Ich in planted aquarium

[Courtney8526]

I decided to get some plants to put in my 5 gallon Monday. Well, last night I noticed ich on my dwarf platies, one of which I got a few days before the plants has it the worst so I'm sure that's where it came from. I already have some med which is coppersafe and on the box it says that it can be harmful to plants. I then took the plants out and they are just now in a bowl. I'm afraid to put them in another aquarium as I read at one place on the internet that the plants can carry the disease for up to two weeks. I also added salt and will be raising the temperature. Any advice on what to do with the plants? When should I put them back in? Any other tips would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Zagz]

Skip the meds entirely. Raise the temps to 87-88 F and add extra aeration. Keep the temps up for 2 weeks after the last spot of ich is gone. Heat alone will kill the ich without damaging your plants. Meds are hard on the fish, plants and the beneficial bacteria.

 

[Courtney8526]

Thanks for the advice! My newest platy died after the first day. When I woke up this morning, the betta didn't look so great. I have only seen a couple of spots on him though. I guess I'll just have to wait and see what happens. I've also been doing water changes every other day. Hopefully they both make it. My platy seems to be doing fine though.

 

[bosk1]

Thanks for the advice! My newest platy died after the first day. When I woke up this morning, the betta didn't look so great. I have only seen a couple of spots on him though. I guess I'll just have to wait and see what happens. I've also been doing water changes every other day. Hopefully they both make it. My platy seems to be doing fine though.

Problem is, it can get into their gills and kill them even thought you don't see many spots. That could be one explanation.

 

[Zagz]

Agreed the ich could be in the gills and not visible. Increasing the temps will kill the ich and prevent an infestation.

 

[Courtney8526]

I'm down to just my one dwarf platy now. I haven't seen spots on him in a couple of days and he seems to be healthy. The temp has been at 86 for almost a week now. I couldn't get it to 87 like you said to do but I guess 86 is better than my normal 78, right?

 

[Zagz]

As long as the reading is true, 86 will work. The problem is if the temp is actually 84 instead of 86, ich will in fact increase and not die off.