salt level in a fresh water tank?

Hi there,

There's only 2 reasons to use salt in freshwater.

#1 your fish needs brackish water, which is not the case.

#2 you're treating sick fish, which is also not the case.

It is common to use salt in order to treat sick fish. However, I do not recommend adding salt at all on normal occasion. That's because it's the Difference in level of salinity that kill the disease. Keeping the salt salinity ongoing will render the salt purposeless.

Also, for the sake of keeping fish happy, the consistency in water parameter is much more important. Unless you get a hydrometer, and work on your salt consistently, else using salt will just be a negative thing, on top of being useless to start with.

Therefore, i strongly recommend that you dont' use salt at all. I've kept saltwater and freshwater fish for years. Even with brackish fish, i never added any salt. I have multiple tank running.

Btw, scaleless fish cannot tolerate salt at all, which is not your case.

So my vote goes to, no salt.

Good evening Bob -

I agree that the employee doesn't know what he is talking about. It would be nice if he mentioned WHY he suggested aquarium salt in the first place. My rule with local fish store employees is this: If they recommend something that I am not familiar with I ask "Why do I need this?" as well as "Is this really necessary for the health of my fish and aquarium?" If someone suggests something but they don't ask what fish I have in the aquarium I say something like this: "Wow, you just recommended something that could harm my plecostomus (or African Dwarf Frogs, etc..). Or I mention that some of my fish are African Dwarf Frogs, plecos, etc. and see what they say. If they can't give me an explanation I go about my business because I usually know what is good for my aquarium and its inhabitants!

Some freshwater hobbyists do use salt regularly but not many. Here are a few reasons why hobbyists add salt to the aquarium - stress reduction, medicating, adding hardness, and for fish commonly found in brackish water.

http://www.aquaworldaquarium.com/Articles/TonyGrif...

I really wouldn't worry about using the aquarium salt. Your fish are fine without it. In a few years the rules will change and everyone will be urged to use aquarium salt all the time... Make up my MIND already! LOL!

Have a good evening!

Yes, salt is naturally used in freshwater tanks, because it helps to fight off diseases. Instead of following the instructions on the box, add small salt amounts with every water change so it happens gradually and will not stress the fish out. The person that sold you them is not crazy, as I have been an aquarist for 3 years and have always used some salt in my tanks.

Those fish DO NOT need salt, their natural environment is FRESH water, far from the sea. Maybe they can tolerate some salt, and salt does have some uses in fish keeping for treating some diseases. But your fish don't need it.

Being a bit cynical, I would suggest the shop has started doing salt tests as a way of increasing the sales of aquarium salt?

Ian

Yeah. Aquarium salt is fine. It is usually used to soothe injured fish or calm them down. Some fish are salt intolerant and CAN NOT have aquarium salt in their water. That guy should of told you that. Make sure all your fish can tolerate it before using it. I know Oto Cat's, Corydoras and Plecos are salt intolerant.

okay let me clear a few things up for you

1.aquarium salt is NOT ocean salt, it's meant to add electrolytes and other good stuff to freshwater tanks without raising the salt level enough to harm any fish.(it also helps fish breathe easier sometimes)

2. the first person who answered is the quack

3. i add aquarium salt to all my freshwater tanks and their always at their finest, so i recommend following the instructions and you should have some happy fish

I've never heard of adding salt to a fresh water tank! This guy sounds like a quack to me! I had fish for years and never added salt to the tank. Even when researching the fresh water fish I had it said don't put ANY salt in the tank because it would kill them.

They are not hard at all. They can be less forgiving at times. Regular water changes are more important in a marine tank and letting the water evaporate can cause salinity issues. Other than that, a well established tank does a nice job of maintaining itself. The most difficult thing about maintainance on my tank is that I only use RO water and don't have my own RO unit so I have to go out every weekend to wal-mart to fill up jugs of water (22gallons). It's the same routine every weekend (sometimes I skip a water change though). Pour 10 gallons of water into my mixing container which has a heater and powerhead. Add 5.5 cups of marine salt. Let it mix for a while. Once the water is mixed (salinity 1.026 and temp 80 degree) I siphon 4 gallons from my 36 gallon tank and pump 4 gallons of new water in. I also have 3 other small tanks that I do small water changes on. I actually had a harder time with freshwater when I was vacumming the gravel every week. Some of it takes a bit getting use to but once you do it all a few times and look for the easiest way to do it then it really is simple. The downside to a marine tank is that it can cost a lot of money. At the same time, an impressive freshwater tank can cost a big chunk also. You can get a lot of stuff for a marine tank but most people would be suprised at how little I actually use. The only suppliment I use is "purple-up" and I very seldom test for anything. I never test for PH. sometimes I will test nitrate and calcium. I don't use a skimmer or filter either. I really think most people buy way more than they need for a marine tank just because someone else said they needed it.