Treating Ich

[trickshot3102]

Hey everyone I hope everyone is having a great weekend! Well, I found ich on my balloon Molly and I already started a med and heat treatment. My question is, I have a goldfish in that tank and I was wondering if it would be ok to bring it up to 86 until the ich is gone? How long until the ich goes away? How long should I keep the temp up? Any advice would be awesome, this is my first time treating any illness thanks!!

 

[HeatherW]

10 days for the heat and the ick, but I don't know about your goldfish. aren't they cold water fish? you need a cold water person to help you on that one. I wouldn't think you would mix the two but maybe I am wrong. hopefully someone can help on the goldfish part.

good luck!

OH, you might want to post about the goldfish in the title so a cold water person will hop on your thread

 

[trickshot3102]

10 days for the heat and the ick, but I don't know about your goldfish. aren't they cold water fish? you need a cold water person to help you on that one. I wouldn't think you would mix the two but maybe I am wrong. hopefully someone can help on the goldfish part.

good luck!

OH, you might want to post about the goldfish in the title so a cold water person will hop on your thread

Thank you for the fast reply goldfish are cold water fish, but I keep my tank at a steady 74-75 (perfect for goldfish and my tropical fish). But now with the heat ich treatment, I want want to be sure he's ok. I think that he will be fine for the 10 days. Just for clarification, I should bring up the temp to 86?

 

[HeatherW]

well I just posted a nice long reply and it got lost... so here I go again. two links I have for you. first - good news on the goldfish. looks like he should be ok

Can goldfish tolerate 86 degree Fahrenheit ,as i need to raise temperature for white spot attack? - Yahoo Answers

there was a goldfish girl on here - maybe she will chime in for you.

second here is a great article on ick and the heat thing

Understanding and Treating Ich or White Spot

and an excerpt on the temp - keep it above 85 for 10 days
The second approach is to actually destroy the organism with heat, and can be combined with the salt treatment below, but not with meds. The data I studied (including a report by the Southern Regional Aquaculture Center, which is currently archived here) suggests that most strains of Ich cannot reproduce at temperatures above 85ºF. To use this treatment approach, slowly (no more than 1 or 2 degrees per hour) raise the temperature to 86ºF, while maintaining strong continuous surface agitation to oxygenate the water. This is extremely important because water holds less O2 at higher temperatures. (This is why meds should not be used in conjunction with high temp – most Ich treatment products also reduce oxygen levels. Less available oxygen, combined with the respiration difficulties an infected fish is already faced with, could be fatal.) You can angle powerheads up toward the surface, or lower your water level to get a little extra splash from your filter return. As with any treatment, observe your fish closely for signs of stress (labored breathing, erratic behavior) and reduce the temperature slowly if necessary. (A note to the wary; my Malawi haps and clown loaches endured a temperature of 88ºF for 10 days with apparent ease – I never detected the slightest hint of distress – and the Ich was completely wiped out. One article that I read suggests the temperature be raised to 90ºF!)

good luck!

 

[trickshot3102]

well I just posted a nice long reply and it got lost... so here I go again. two links I have for you. first - good news on the goldfish. looks like he should be ok

Can goldfish tolerate 86 degree Fahrenheit ,as i need to raise temperature for white spot attack? - Yahoo Answers

there was a goldfish girl on here - maybe she will chime in for you.

second here is a great article on ick and the heat thing

Understanding and Treating Ich or White Spot

and an excerpt on the temp - keep it above 85 for 10 days
The second approach is to actually destroy the organism with heat, and can be combined with the salt treatment below, but not with meds. The data I studied (including a report by the Southern Regional Aquaculture Center, which is currently archived here) suggests that most strains of Ich cannot reproduce at temperatures above 85ºF. To use this treatment approach, slowly (no more than 1 or 2 degrees per hour) raise the temperature to 86ºF, while maintaining strong continuous surface agitation to oxygenate the water. This is extremely important because water holds less O2 at higher temperatures. (This is why meds should not be used in conjunction with high temp – most Ich treatment products also reduce oxygen levels. Less available oxygen, combined with the respiration difficulties an infected fish is already faced with, could be fatal.) You can angle powerheads up toward the surface, or lower your water level to get a little extra splash from your filter return. As with any treatment, observe your fish closely for signs of stress (labored breathing, erratic behavior) and reduce the temperature slowly if necessary. (A note to the wary; my Malawi haps and clown loaches endured a temperature of 88ºF for 10 days with apparent ease – I never detected the slightest hint of distress – and the Ich was completely wiped out. One article that I read suggests the temperature be raised to 90ºF!)

good luck!

Wow, I cannon thank you enough for doing all this research for me I think I will bring the temp up to 86 and see what happens . So far the goldfish seems to be doing fine in 80 degrees, so maybe 86 wont be so bad. I just cant wait for the ich to be gone! So far it hasn't spread to other fish, it is only on my Balloon Molly. Because higher temps speed up the ich life cycle, could it spread before it gets better?

 

[trickshot3102]

update

Wow, I cannon thank you enough for doing all this research for me I think I will bring the temp up to 86 and see what happens . So far the goldfish seems to be doing fine in 80 degrees, so maybe 86 wont be so bad. I just cant wait for the ich to be gone! So far it hasn't spread to other fish, it is only on my Balloon Molly. Because higher temps speed up the ich life cycle, could it spread before it gets better?

Well, I just set the heater to 86 and I added extra aeration. I will be monitoring them very carefully

 

[HeatherW]

yes, it can definitely get worse before it gets better. If you read the lifecyle part of that article you will see that there is a small window where you can actually kill the ick. and it can be in the gills where you can't see it. the increased temp does two things in my opinion - speeds the cycle up (good because they are infected for less time) and then it will kill it. you can't help it - it is in your tank and you just have to wait it out for it to cycle through. Hopefully your fish are hardy and able to survive it.

 

[trickshot3102]

yes, it can definitely get worse before it gets better. If you read the lifecyle part of that article you will see that there is a small window where you can actually kill the ick. and it can be in the gills where you can't see it. the increased temp does two things in my opinion - speeds the cycle up (good because they are infected for less time) and then it will kill it. you can't help it - it is in your tank and you just have to wait it out for it to cycle through. Hopefully your fish are hardy and able to survive it.

I guess I have to be patient and wait for the ich to die off. Thank you for all the advice!