I treat this or keep this from happening again?
red sores on green chomis's
- Thread starter rope
- Start date
You don't give us much information about your system.
Quite often the symptoms you reported are either a water quality issue or other issues that have led to a bacterial infection. There are other possibilities to what might have brought this on. But they do all have something in common: The common things all these fish have is that they went into your tank, under your care.
This sometimes happens when aquarists rush things and put fish in their tanks too soon. Ideally a tank needs to age a few months even though the ammonia and nitrite levels are good. But there are plenty of things that could be amiss, as well as a group of microbes that can bring this on.
If you'd like more help we'd normally need a photo. Since you don't have access to this, presumably, then you'd need to let us know more about your system. We'd need to know the following about the system and the livestock:
How old is your tank? When did it originally cycle?
What kind of system do you have (tank volume, dimensions, bio-filtration method, the equipment you use, any carbon or other chemical filtration, kind of substrate, etc.).
List all specimens & sizes in the tank (fish, inverts, corals, clams, snails, crabs, shrimp, etc.).
If you have a refugium and/or sump, what is living in it?
Do you use a quarantine tank and procedure?
Foods you use and feeding schedules.
How long have you had this fish? If the fish was recently acquired (4 weeks), two more questions: Do you know what sea/ocean it came from? How did you acclimate it ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ what procedure?
Do you use any vitamins? Fat additives? Any elemental or other additives? Please list all.
Chemistries ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ please give actual numbers (Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphate, Silica, Ca, Alk., and any others you have)
Water parameters ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ please give actual numbers (pH and your pH range, salinity or sp. gr. & range, temperature range)
Do you see any of the following in your system: hair algae; micro algae; cyanobacteria growths; dinoflagellate (zooxanthellae) growths; brown algae; diatom growth; slimes; colored patches on rock or substrate; etc.?
Water changes (how much and how often). Kind of artificial salt youââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢re using. Kind of source water you are using? Have you analyzed your source water for the above chemistries? When did you do these tests last? What is the TDS of your source water?
List what you added or taken out of your aquarium system (living, decorations, and equipment) during the past 6 weeks.
Maintenance schedule.
Quite often the symptoms you reported are either a water quality issue or other issues that have led to a bacterial infection. There are other possibilities to what might have brought this on. But they do all have something in common: The common things all these fish have is that they went into your tank, under your care.
This sometimes happens when aquarists rush things and put fish in their tanks too soon. Ideally a tank needs to age a few months even though the ammonia and nitrite levels are good. But there are plenty of things that could be amiss, as well as a group of microbes that can bring this on.
If you'd like more help we'd normally need a photo. Since you don't have access to this, presumably, then you'd need to let us know more about your system. We'd need to know the following about the system and the livestock:
How old is your tank? When did it originally cycle?
What kind of system do you have (tank volume, dimensions, bio-filtration method, the equipment you use, any carbon or other chemical filtration, kind of substrate, etc.).
List all specimens & sizes in the tank (fish, inverts, corals, clams, snails, crabs, shrimp, etc.).
If you have a refugium and/or sump, what is living in it?
Do you use a quarantine tank and procedure?
Foods you use and feeding schedules.
How long have you had this fish? If the fish was recently acquired (4 weeks), two more questions: Do you know what sea/ocean it came from? How did you acclimate it ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ what procedure?
Do you use any vitamins? Fat additives? Any elemental or other additives? Please list all.
Chemistries ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ please give actual numbers (Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate, Phosphate, Silica, Ca, Alk., and any others you have)
Water parameters ââ"šÂ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å“ please give actual numbers (pH and your pH range, salinity or sp. gr. & range, temperature range)
Do you see any of the following in your system: hair algae; micro algae; cyanobacteria growths; dinoflagellate (zooxanthellae) growths; brown algae; diatom growth; slimes; colored patches on rock or substrate; etc.?
Water changes (how much and how often). Kind of artificial salt youââ"šÂ¬Ã¢"žÂ¢re using. Kind of source water you are using? Have you analyzed your source water for the above chemistries? When did you do these tests last? What is the TDS of your source water?
List what you added or taken out of your aquarium system (living, decorations, and equipment) during the past 6 weeks.
Maintenance schedule.
sales weasel
New member
I also have a Chromis with the same symptoms. I only have two fish in the whole tank and both are Chromis. They were added to my tank three days ago. They both have very healthy appetites but the larger one definitely has a problem and this sore has now spread down one side of his body. I think I'm now seeing the smaller fish getting a similar spot on his side.
My tank is a 2mo old 55g w/a 20g sump and a hang-on fuge in the sump. I have 8 Ricordea, a very large hammer coral that I removed from a nano and some polyps. Water params are all within the range recommended for the fish. HOWEVER, I have added SeaChem Reef Builder and Reef Advantage Calcium about 2-wks ago. Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate are all 0. pH is 8.0-8.2, I'm using IO salt and I make my own RO water. I used 65lbs of Reeferrocks, 60 lbs of Araganite and 20lbs of live sand to seed everything. I have a UV sterilizer that I haven't connected and that is my next step. Before I added these fish I did a 10gal water change. My tank also has a plenum. There is some coralline starting to grow on the glass but thre are no major algae blooms anywhere.
My nano tank uses the same water and salt. However, I used real liverock and not reeferrocks in that one. Also, I used AragAlive sand. It has major algae problems but the Ocelleris and Yellow Watchman Gobie are in excellent health and will one year old in a few weeks.
My tank is a 2mo old 55g w/a 20g sump and a hang-on fuge in the sump. I have 8 Ricordea, a very large hammer coral that I removed from a nano and some polyps. Water params are all within the range recommended for the fish. HOWEVER, I have added SeaChem Reef Builder and Reef Advantage Calcium about 2-wks ago. Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate are all 0. pH is 8.0-8.2, I'm using IO salt and I make my own RO water. I used 65lbs of Reeferrocks, 60 lbs of Araganite and 20lbs of live sand to seed everything. I have a UV sterilizer that I haven't connected and that is my next step. Before I added these fish I did a 10gal water change. My tank also has a plenum. There is some coralline starting to grow on the glass but thre are no major algae blooms anywhere.
My nano tank uses the same water and salt. However, I used real liverock and not reeferrocks in that one. Also, I used AragAlive sand. It has major algae problems but the Ocelleris and Yellow Watchman Gobie are in excellent health and will one year old in a few weeks.
Chromis are generally hearty fish, but they, like most fishes are susceptible to water changes and variations.
To put it succinctly, a 2 month old tank is going through a lot of changes. It most likely has not stabilized yet. It may have proper ammonia and nitrite levels, but there are many more water quality issues changing during the first several months of a tank's life.
The fish are responding to these changes to the best of their physiological, genetic, and nutritional ability. Or, in short, for that one fish, it can't handle the changes the tank is going through and most likely suffering from a weakened immune system allowing bacterial and microbe infections.
My recommendation: remove the sick fish to a quarantine tank for treatment with an antibiotic. Don't add or change anything to your main display for the next few months while it settles down. While in this mode, read up on proper nutrition and supplements needed to maintain healthy fish:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=785228
To put it succinctly, a 2 month old tank is going through a lot of changes. It most likely has not stabilized yet. It may have proper ammonia and nitrite levels, but there are many more water quality issues changing during the first several months of a tank's life.
The fish are responding to these changes to the best of their physiological, genetic, and nutritional ability. Or, in short, for that one fish, it can't handle the changes the tank is going through and most likely suffering from a weakened immune system allowing bacterial and microbe infections.
My recommendation: remove the sick fish to a quarantine tank for treatment with an antibiotic. Don't add or change anything to your main display for the next few months while it settles down. While in this mode, read up on proper nutrition and supplements needed to maintain healthy fish:
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=785228
