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First of all I would like to say that through this forum I have learned SO much about fishkeeping and I would like to thank everyone here for sharing their knowledge!!

I have a small 3 gallon tank that I keep at work (I work at a vet hospital). It has been up and running for at least one year. It has a light and HOB type filter. It is planted (corkscrew val and java fern) and the only fish in it was a male Betta. I do a 50% water change every 2 weeks (not enough I know but I seem to get away with it) and replenish with treated tap water.

A couple of weeks ago the betta seemed a little sluggish and wasn't as enthusiastic about his meals. The next day he had a large amount of white cottony material on his fins- mostly at the base of his tail fin. He seemed bright and alert and was swimming around and as the pet store was closed, I decided to wait until the next day to treat him. The next day he was dead.

I did a big water change, removed the filters and let the tank sit for about a week then decided to try another fish. I naievely thought perhaps the old guy had just succumbed to old age as I could think of nothing different in the tanks routine that would have introduced infection. I bought a new male betta a week ago and I have been watching it closely for signs of illness. Yesterday he seemed a little off so today I was going to buy some melafix just in case. This morning he too is dead. No cottony stuff, just slightly inflammed gills according to my co-worker. I am not at work right now so I don't have any water parameters for you- I will take my test kits in tomorrow to test the tank.

Any ideas or suggestions? I can certainly break down the tank and bleach it but I would like to save the plants. If I could just treat the tank I would prefer that. Not to mention the symptoms of the two bettas were different.

If I read correctly, the fish died within a week or so of purchase, right? If so, then don't consider it having anything to do with your tank.

If you buy another betta, I would suggest quarantining him outside of that tank in an unfiltered 2 gallon small world container.

Here is a pic of the type I'm suggesting and it is convenient to keep on hand for isolation. Having plants means that you want to treat the fish outside of the main tank so you don't kill them with salt or meds. Once again, this is not the setup, but mainly look at the container itself and you'll get what I'm saying:

[link=http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441781064&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302023694&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023694&bmUID=1106943724686]http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441781064&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302023694&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023694&bmUID=1106943724686" style="COLOR: #C000C0[/link]

Pic out a healthy looking betta and isolate in this container with a soft cloth fake plant that he can hide in. Change the water weekly and just leave him in quarantine for a couple weeks. In the meanwhile, allow the planted tank to run. If there are parasites in there, they won't do well without a host.

I would suggest having on hand Jungle's Fungus Eliminator. You can approximate the amount to use for 2 gallons. Doc Wellfish Aquarium Salt is also good to have on hand, but don't use with the Fungus Eliminator as it has salt in it. Its up to you whether you want to use prophylactic treatment for a new fish in quarantine. If you have only one source and both have died, then you have reason to consider it.

Watch for temp shock when transferring. The very best guideline is no more than 1F per day. Fish don't self regulate their temps - it is goverend by the environment. When it plummets 3-4 degrees or more they are stressed.

Since the container will be unheated, simply keep him in a room where there are no drafts. My bettas are fine at 70F with no heat. When you transition him later to that container, you will want to lower that tanks temp to room temp, then slowly graduate it upwards 1-1.5F daily until you get where you want.

Does this help?

Yes, thank you for the quick reply. I do have a small world "tank" that I can use already.
Just to clarify, the two Bettas were from different stores. The first was from my local LFS and he lived for about a year and a half. The second was from Big Als Aquatics and he appeared to be quite small so I don't think he was very old- he only lived for 1 week.

So if I leave the 3 gal running with no fish for awhile- any bugs will disappear? Are you saying to treat the tank prophylacticly or the new fish?

I'm just thinking that new stock may be well worth treating based on your experience. But, I thought you lost two in that kind of time. The one with fuzz succumbed to columnaris infection. It requires antibiotics when you see it. Maracyn is good for it and salt baths, as well as Fungus Eliminator.

Its probably not a bad idea to just let the tank run for a while. Even if you choose not to treat the betta in the small world container, you can house him there for better observation and can medicate immediately should you notice something. And, without worry of destroying the biofilter or the plants.

Check your nitrates on that tank some time. With 50% weekly water changes and only a betta, they are probably very low. Not to mention that the plants are taking some of it up too. 5-15ppm is ideal for planted tanks.

If you have the betta in quarantine for up to 2 weeks, you can keep your planted tank seeded by putting just a drop of ammonia in there every few days. Don't put any in within 3-4 days of putting the betta back in. That one drop will keep the tank going. However, even some decaying plant material should too. I'm not a fan of dropping food in any tank to keep it seeded. Columnaris bacteria can be found on rotting fish food. Not good to have in the water column.

Last edited by Cory_Di at 28-Jan-2005 20:13

There WAS a lot of fuzzy old food in the filter when I took it out. That would explain my theory that the cleaning lady killed him with kindness.....]:| All the fish food (and clinic cat food) has since been put in a locked cabinet so the fish should be safe from now on. Good thing it was just the 3 gal that became infected- She could have killed off all the fish in the 25!

The second fish was probably just bad luck from the store...

I will leave the 3 gal empty and perhaps salt the tank. It has been salted before and the plants survived. Or should I bleach them and put them in another tank until the 3 gal is safe again?

Thanks so much for your help! I am going to have a stern talk with the cleaning lady tomorrow.

Well, the cleaning lady may not have killed him with columnaris, but rather ammonia. Overfeeding overloads the filter and the good bacteria can't keep up. It then spews ammonia out into the water column stressing the fish. The stress lowers immunity and yes, if there was columnaris in the water (as there is most tanks), and a cut or abrasion, or parasite bites, BANG!