Help ich spreading through tank!!

[Tifta]

I set up an aquarium not to long ago and cycled the water and bought some fish. I noticed on Tuesday that two of my Kissing fish had ich on them so I went to the store and picked up some coppersafe. I put that into my 55 gallon tank reading the amount I was suppose to put in. I then gradually got my temp up to 83 - 84 took out my carbon filters. I already had aquarium salt in my tank before I got my fish. Now it's Friday, and the two kissing fish still have it and now it has spread to my other fish. I checked my water to see if levels were normal and everything was, so wasn't sure if i should do a water change since i have the medicine in. How long does it take for it to show if the medication and all is working? I have no idea what to do next, and it is stressing me to know my fish are not good! Please Help!!

[dskidmore]

If you perform a water change, simply dose the new water with the medicine according to it's volume.

Most ick treatments don't kill the parasite on the fish, but rather kill it in the part of the lifecycle where it reproduces. Keep up the treatments. If you're doing it right, the parasites will naturally drop off when they are ready to reproduce, but the medicine will kill all the babies before they can re-infect the fish.

How long has this tank been cycled? What method did you use? What are your current Ammonia/Nitrite/Nitrate readings?

[Tifta]

Tips for Cycling Your New Aquarium - The First Tank Guide - Getting Your Fish Tank Up and Running with Minimal Headaches this is the method i took to cycle. About 2 months of cycling. I used other fish from my ten gallon tank while i waited. I did do a Ammonia/Nitrite/Nitrate reading and looked on my paper which read normal. I don't know exact reading now. Is it normal though to be treating for 4 days and then have it spread to other fish?

[An t-iasg]

Heat (increasing the water temmperature) is the best way to treat ich. Some of those ich meds may stain your tank silicone, plus they are not effective at all stages of the ich as explained below.

The ich parasite has three life cycles or stages: on the fish (the only stage we can see), free-floating in the water, and in the gravel. The ich falls off the fish, floats/swims through the water, and falls to the gravel to reproduce. When the ich is on the fish or in the gravel, it encapsulates itself so that meds are not effective. The only stage that meds are effective is the free-floating stage. However, heat is effective at all the stages. Raise the temperature to 87 or 88 degrees and keep it there for two weeks after you see the last spot. This extra time is important to make sure all the reproduction activity is finished.

Heat is also effective at treating the whole tank. Removing one or two fish to treat won't help eliminate the ich that is in the water or in the gravel.

Ich reproduces rapidly at 85-86 degrees. As you move through that emperature range, you may see an increase in spots. Try not to linger in that temperature range too long. The ich begins to die at 87-88 degrees, so try to reach that temperature range as quickly as you can without stressing the fish. As a starting point, raise the temperature one degree every 6-8 hours.

I would do a water change and run some carbon to remove the coppersafe. Generally, treating with multiple treatments at the same time (heat while coppersafe is still in the tank) can be stressful. Remove the carbon and then begin the heat treatment. For a 55 gallon tank, you may need a second heater to get the temps up. Also, you can do a small water change (10-20%) every day while you're treating for ich. You can vaccuum the gravel gently also. The water change and gravel vac will help remove some of the ich in the free-floating stage and in the reproductive stage in the gravel.

[JohnPaul]

Originally Posted by Tifta

Is it normal though to be treating for 4 days and then have it spread to other fish?

Yes, typically when dealing with ich you need to treat for several weeks before you see the complete elimination of the ich. The complete life cycle for the ich organism is around 16 days (varies a bit based on temperature; the higher the temp, the shorter the life cycle). During that 16 day life cycle, there is only about a 3 day period (the tomite stage) where the organism is actually able to be killed by a chemical treatment; during all the other stages (trophozoite, cyst, adult) it is essentially immune from chemical poisoning. Any treatment regimine that does not treat for at least 16 days (maybe a little less with elevated temps) is likely not going to kill all of the organisms in your tank, which means you are very likely to see a relapse again soon.

[Tifta]

Having my water temp that high is that going to kill my fish? Or do u think they will be alright? I don't think it will be a problem to get my water that high, i just worry about my fish not being able to take the heat. Rosy barbs, Parrot fish, Gouramis and a redtail shark. If you think they can stand the water temp then I will do this in a heart beat. I love my fish!

[rich311k]

The temps will not bother those fish. Raise it slowly so they are not shocked. Leave the temperatures elevated for two weeks after all signs of the ich is gone. It would be a good idea to up the aeration in the tank.

[An t-iasg]

Yes, they will be fine. Just increase (and then after two weeks, decrease) the temperature gradually to reduce stress. Another thing that helps - increase your aeration to the tank. Warmer water holds less oxygen. The gouramis will be ok with this since they can get oxygen from the air. To get more oxygen for your other fish, you need to make the water a little bit turbulent to keep the room air oxygen in contact with the water. This is pretty simple - lower the water level in the tank so that the return water from the filter makes a splashing effect. Or you could add a small water pump to stir up the water surface a bit. These actions increase the oxygen level in the water by bringing more water surface/area in contact with the air.

[Tifta]

So would lowering tank water for splash from filter should be enough for oxygen? I don't have an air pump. I can go out and buy one if it is going to be better. Also is adding some aquarium salt going to help at all or should i keep that out of the water? I heard from a few sites that aquarium salt helped the process. I will try and get the coppersafe out of the water to by putting the carbon back in.

Thanks you guys for all your help! I just want happy fish.
I know i got that ich from petsmart because when i went back to the store, the tank with the kissing fish in it were covered in it and some were already dead. I sure wish people took better care of fish at stores. :/

[rich311k]

Yes lowering the water level will do the trick. With the fish you have adding salt would be Ok and could help speed up the process. A teaspoon a gallon is a good place to start. Just like the temperature change, be sure to go slowly.