What Is Stress Coat for Fish?

Stress Coat is produced by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals and is a liquid formula used to make tap water safe for fish, such as marine and tropical fish, that live in fresh and saltwater aquariums. A drop of the formula into the fish tank removes harmful components in water such as chlorine, chloramines and ammonia from the water. It also neutralizes heavy materials like copper and zinc. The product may also be used with water gardens and ponds.

  1. Stress

    • Besides making the water a safer place for fish, Stress Coat also helps a fish in stress. A fish experiences stress every time it's netted, handled, transported or it fights with another fish. That stress forces the fish to lose some of the essential electrolytes located on a its skin. This can lead to suppression of the immune system and ultimately an increased likelihood that the fish will catch some sort of disease. A fish's first line of defense is the slime coat, otherwise known as epithelial mucus. Stress Coat will help to replace the the slime coating a fish loses during stressful times.

    Aloe Vera

    • Stress Coat contains aloe vera, a plant that has been known to help with burns and wounds experienced by humans. But it's the aloe vera in the formula that helps to produce the synthetic slime coating the fish needs. However, the healing leaf substance also helps to protect a fish against disease-causing organisms. In addition, aloe vera helps to heal torn fins and skin wounds.

      Aloe vera contains a high percentage of mucopolysaccharides, a substance identified as helper in the healing process. Other substances known to help involve glycoproteins Aloctin A and Aloctin B.

    Use

    • Stress Coat should be used when a fish owner is setting up an aquarium, changing or adding water or adding more fish to the tank. About 10 milliliters of Stress Coat should be dropped into the tank for every 10 gallons of water used. Stress Coat will not harm aquatic plants and won't interfere with water-test kits.

    Healing Experiment

    • Aquarium Pharmaceuticals completed a study using and splitting up 180 goldfish to see how the fish healed after coming into contact with Stress Coat in a 40-day experiment. The study focused on slime coating and how fish who lose slime coating after experiencing stress have wounds that do not heal. Examiners found that aloe vera helped heal wounds faster and reduce the wound size when compared to untreated fish.

    Stress Response

    • The same study also evaluated stress in fish and how much slime coating a fish loses. This study used 12 goldfish. The fish appeared to bounce back from stress response faster with the use of Stress Coat than fish not exposed to the formula. The study showed that the goldfish in water containing Stress Coat kept about 40 percent more of their natural slime coating in comparison to untreated fish.