# Apistogramma cockatoo with Gas Bubble Disease



## Samusaran (Nov 8, 2012)

*Apistogramma cockatoo with Gas Bubble Disease, how should I treat and prevent it ??*

Hi !!

My apisto got the Gas Bubble Disease. I know now that you should not take warm water directly from the faucet. You should let the water sit for 24 hrours and, if neeeded, warm it slowly with a tank heater.

He got the disease right after a 40% water change (nitrates problem), and he is bloated (almost like a pinecone) and looks like the fish in this picture ( http://badmanstropicalfish.com/meds/gas_bubble.html ).

Two days ago I started a treatment with tetracycline to help with any bacterial infection. The fish didn't eat for 5 days now. How should I treat his bloating problem ?? Epsom salt ??


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

depends on what you mean by "warm water" what temp are you talking 
we use a garden hose connected to the tap to fill our tanks..the temp of the fill water is adjusted at the tap...there is no way for us to just let water sit...we just add some dechlorinating agent and fill the tanks...


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## Samusaran (Nov 8, 2012)

Well... I live in Canada. In winter, the water from the faucet is about 10 C (or 50 F), and sometimes lower. I can't add it directly to the tank (after adding some Prime). My tanks are about 25-26 C.

The hot water coming from the water heater of the house may contains toxins that can harm the fish. And cold water heated too fast is also a bad idea, something about over-saturation of gas in the water. Tried Google and search for the causes of Bubble Gas Disease. The way you treat your water before you add it to your tank is very important.

I never had this problem in summer, but now I will have to adjust my water changes routine for the winter and colder days.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

how do you shower if you can't mix the water at the tap to a comfortable bathing temp ?you must have a special kind of water heater that releases toxins..i'll send you the name of the brand i use so you can get one..
i have been keeping fish for 40 years and have done water changes pretty much the same from the beginning and have never had an issue with the hot water tank..


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## Samusaran (Nov 8, 2012)

lohachata said:


> how do you shower if you can't mix the water at the tap to a comfortable bathing temp ?you must have a special kind of water heater that releases toxins..i'll send you the name of the brand i use so you can get one..
> i have been keeping fish for 40 years and have done water changes pretty much the same from the beginning and have never had an issue with the hot water tank..


With time, some elements in the water heater can corrode, and it can release toxins or bacterias. At home, we don't take any chances, and we don't drink or cook with hot water from the tap. But you can use it for showers, laundry, clean the dishes, etc. Cold water is fine because it doesn't go through the water heater.

Maybe it's not harmful if used in small quatities when you do your water changes, but the temp difference between my tank and my tap water is so big that I have to use a good amount of hot water from the tap to have the perfect temperature for my tank. This, combined with other factors, may trigger Gas Bubble Disease. Cold water shouln't be warmed too fast before it is added to the tank.


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## TheJakeM (May 11, 2013)

What are the symptoms of this? Maybe it's something else, because I've never heard of this... I'm not an expert though... Most of the time I put warm water into my tanks, especially when it's cold out.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

i don't know where you get your information from but it is something i have never heard of....like i said..i use a garden hose that comes straight from my tap to fill tanks..the cold water right out of our tap is 50 degrees and even lower in the winter here.we mix the hot and cold right from the tap to get the desired temp..which is anywhere from 76-86 F..
of course allowing water to sit for a day or so is ok if you only have 1 or 2 tanks , just not possible when you are doing water changes on almost 100 tanks..

and if you run the hot water for a minute prior to filling a tank you will flush most any toxins from it..


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## TheJakeM (May 11, 2013)

Only thing I know about is copper pipes leaching into water. But the product I use to take chlorine out of my water takes care of that.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Moving right along..... I'm not sure that you can really do anything about gas bubbles except wait for them to be absorbed.


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