Using Colloidal Silver in Your Fish Tank or Aquarium

Experienced colloidal silver users know that colloidal silver works wonderfully to help heal infections and injuries in aquarium fish. 

Not only that, but it helps keep fish looking more vibrant and alive, and it helps keep aquarium water sparkling clear, as well, by killing the bacteria that create cloudy water.

What’s more, using colloidal silver in a fish tank is perfectly safe, as long as you use it in very small amounts. 

Of course, the colloidal silver naysayers will start rolling their eyes and barking out shrill warnings the moment you publicly mention you’re using colloidal silver in your fish tank.  But read below what other aquarium hobbyists are saying, and you might be pleasantly surprised at what you learn…

Hi, Steve Barwick here, for The Silver Edge…

A reader asked, “Can colloidal silver be used in fish tanks, to help stop “ich” and other tropical fish infections?”

Actually, yes, it can.

In fact, as evidence, in Europe there's a product called "FungiStop," the main ingredient of which is…drum roll, please…colloidal silver. 

FungiStop is specifically made for treating aquarium fish, tropical and decorative, and is sold as a “Remedy for freshwater ornamental fish.”

The product description claims, “FungiStop contains active ingredients that are effective in controlling fungal diseases and which also promote general wound healing.”

And they say all you have to do is add a tiny 5 ml worth of the liquid per every 20 liters (approximately five gallons) of aquarium water, at weekly intervals when fish infection is present.  Finally, FungiStop is said to treat:

“Fungal infections caused by Achlya, Saprolegnia, etc., spawn fungus, bacterial mucous membrane infections, mouth decay and mouth rot, infectious wounds, heals wounds safely by providing overall mucous membrane protection.”

Occasionally, FungiStop can even be purchased on Amazon.com for delivery to the U.S.  (I have no connection whatsoever with this company, by the way.  And I’ve never used their product.  I’m just reporting that aquarium owners in Europe actually use a colloidal silver product for their tropical fish.) 

However, FungiStop ships from the UK, and transit times can be quite long, making it not particularly helpful if you have an immediate need for it in your aquarium. 

Would Colloidal Silver Work?

Many experienced colloidal silver users who also have tropical fish aquariums have found that both store-bought and homemade colloidal silver work just as well as commercial products for healing infections in their tropical fish.   

There's even a patent on the internet for using colloidal silver in tropical fish aquariums, which states: 

"This is a method of treating a wide range of skin lesions in tropical and decorative fish in which the animals to be treated are exposed to dilute suspensions of colloidal silver. 

During the course of the treatment, colloidal silver is added periodically to the aquarium in which the fish lives, so that the water therein has a silver concentration on the order of 1 ppm.

A suitable treatment procedure entails adding 1 teaspoon of colloidal silver which contains about 6 ppm of silver to 10 gallons of aquarium water every other day. 

This treatment has been found effective in healing some fish, even those with rather large wounds, in a matter of days. 

If a longer treatment period is required, then the colloidal silver addition is continued at the same rate, and then 50 percent of the water is changed once a week, until the lesions have healed. 

It was also found that bacteria and virus skin problems could be prevented by having silver colloidal concentrations of 0.3-.05 ppm in the aquarium water."

Now, that’s fascinating, because it means that in small amounts, colloidal silver can be used to heal infections in aquarium fish, and in even smaller amounts, it can safely and effectively be used as an infection preventative.

An Interesting Example

A Colloidal Silver Secrets Community member named Denise recently posted about her experiences with using colloidal silver to treat her fish in a fish bowl.  She stated:

"I have had fish many times just in a bowl with no equipment, and they die and get stressed so easily.

So when I had bad experiences with water going murky too quickly, and fish getting white spot, and having to spend money on chemicals to fix them.

So I figured out, must be bacteria.  I researched colloidal silver and fish, and found a website where a man used colloidal silver to save thousands of dollars worth of fish when nothing else worked and that was his last resort.

So I dropped 10 drops of colloidal silver in my fish bowl and have had happy fish now for 6 months.

I change the water once a month; sometimes 5-6 weeks. When I change the bowl I put them in a little water and completely fill the whole bowl with new water and tip them in.

Ha, Ha, you are not supposed to do this you are supposed to only remove 2/3 water as they will get stressed. But not my fish with the colloidal silver in the water.  They absolutely love it. 

I only put an eyedropper full in every 2 weeks or whenever I feel I want to.  A squirt here, squirt there and that is all I use, that is it. 

That says a lot about colloidal silver to me. The more I use it the more I love it." 

-- Denise

As you can see, a lot of people are finding colloidal silver to be a Godsend for sick fish, whether it be fungal infections, fin rot, or even wounds and injuries from fish fighting with each other.

Another Interesting Example

On the Fishlore.com website for aquarium hobbyists, I found the following interesting post:

Hello! I read an article about the effects of Colloidal silver on fish 16 inches or less in regards to scale health and healing injuries.

I read the levels regarding toxicity and it had to be quite high, so I figured if I added a capful to my 25 gal tank it wouldn't be a danger.

That was 2 days ago and I have noticed that my fish are all quite vibrant now.

My Blackskirt tetra is much darker then he was before, my guppy is a deep purple and brilliant peach, and my Danio's are heavily patterned now…

… It seems to make them happy, they look healthy and are eating, they are just alot more active and pretty to look at...

Has anybody else tried doing this? 

-- tatty_kassy

Naturally, the anti-colloidal silver crowd began to weigh in on the above comment, making negative remarks about the potential for the lady’s fish “turning blue,” and accusing the poster of unnecessarily “medicating” her aquarium fish. 

But she continued to insist that her fish seemed to be healthier and more active than ever after the one-time colloidal silver treatment.

Of course, what the colloidal silver naysayers don’t tell you is that for silver to harm freshwater fish, they have to be massively overdosed in it.  (See my rather caustic expose’ of one such study claiming to demonstrate silver’s toxicity to fish, at this link:  Environmentalists Claim Silver Is Toxic to Fathead Minnows.)

Indeed, as I’ve written previously, millions of tons of trace silver exists in nature, and has since the beginning of time – including an estimated two million tons of trace silver in the oceans of the world alone, and millions of tons more in freshwater lakes, streams, rivers, ponds, etc. 

And in spite of the millions of tons of supposedly “toxic” trace silver contained in the world’s oceans, the sea is literally teeming with wildlife, including uncountable trillions of microscopic living creatures ranging from tiny protozoa and other single-celled microorganisms all the way up the food chain to minnows, shrimp, sardines, larger fish, and even mammals such as porpoises and whales.

So silver is a natural part of the world’s major water habitats, and as long as silver from industrial waste isn’t poured into a waterway, the fish and other aquatic creatures seem to handle it quite well. 

Apparently, the Naysayers

Will Always Be With Us

Almost every tropical fish-related website I went to contained similar tales, which is to say, people posting that they’d used colloidal silver in their aquariums and their fish were doing unbelievably well as a result, and replies from other aquarium hobbyists that colloidal silver is “dangerous” and would likely harm their fish. 

But I couldn’t find even one documented case of colloidal silver actually causing harm to aquarium fish, as long as it was used within reason. 

One reader warned ominously, “Silver is toxic to freshwater fish!  You need to use commercial fish antibiotics, like everyone else.” 

I could hardly stop laughing at the above comment, considering the fact that the “commercial fish antibiotics” so frequently used by aquarium hobbyists are no different than human antibiotics. 

In other words, the most common fish antibiotics are also the most common human antibiotics, i.e., cephalaxon (Keflex), amoxicillin (Penicillin derivative), ciprofloxan (i.e., Cipro) and doxycycline.  And those antibiotic drugs are among some of the most toxic substances on the face of the earth. 

Yet the aquarium hobbyists who gleefully pour capsules full of those toxic antibiotic drugs into their fish tanks at the first sign of a fish infection, are the same ones who get their panties into a twist at the mere mention of using a little bit of colloidal silver in a fish tank.

Another colloidal silver naysayer wrote, “Colloidal silver kills bacteria indiscriminately.  That means it will kill both the good bacteria and the bad bacteria alike, leaving your fish more susceptible than over to sickness with no good bacteria to protect them.”

Of course, I can hardly believe some of the comments are from actual aquarium hobbyists, or even from adult human beings, because anyone with just a modicum of common sense knows that commercial antibiotic drugs also kill both good and bacteria alike. 

So apparently, according to the colloidal silver naysayers, you can’t use colloidal silver in a fish tank because it will kill all of the good and bad bacteria alike.  But you can use antibiotic drugs on your aquarium fish, because…well…because it’s what everyone else does.  And we all need to comply with what everyone else does, right?

Of course, the key to using antibiotic drugs on fish infections is to expose the disease-causing bacteria to the minimum concentration of the antibiotic that will kill it.  This is known as the “minimum inhibitory concentration,” or MIC.  By using the minimum amount possible, less damage is done to good bacteria. 

Another key to using antibiotic drugs in fish tanks is to treat the water afterwards with a good water treatment product containing the enzymes and beneficial bacteria fish need most, like this one. 

And guess what?  Those are the very same two keys to using colloidal silver against fish infections.  Go figure.

So why all of the screaming and hollering about using colloidal silver in fish tanks, from people who have no problem using commercial antibiotic drugs in fish tanks? 

Well, frankly, it’s because people tend to regurgitate negative information about colloidal silver without checking to make sure it’s true, first. 

If you want a truly good chuckle, go to your favorite online aquarium hobbyist forum and do a search for “colloidal silver.”  Then look at all of the negative comments from people claiming it will “turn your fish blue” if you use it.  The level of ignorance would be unbelievable, if you didn’t see it with your own eyes.

Another Interesting Example

Here’s another testimonial, this one from the MyFishTank.net site:

“As a user of Colloidal Silver on occasion I have often wondered if one could use it to treat sick fish but looking at what 'experts' mention on various forums I have always been hesitant to use it as a treatment

Then a few weeks ago my wife purchased 5x Albino Swords which I discovered to have fin rot a few hours after she had added them to the 200 Liter tank

On discovering this I immediately added a shop bought treatment to the water (all my other fishes fins were fine) but by the next morning the 1st Albino Sword turned into a floater

Realizing that there may be more than fin rot involved I moved the remaining 4x Albino Swords to the 10 Liter (just over 2 gallons) hospital tank

Added some sea salt and again some of the treatment. The condition of fins kept deteriorating and a fish a day (in the hospital tank) kept dying.

Down to the last fish I decided to add some Colloidal Silver (almost no fins left) 15ml to the 10 Liters as a last resort.

He was still alive the next morning. I added 15ml more Colloidal Silver for the next 2 days and he kept going (all together 45ml to 10 liters).

I realized that the 200 liter can also be infected and added 15ml to the 200 liter (way less than in the hospital tank) as a precaution.

Then looked around at what the 'experts' had to say regarding Colloidal Silver's effect on the bacterial colonies within the system.

There are a lot 'doomsday' warnings regarding Colloidal Silver as many claim it will destroy all the bacteria, good and bad…

… The sole surviving Albino Sword is happily back her new friends in the 200 liter tank. None of the other fish have gotten sick (or turned blue). The water is crystal clear.

I have even overfed for a few days an all is still normal which means that the Colloidal Silver attacks the bad bacteria rather than the good

I am adding around 5ml every time I do a water change just to ensure that the Colloidal Silver stays present be it at a very low PPM rate

Once can of course use it in a separate tank only when treatment is required

It appears that there is definitely a misconception regarding the usage of Colloidal Silver as a treatment in aquariums

And like with all treatments… remember to follow the correct protocols.”

So as you can see, once again, colloidal silver used in very low amounts can be a Godsend for aquarium hobbyists, in both healing infected or injured fish, as well as preventing infections from taking place when used in small amounts periodically.

One Last Example

Most of the online comments from people who have used colloidal silver to help cure infections in their aquariums were from people with freshwater tanks.  But here’s one from a salt water aquarium hobbyist who says it also works for salt water fish:

“Recently my Clown Fish had ‘ich’ bad . So I had some colloidal sliver laying around and decided to dose the fish with colloidal silver.

I took my two clown fish and put them in a 2 gallon bucket full with saltwater. I dosed 1 tablespoon of colloidal silver every two hours (4 times total )

24 HOURS later I checked the fish they still had some spots left on them but most of the parasite was gone.

So I then added the fish back into my display tank in within a day all the spots were gone and the fish look great.

Colloidal silver is a natural antibiotic and anti-parasitic once it is digested by the fish they have the silver in their system and it stays there and gets rid of all parasites.

Colloidal silver has become like my coral dip but for fish. I no longer have ‘ich’ because all new fish I get I let them sit in a colloidal silver based water for a couple hours and the ‘ich’ never develops when I added them to my display tank.”

Of course, it’s important to note that in saltwater aquariums containing live coral reefs, colloidal silver should never be used directly in the aquarium. 

That’s because live coral is made up largely of tiny microscopic living creatures known as polyps, along with algae which lives in symbiosis with the polyps. 

Unfortunately, colloidal silver can be toxic to both the tiny microscopic polyps and the algae that make up live coral reefs.  And even the small  amount of silver needed to heal fish of infections can be enough to cause harm to the live coral reefs. 

This is why the individual who wrote the above testimonial emphasized that he treats his infected salt water fish with colloidal silver, but only in a separate tank set aside specifically for that purpose. 

So there you have it.  Using colloidal silver in fish aquariums to help heal fish infections and external injuries is apparently pretty much like using it for humans:  It works, as long as you don’t overdose the fish on it by using too much.  A little bit goes a long way.

However, if you write about it on the online aquarium hobbyist forums, prepare to be bashed relentlessly for it by people who…of course…have never used it themselves, but who apparently have watched every stupid YouTube video ever made about the so-called “colloidal silver blue man.” 

A Few More Quick Tips

According to tropical fish enthusiasts, you should never forget that tropical fish infections are generally caused by imbalances in the aquarium habitat that allow infectious microbes to proliferate. 

So merely killing the infectious microbes – whether with colloidal silver or with standard fish antibiotic drugs – is not enough. 

The water in the aquarium also needs to be checked for imbalances (such as excess ammonia caused by rotting fish food and fish excrement), followed by a proper cleaning along with the use of products designed for correcting such imbalances. Your local aquarium shop can give you guidance for handling this correctly.

Also, as we discussed briefly above, many advocates of using colloidal silver to help cure tropical fish infections say you should put infected fish into a smaller “hospital tank” while they’re being treated. 

That way, the infected fish won’t infect the others in the community tank.  And you can take care of any chemical imbalances in the community tank before returning your healed fish from the “hospital tank.”

This will help prevent the healed fish from becoming re-infected when you return him to the community tank after he’s been healed in the “hospital tank.”

How to Make Your Own Colloidal Silver

Colloidal silver is available at just about any well-stocked health food store in America.  Unfortunately, it’s a bit on the expensive side, costing between $20 and $30 for a tiny, four-ounce bottle.

But there’s good news:  With a brand new Micro-Particle Colloidal Silver Generator from The Silver Edge, you can make your own high-quality colloidal silver for less than 36 cents a quart.

Yes, that’s right -- less than 36 cents a quart!

In fact, at normal health food store prices, a quart of colloidal silver would usually cost you as much as $240.  But you can make that same quart for less than 36 cents with a Micro-Particle Colloidal Silver Generator from The Silver Edge. 

In other words, compared to health food store prices for colloidal silver, your very first one-quart batch of micro-particle colloidal silver actually pays for the entire cost the generator. 

Do you know of any other health product that literally pays for itself the very first time you use it?

4 Simple Steps to

Colloidal Silver-Making Perfection!

 What’s more, colloidal silver is so simple to make at home, anyone who can use a coffee pot has all the skill needed to make colloidal silver.  Let me demonstrate for you how amazingly simple it is:

1.) Just plug the two pure .999 fine silver rods into the two jacks in the bottom of the generator box, one on each side of the bubbler tube.

  

2.)  Sit the generator box on top of a one-quart glass jar full of pure steam-distilled water, so that the two silver rods and the bubbler tube are immersed in the water.

  

3.) Set the handy appliance timer for three hours, and plug it into any convenient grounded household electrical outlet.

  

4.) Plug the generator into the timer and then turn the timer wheel clockwise until you hear the generator start bubbling. The generator will shut off automatically after three hours.

 It’s really that easy! You just “Set it, and forget it.” And you get a perfect batch of high-quality micro-particle colloidal silver every time! 

When you’re finished, you’ll have a full quart of high-quality micro-particle colloidal silver.  And you can make quart after quart for the rest of your life, for less than 36 cents each!

Indeed, the set of pure .999 fine silver wire that comes with your generator is enough to make over $24,000 worth of colloidal silver (see here)!

Why should you ever again pay $20 to $30 for a tiny, four-ounce bottle of colloidal silver at the health food store, when you can make your own superior-quality micro-particle colloidal silver for just pennies per quart?

Almost FREE, for the Rest of Your Life!

Obviously, having the ability to make your own high-quality micro-particle colloidal silver for only a few pennies per quart is about as close as you’ll ever get to having "free" colloidal silver for the rest of your life, any time you or a family member, friend or loved one needs it. 

And because the silver particles produced by this amazing breakthrough in colloidal silver-making technology are as low as .8 nm – a fraction of a single nanometer – their effectiveness against colonies of pathogenic microbes is astonishing. 

Perhaps that’s why so many thousands upon thousands of people absolutely rave over the effectiveness of their homemade micro-particle colloidal silver, as you can see at this web page full of real-life colloidal silver success stories. 

Discover How Easy It Is…

If you’d like to learn more about making your own high-quality colloidal silver for just pennies per quart, you can…

• Read how unbelievably simple it is to make your own high-quality colloidal silver for less than 36 cents a quart, here. 

• Learn why the Micro-Particle Colloidal Silver Generator is the world’s #1 best-selling colloidal silver generator, here. 

• Find out how to save a whopping $100 on a brand new Micro-Particle Colloidal Silver Generator, here. 

Meanwhile, I’ll be back next week with another great article on colloidal silver….

Yours for the safe, sane and responsible use of colloidal silver,

Steve Barwick, author
The Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual

Helpful Links:

FREE Colloidal Silver Safe Dosage Report

Colloidal Silver Secrets Group on Facebook

Make Your Own Colloidal Silver for Pennies

.999 Pure Silver Wire for Making Colloidal Silver

Subscribe to the Colloidal Silver Secrets Ezine

Videos on Making and Using Colloidal Silver

Real-Life Colloidal Silver Success Stories

Colloidal Silver Update (News & Views)

The Ultimate Colloidal Silver Manual

The Colloidal Silver Secrets Video

Colloidal Silver Cures MRSA

Colloidal Silver Kills Viruses

Colloidal Silver Secrets blog

Meet Steve Barwick

                                                                                                                                                 

Important Note and Disclaimer:  The contents of this Ezine have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.  Information conveyed herein is from sources deemed to be accurate and reliable, but no guarantee can be made in regards to the accuracy and reliability thereof.  The author, Steve Barwick, is a natural health journalist with over 30 years of experience writing professionally about natural health topics.  He is not a doctor.  Therefore, nothing stated in this Ezine should be construed as prescriptive in nature, nor is any part of this Ezine meant to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice.  Nothing reported herein is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.  The author is simply reporting in journalistic fashion what he has learned during the past 17 years of journalistic research into colloidal silver and its usage.  Therefore, the information and data presented should be considered for informational purposes only, and approached with caution.  Readers should verify for themselves, and to their own satisfaction, from other knowledgeable sources such as their doctor, the accuracy and reliability of all reports, ideas, conclusions, comments and opinions stated herein.  All important health care decisions should be made under the guidance and direction of a legitimate, knowledgeable and experienced health care professional.  Readers are solely responsible for their choices.  The author and publisher disclaim responsibility and/or liability for any loss or hardship that may be incurred as a result of the use or application of any information included in this Ezine. 

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