henward Posted February 11, 2008 Report Share Posted February 11, 2008 or just baddies? cos that wouldnt make sense, it says on the pack, natural and stuff, hard to over dose etc. but will it kill bacteria in the tank that is good bacteria? or just bad fish bacteria that are generally parasites? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted February 11, 2008 Report Share Posted February 11, 2008 Just cos it is natural doesn't make it safe I understood it was highly toxic if overdosed (but I might be thinking of a different product). Melafix is tea tree oil if I remember correctly. In proper dosage I don't think it harms filter bacteria. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted February 11, 2008 Report Share Posted February 11, 2008 I learned recently that there is a way of testing bacteria that divides them into two groups: gram positive and gram negative. Conveniently most pathogens are in one group and non-pathogens are in the other, so to kill the baddies and not the goodies you use something that kills that group only Some meds are broad spectrum and kill the lot. It is a bit like with blood types, each blood type can be divided into Rh (rhesus) positive or negative. That means it clots or not if mixed with an rhesus monkey blood extract.... Technically doesn't mean a whole lot, but very useful in practise. If I have something wrong in my understanding please let me know, just heard this recently but seems useful for understanding fish meds and if they kill your filter as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AMAZONIAN Posted February 12, 2008 Report Share Posted February 12, 2008 Hi All. The main ingredient in "MELAFIX" is the esential oil from the shrub Melaleuca leucadendron, a member of the Mrytle family. hence the name of the "Medication: Mela, from the oil, Fix, as a remedy. The other product from API not used very often but non the less worthy of note is called "PIMAFIX". The main ingredient of that Medication is from the Pimenta racemosa, a member of the Bay family. Once again, the name; Pima, from the oil. Fix, as a remedy. A bit of useful/useless information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted February 12, 2008 Report Share Posted February 12, 2008 Pathogenic bacteria can be gram negative or gram positive. Staphs that cause boils and supporating sores etc are positive and Salmonella is negative for instance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadeusus Posted February 12, 2008 Report Share Posted February 12, 2008 Melafix is indeed derived from tea tree oil. THe active is more active against gram negative than positive. The nitrogen fixing bacteria in your filter are gram negative. Thus it can affect your filter just as most meds will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tHEcONCH Posted February 12, 2008 Report Share Posted February 12, 2008 If you use Melafix according to the instructions your biofilter should be OK, but I didn't find it to be a very effective medication compared to some others that target specific problems. Is there something wrong with your fish, or are you just curious? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
henward Posted February 12, 2008 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2008 more just healing, it has an itch due to water problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 I had cloudy water and crook fish. I dosed with melafix for 7 days and tested every other day for ammonia and nitrite. Neither moved above zero (or close to), and the tank smelled real nice . One of the fish died , two others affected by fungus on the pectorial fins got better, but the water remained cloudy until I used a clearing agent. Just thought I'd share my experience with the stuff. :bounce: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 It may be OK to use but I never have as I have an aversion to puting teatree oil in an aquarium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 2, 2008 Report Share Posted June 2, 2008 I used melafix on a very bashed up oscar that we acquired, the fish was a real mess, almost to the point of put down material, big chunks of flesh hanging off etc... Melafix was amazing for this fish.. the healing process was amazing, kept all the wounds clean and the dead flesh fell off and it was amazing how fast the new flesh grew in place... It definately did well in this case.. we would only use it if we had too, like something as serious as his wounds. It didn't seem to upset the bio in his tank... After the treatment we just did decent water changes gradually. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted June 3, 2008 Report Share Posted June 3, 2008 Sorry to hijack a thread, although an old one, but, I'm still getting this cloudiness coming back. I can see you (alan) have an aversion to additives of any kind in the tank other than fish and I don't want to add any more clearing agent to the water. What do you suggest, or is one of two many things that could be causing it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RochelleMay Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Just abit of information that I found out at the LFS the other day. Meafix kills only the bad bacteria and does not affect good bacteria. It should be used daily and can not be over dosed. He said that you could put a bottle into your tank and it would be fine. Although he wouldnt advise it I have been using it for 4days on my Female betta (in a hospital tank) who got attack and was on death row and now shes back to normal just a few teared fins. Amazing stuff. and He told me that I could keep using it regulary on my big tank even if i have no reason to. I have been doing it in my big tank as well as for my poor betta and even the community tank fish are looking healhtier and the colour is the clearest its been in ages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Where did he get his info from? Yikes I don't agree that it could or should be used regularly on your tank if there is no need too, what would be the purpose of doing this? The following quote was a bit of information found on the use of Melafix.. if anyone would like the link then sing out as not sure I can link it on here.. I have also read that if you overdose Melafix it can burn the corneas of the eyes, causing the fishes eyes to become cloudy. Both Melafix and Pimafix are organic compounds. The bacteria in the tank water (not necessarily the ones on the fish) these products don't kill, sometimes use the Melafix and Pimafix as food! This means that when you add these medications to a tank (especially a tank that has not been maintained well or one that hasn't had regular water changes) there is a small chance that a bacterial bloom will ensue and take up dissolved oxygen. This could mean that you could see, under such circumstances, your fish significantly increase their respiratory rate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Lucas, have your tried gradual water changes to see if this makes a difference? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RochelleMay Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Well there has definatly been no down fall on using it on my tank I have seen positive results. He said use it daily for first 7 days and then weekly after that. He works at a speciallised fish store as well not just a wee pet store. maybe it is bad but havent yet seen it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Afrikan Posted June 10, 2008 Report Share Posted June 10, 2008 Each to their own but I would certainly want to see where he got his info from, short of giving any evidence that this is a good procedure then I would be reluctant.. the information I have read on Melafix hasn't suggested doing any such thing (this is information from other fish keepers who have experience with the product)... there are rather a few pieces of information across the web about the hidden dangers of using long term treatments such as Melafix... I would only ever use it if the fish was in dire straits with bad wounds, ie the Oscar we acquired who was a wreck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucas Posted June 12, 2008 Report Share Posted June 12, 2008 Hi Afrikan, Thanks for the response. The problem now seems to have cleared. I ended up virtually blacking out the room the tank was in for a week and allowing nothing but the light from the fluros. I've picked up a UV clarifier to just aid in reducing algae in future if and when it is needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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