# Could aquarium salt (treating betta fin rot) harm plants or invertebrates?



## zahtar (Sep 29, 2019)

Hello! First post here, newbie looking for advice 

My betta is dealing with fin rot. I have added aquarium salt (sera ectopur) to the tank according to the instructions on the box, 1teaspoon per 25lt (6,6 US gal). This concentration does not seem to harm the other livestock so far (3days now), but I am wondering if it is too weak to cure the disease.

According to various pages (not limited to: https://www.plantedtank.net/forums/21-fish/1290005-fin-rot-when-do-salt-bath.html and http://bettasplendid.weebly.com/fin-rot-101.html) treatment suggests concentrations of 1teaspoon per gallon, which is approximately six times what I use! I am worried if that could harm other species in my tank which are:

a) an amano shrimp and a nerite snail
b) cryptocorynes, marimo, hornwort

I've read that the above invertebrates have their eggs hatch in brackish water, despite themselves living in freshwater. Therefore I'd expect some toleration to salt addition, but I wanted to ask more experienced aquarists. Regarding the above plants, I have no idea how much salt they would tolerate.

Water parameters (pH, gH, kH, NO2, NO3, Cl) are tested and constantly coming out fine, the thermostat is now set to 26Celsius. The tank is 15litres (4gallons) and I do a weekly change of 4 litres (1 gallon), dechlorinated tap water preheated to match the tank's temperature. DIY air pump driven filter with filter floss, aq sponge and siporax.

*Long story short:* Would 1 teaspoon per gallon harm the above livestock? (inverts+plants) Should I get a quarantine tank (+heater etc), or is it safe to increase the concentration in the current tank? Any suggestions are welcome 

Thank you in advance!


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## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

1 teaspoon/Gallon sounds too much.

Amano & nerite in the wild live in brackish water so they're used to salt. Your plants might not do so well. 

You can set up another tank for the betta to treat the fin rot. I would use medicine for fin rot and a little salt. Salt can only do so much. I don't think it's too effective for fin rot.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

Welcome to APC zahtar! I have never tried aquarium salt, so I have no idea if it would harm the plants or not.


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## zahtar (Sep 29, 2019)

Thanks for the replies guys! And hoppycalif, thank you for the welcome!

I guess a QT tank is in order...

But if anyone else has relevant experience, any input is welcome!


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## Gerald (Mar 24, 2008)

I dont know about the cryptocoryne and marimo algae, but Amano shrimp, Nerites, Bettas, and Hornwort are fine with 1 teasp/gal = 1.5 g/L or ppt. I usually start with that concentration for skin/fin issues.


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## zahtar (Sep 29, 2019)

Thanks for your reply Gerald!

Marimo can be easily moved to a vase with dechlorinated water, so that's not a problem I guess. Actually I started a vase with garden dirt plus sand cap where I planted one of the cryptocorynes to see how it goes, so I guess I can move the marimos there for start.

Salt seems to have helped so far, he is a lot more energetic, but his left ventral fin has a fuzzy spot once again. So I guess the concentration is too low to be effective. I am on the 5day mark, I read I should stop at 10 days, so I guess I'll rise to 1tsp/gallon concentration.

On second thought, instead of salt bath, has anyone tried a salt dip? I mean short dips in a separate container with a much higher salt concentration but for a few minutes. I am trying to find info about correct concentrations and duration.


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## Felicia (Mar 19, 2019)

I would remove the betta for treating fin rot. Place him in a quarantine tank with a heater and some fin rot medication. I recommend melafix. Adding salt won’t do much. However you can add Indian almond leaves that leach antibacterial/anti fungal properties through their tannins. Also helps the tail heal and grow back faster.


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## zahtar (Sep 29, 2019)

Hi Felicia, thanks for your post. I only just saw it, it seems I am *not* automatically subscribed to my own thread, as I got no email notification...

I didn't move the betta to a QT, I used aquarium salt and the results have been very good. He now flares to reflections as well as being more energetic. His ventral fins look better, I thought the right one was almost gone, but that's not the case! This is the last day of the treatment, so I'll do a major water change to lower the salt concentration.

The almond leaves sound like a good idea, but I am hesitant to put them in the same tank due to coloration. Could I try those in a hospital tank for short dips, or is he not going to have benefit unless constantly exposed to the tannins?


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## Gerald (Mar 24, 2008)

Leaf tannins help with osmoregulation and preventing disease, especially in very soft water. Long-term exposure to tannins can be beneficial, not sure if short dips will have any noticeable effect, but it _might_ help with healing.


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## zahtar (Sep 29, 2019)

thanks Gerald, I'll keep it in mind!


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