# H2O2 in a discus aquarium???? am i asking for trouble?



## discus (Jul 20, 2004)

Can H2O2 be used in the tank while the fish are still present. I currently have discus and am worried about the affect of H2O2 on them.


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## chuckeff (Apr 18, 2004)

From all that I have heard it is safe. Ottos might be sensitive, so if you have those fish, just do a half dose. I want to give it a try too, but I am not sure if it will kill my beneficial bacteria in my filter. I would hate to have to recycle my aquarium. :shock:


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## discus (Jul 20, 2004)

thanks for the info chuckeff but i read that it doesnt harm the beneficial bacteria as h2o2 evidently turns into water.


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## anonapersona (Mar 11, 2004)

If it can kill algae I'm certain it can kill bacteria, that is why it is used to wash wounds!

There are a couple of cautions, first, it can damage sensitive gills, and second, there may be a pH change due to this.

You ought to try to find the SkepticalAquarist site, there are links to H2O2 info there. http://skepticalaquarist.com/ A lot of very good links and some very strong cautions there.

I've also seen some info at Puregold but mostly as a antidote for Potasium permanganate treatment http://www.mu.edu/~buxtoni/puregold/home.html A dose of 1 capful for 20 gallons as a limit was noticed there.

Finally, in the discussions on Potassium permanganate at SimplyDiscus, there was some talk about H2O2, again mostly as an end to PP treatments. http://www.simplydiscus.com/forum/ The talk about possible pH changes was from there.

why did you even want to use this in a discus tank?


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## Macbrush (Mar 29, 2004)

From what i understand the use of H2O2 from the book of Aquarium Fish Disease, and one of the Amano's books that given a small dosage of H2O2 will dramatically increase the oxygen level, and this will affect the algae, hence kill them.

If high enough dosage is given, I am sure it will affect the bacteria in filter, but if you're worried about that, just turn off the filter for a hour or two, with the light on, H2O2 will turn into oxygen and water very quickly. I would also house the fish somewhere else during treatment if I plan to use high dosage.


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## discus (Jul 20, 2004)

*i think i will take the plants out and do a dip*

thanks for all your comments. I think i will just take out all my plants and do the h2o2 as a dip and see how that works instead of dosing the whole tank with h202


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## gpodio (Feb 4, 2004)

I've never tried it with discus however at the concentrations I've used in the past it has never hurt any fish. My biological filters also survived these concentrations quite well however turning them off and using a powerhead for circulation during treatment is probably a wise idea.

Here's what I did:
http://www.gpodio.com/h2o2.asp

Hope that helps
Giancarlo Podio


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