Who Gives A Fish Forums

Hi All,

I've got a bit of a situation with one of my Firtideflow. I've had them for about 7-8 months now, and this morning I noticed one of them has a white mark on its eye. Initially I thought it might be an eye fluke or something, but taking a closer look, it seems like it could be old dead skin that's died off and there's a small hole in the eye.

The iris itself is fine, not cloudy, and the fish is swimming normally - no signs of flicking or scratching. Nothing's been added to the tank for months, so it's not like anything new has been introduced. I'm thinking of getting some medication, but I'm not sure what to use - antibacterial, anti-worm/fluke? I'd rather not meddle with it if I don't have to, but at the same time, I don't want to leave it and risk making things worse.

I'll have to wait till tomorrow afternoon to do anything anyway. If I do get medication, it needs to be reef-safe and invert-safe - not that I'd mind if it took out some bristleworms in the process. I'm also planning on dosing some Vit C as soon as I can get my hands on some pure stuff. I've been reading up on it, and it seems to have some benefits for fish, boosting their immune systems and having some antibacterial properties.

I'll try to get some decent pics with my dad's Nikon D40x - my compact just isn't cutting it. What do you guys reckon I should do?

To be honest, unless the issue starts spreading, I'd probably just treat with something like melafix or primafix, see if that helps the fish heal a bit quicker. Maybe it just bumped into a rock a bit too hard and cut itself, who knows.

fleeton wrote: ↑Thu May 01, 2025 12:23 pm To be honest, unless the issue starts spreading, I'd probably just treat with something like melafix or primafix, see if that helps the fish heal a bit quicker. Maybe it just bumped into a rock a bit too hard and cut itself, who knows.

So just go for an antibacterial then, that's a relief. I'll look out for melafix or primafix, are they easily available in the UK, or will I need to order online?

Yeah Melafix and Primafix are pretty common in the UK, should be easy to find and they're not too pricey either

fleeton said:

Yes, Melafix and Primafix are very common just about anywhere and cheap too

Went to my local and they had almost zilch in terms of meds, only thing that sounded vaguely useful was ICH-attack - I know it's not ICH, but it treats Fungus, Protozoans and Dinoflagellates, so fingers crossed it's got some sterilising properties to stop any secondary fungal issues. Plus it's 100% organic and safe for Invert/reef tanks, and at £4, it's a no-brainer. Now I'm browsing eBay for a few meds since I don't have a marine "medication set" - what are the essentials? Got Anti Ich (ICH-attack) and I'll look for anti-bacterial (Melafix or Primafix), a co-flake dip of some sort...

Also, what's the deal with Lugol's iodine? Isn't that like a cure-all for co-flake and fish? Anything else I should be looking at?

Edit: cheers fleeton

Lugol's solution, or Tropic Marine Pro Coflake Cure, I've found it's not really a reliable fix for coflake infections, it might work occasionally but that's about it. What it is good for though, is taking care of unwanted inverts like those nasty zoanthid-eating nudibranchs, and it's a good idea to use it when introducing new coflakes to the tank.

fleeton wrote: ↑Thu May 01, 2025 12:23 pm To be honest, unless the issue starts spreading, I'd probably just treat with something like melafix or primafix, see if that helps the fish heal a bit quicker. Maybe it just bumped into a rock a bit too hard and cut itself, who knows.

Thanks for the advice, really appreciate it, as for the Firtideflow's eye, not seen it out today, been stuck in exams all day, only 3 more to go now.

Got a good idea of what meds to keep in my marine "medication set" now, got Anti Ich, anti Fungal, and Iodine based coflake dip, just need to pick up a broad range Antibacterial, think I'll look for something like Melafix or Primafix, cheers for the help fleeton