Please help with Ich, first time and I cant get temp to 86

[nickf]

So I have ich. It started with my gold fish and she died, I think she was sick to begin with and the ich did her in, so this weird slimy white stuff was in one of her gills and that was that. Then I saw the white specs on my giant danio and my red wag tail. I tried to raise the temp to 86 but I couldn't get there. I have a 30g with a 200w heater. So I kept it at 82 (max temp) and removed the carbon in the filter and started the Aqueon Ich treatment, but I ran out after 2 applications and the store didn't have any more, so I switched to tetra ich tabs. Tetra says no need to raise the temp, so back down to 72. I have been through two boxes of the tetra ich guard and i still got ich. My bala shark is not doing good at all. He is covered in white spots siting in the corner and now it looks like his rear fin, top and bottom is dissapearing, which now I think he has fin rot also.

What do I need to do? Should I stop all the meds and just get another heater and do the heat method? Would ich make his fin disappear?

30g, 200w heater. air stone, Aqueaon 30 filter, water tested 0,0,5
1 anglefish
1 giant danio
4 neon tetras
1 rainbow shark
1 red wag tail
1 bala shark
2 glow fish


Thanks
Nick F

 

[BBradbury]

Hello nick...

The Ich parasites just have to live out their lives. Raising the water temperature will make them age faster, just like it does your fish. The easiest and possibly the best thing to do is keep the tank water very clean with a couple of large water changes every week and do a good job of vacuuming the bottom material, most of the parasites will be living there. Just keep doing this until the fish recover. You can add a bit of standard aquarium salt, about a teaspoon or two to every 5 gallons of replacement water. But be careful, most aquarium plants don't tolerate salt very well.

B

 

[em1981ma]

Try Melafix, it will help with the finrot and aid repairing the fin, its also a natural medication and helps a host of fungus and bacterial infection. I'm suprised your ich hasnt cleared up with medication. I had one bout of it and i used Interpret Anti Whitespot and my fish have never had it since. Fish can build up an immunity to it

 

[em1981ma]

Finrot is likely to be a secondary infection, caused by the ich.

 

[abbyn]

I use life guard for ich it kills them also if you put aquarium salt and things like stress coat in the water it can help the fish deal with it better