Copper

[BettWalker]

My Coral Beauty & Regal Tang have ICH and since I have a FOLR tank, I used Copper Medication. When I top off water each morning, should I use water with copper added until the fish are well, or should I use regular water? Is Copper like salt -- does it stay in the tank or does it evaporate along with the water?
Thanks,

 

[fishfreek]

Have you used copper yet??????

I strongly advise not using copper even if you have a FO tank. Copper will kill snails and maybe even hermits (not sure). Plus once it is in the tank its almost impossible to remove it so that you can add corals later.

If you have not used it yet then please hold off. Try garlic oil vs copper treatments. Soak the food in garlic oil and then feed this to the fish. If you can get a 10 gal tank from a local pet shop then you can make that your med tank and dose copper in there.

 

[BettWalker]

Thanks for the advice. I've already put a copper medication in the tank. I was so discouraged and frustrated at the moment, I just didn't care. Now I do. Guess you can tell that patience isn't my strong trait. Sooo can you tell me about the replacement water now that the dirty deed has been done.

 

[fishfreek]

i have never used copper treaments but i would assume its like salt. Since its a mineral and can not evaporate like water can adding additional copper every day with the replacment water would be increaseing the copper amount in the tank just like adding salt with each top off.


The reason its so hard to remove is that everything (sylicon, LR, substrate) will absorb some of the copper treatment. It will then slowly leach back out into the tank for a very long time after the copper in general has been removed via water changes.

 

[BettWalker]

Aaron, thanks for your reply and concern. I know it was foolish of me because I did know that it was not a good thing to put copper into my tank. It was just one of those mornings when all was going wrong -- not only with my tank. I do these kind of stupid things.

 

[snake]

So if someone have used copper based medication, will never ever be able to put some inverts in the tank ? let's say starfish, anemones, feather dusters. does anybody knows or has been succesful lowering copper levels somehow ? les's say using granulated activated carbom or making water changes.

 

[fishfreek]

There is a sponge that you can get that is "supposed" to help absorb the copper that would be in the tank.

The problem is you can not get rid of it with simple water changes like you can remove ammonia or nitrate.

The problem is copper will be absorbed by the LR, LS and even the silicon thats in the tank. Then as the copper levels in the tank fall below a particular point the copper will leach out of these items into the tank thus rasing the copper levels.

With dilagence I would suppose you could rid your tank of copper but its alot easier to just not use it.

 

[BettWalker]

Maybe, one good thing I did (not knowing any better), I left the skimmer running during time I had added the Copper. Hopefully, it was pulling most of the Copper out. Yesterday I went over to Gainesville and picked up some "Kick-Ich" to start treating tank.

At least, the Tang and Clown are eating good and swimming around the tank as if nothing is wrong. I can't see any spots on the Clown, but the Tang still looks pretty awful. The Angel looks some better, but is hiding in its cave most of the time. BTW, the Turbo Snail I have in the tank is still moving about. Hopefully, this is a good sign.

I'm still discouraged, but hanging in.
Bett