I had tail rot in my tank, treated it and now need help...?

Question

original post here http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AruGhF5M4q9w2.MvhyqpC8zsy6IX?qid=20070408065842AAVTZud

ok follow up here, finally figured out it was tail rot, i removed carbon filter, treated with API T.C. Tetracycline. i was told the water would turn yellow and that would be all, it turned VERY DEEP red. you could barely see thru it and it felt 'thicker'. also there was this really nasty film of 'muck' on top.(my 4yr old told me the tank was disgusting, ok, it was bad :-) ) i have done the last 25% water change in the directions for treatment. the water is still of course red, not as red but still very red, i added stress coat and aquarium salt. fish seem to be doing very well now

here is my actual ? tho. at what point should i put in the new activated carbon pack? i dont wanna put it in and have problems with it. plus they are a little pricey to just have to throw away. also should i do anything more about the color or will it work itself out?
Thanks all

Answer 1

The color will fade with time, but adding the carbon back to the filter will pull it out fairly quickly. You can do additional water changes to reduce the amount of medication left and reduce the color first so that it doesn't wear out the carbon too fast. A daily 25% water change won't hurt the tank or the fish and would reduce it significantly in a few days.

MM

Answer 2

Since your done treating your tank you should put a new carbon filter in it now, It will take the rest of the color out of your tank, you may need to change it to another new filter in a week, to pull all the color out of your tank, also a carbon filter is only good for about a week, but you don't have to change the filter but once a month this helps to keep the tank crystal clear. Otherwise if you can't afford then rinse off once a month but try not to exceed 3 month on one filter.

Answer 3

Buying Carbon packs for some filters are very high priced. Try checking online at petco or petsmart and use coupons :) Also walmart has some good prices.

Heres what I would do in that situation. I make my own temparary filter packs with filterfloss or plastic containers and fill them with carbon media from the pet store.

You can usually buy a whole container of activated carbon for 6bucks. shove it in the filter for a quick fix. Use these if you dont want to use your high priced filter right way.