uh oh. ich?

[Evo8]

Ok so I just added a coral beauty and lawnmower blenny to my tank.within the last few days ....I came home today and fear my coral beauty has some ich on her..I dont see it in my clowns firefish, or lawnmower..yet..ill keep an eye on her..how do you treat this in a sw tank? Inhave corals to btw.

 

[erichm20]

You have to get it into a ht and treat with hypo salinity or copper.

 

[Mebbid]

This is pretty much the bible of treating marine ich.

Marine Ich/Cryptocaryon irritans - A Discussion of this Parasite and the Treatment Options Available, Part I by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com

I made the same mistake as you did and paid for it in spades. It's much safer to QT everything before putting it in the DT and is the only way to endure that there isn't a repeat performance of ich in a tank.

 

[Evo8]

This is pretty much the bible of treating marine ich.

Marine Ich/Cryptocaryon irritans - A Discussion of this Parasite and the Treatment Options Available, Part I by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com

I made the same mistake as you did and paid for it in spades. It's much safer to QT everything before putting it in the DT and is the only way to endure that there isn't a repeat performance of ich in a tank.

I unfortunately don't have a qt tank...its only a 30 so I only had a few fish going in..but it's defiantly ich I seen a spot on my blenny this morning..I started dosing with garlic extreme in the tank water and food this morning..do I dose the tank water itself Dailey? Any other suggestions?...I'm gonna try this stuff my kordon says its reef safe

 

[Mebbid]

Garlic is a gimmick that the aquarium companies are pushing on people. All it will do is potentially assist in treating some internal parasites.

As for the kordon stuff, I've never heard of an effective in tank reef treatment before so I would be interested to see if it works. I would however suggest you look at it with conservative expectations.

 

[Evo8]

Absolutely I don't have a choice but to try it right now! Lol. There's a lot of mixed reviews on it..I found a lot of people who swear by it..and then some people who just knock it..I know the cause of the stress..so that's not the problem..I added two fish within like 2-3 days..which I also found d out I shouldnt do..especially in a smaller tank..my bad..hopefully I don't pay for it...the store I got my blenny for had ich in one of there tanks..but swore it was on a different system...I doubt it now..oh well..I'll let you guys know how it works!. Oh and the garlic extreme came with my tank so I figured why not try

 

[Evo8]

Now not saying it's the garlic..but I came home and the coral beauty looks better..not as many spots..so I'll keep an eye out...gonna dose the inch stuff today and do a water change tomorrow so well see

 

[erichm20]

Great news but did you read the article mebid posted? Ich will be on the fish then go back to the sand to multiply and then go back to the free swimming stage then back on the fish- and repeat. I hope the additive works and you may also consider a uv sterilizer.

I also think 30 may be pushing it for the coral beauty LA has its min at 70.

I talked to a marine biologist at my lfs on the ich subject and he is a firm believer it exists in every tank and is only a problem for fish that have low immune system or stressed so just do what you can to keep stress low- keep lights down and lower flow during acclimation period- and you may be alright.

That said I would get a qt for future even a 10g w all the components is like $50 from Walmart.


Good luck!

 

[tonedogz]

That is absolutely the worst advice I ever heard. Ich does not exist in every tank and you don't just turn the lights down low and hope for the best. I don't think he's much of a marine biologist I'd check for his diploma.

 

[huma-huma]

That is absolutely the worst advice I ever heard. Ich does not exist in every tank and you don't just turn the lights down low and hope for the best. I don't think he's much of a marine biologist I'd check for his diploma.

Ich has been related to the comoon cold in people, so its very possible for it to be in alomst every tank (short of those that fully qt and preventatively treat for it). secondly, as to the lowering flow and turning lights down, hes talking in regards to acclimation. turning lights down or off and reducing flow def does help in reducing stress. if theres one thing to learn quickly in the sw hobby is that reducing stress reduces outbreaks.

 

[bribo12]

A uv sterilizer will do nothing against ich. Just to throw that out there. Quarantine is really the only way to help prevent it.

 

[Evo8]

Ive had freshwater for years..and I am a believer that ich is present in every tank..even if you fully qt your fish what about the bacteria in your LR you don't think that houses any parasites or bad bacteria? I believe this because when I set my FW cichlid tank up I had no problems for 8-9 months before I saw an ich infection.. And no I had no new additions in that time period. They simply got stressed BC. I changed both my filters at once and saw an ammonia spike.

 

[Evo8]

I have a buddy with a qt. I'm gonna see if I can throw my next one in there for about 3-4 weeks .. I only have one more fish to add.

 

[bribo12]

I have a buddy with a qt. I'm gonna see if I can throw my next one in there for about 3-4 weeks .. I only have one more fish to add.

Good luck! Hopefully that helps

 

[Evo8]

I'll keep you guys posted on how the treatment works for me..I'll sure know on a few weeks if it returns! Lol

 

[carey]

Just to clarify some things said above, I personally DO NOT believe that ich is in every tank. I have 8 tanks going right now and have never had ich. Some of mytanks are several years old and still, no ich. It has to be brought in somehow and fish are the way it gets into a system.

I hope your buddy's qt will work for you, you caught it early which is a great thing, it will increase your chances of success.

Good luck!

 

[Mebbid]

Ive had freshwater for years..and I am a believer that ich is present in every tank..even if you fully qt your fish what about the bacteria in your LR you don't think that houses any parasites or bad bacteria? I believe this because when I set my FW cichlid tank up I had no problems for 8-9 months before I saw an ich infection.. And no I had no new additions in that time period. They simply got stressed BC. I changed both my filters at once and saw an ammonia spike.

Ich is a parasite that needs a living fish host to survive. It usually infects the gills before anything else which means it can live relatively undetected for quite a long time before being discovered by the visual bumps on the skin. It's a proven scientifically determined fact that certain things have a 100% mortality rate to ich. This includes medication, heat, and lack of food (fallow period) for tanks. If present in an aquarium and one of these measures are taken to kill the parasite then it is gone from that tank until reintroduced through some means.

Your cichlid tank could also have easily been cross contaminated from a different tank.

 

[erichm20]

That is absolutely the worst advice I ever heard. Ich does not exist in every tank and you don't just turn the lights down low and hope for the best. I don't think he's much of a marine biologist I'd check for his diploma.

Whoa easy there killer!

I just wanted to share what I heard from someone I consider to be a reputable source and, as huma clarified, I didn't say anything about lowering flow and lights to cure Ich but rather to reduce stress... I already posted how he could cure ich- hypo or copper in a hospital tank.

As for the UV sterlizer I was reading a thread between two hardcore aquariasts on reef central and one mentioned the use of a sterilizer to kill the parasite while in the free swimming stage- not as a way to cure it but to take whatever measures available.

 

[TheTodd]

I talked to a marine biologist at my lfs on the ich subject and he is a firm believer it exists in every tank and is only a problem for fish that have low immune system or stressed so just do what you can to keep stress low...

Good luck!

I disagree that it exists in every tank. If I set up a tank, use my own RODI or RO water, use dry sand, base rock, etc. then I take a captive-bred fish or I QT all fish and have my QT hypo, how can Ich be present? It does not magically appear out of thin air. Most people do not do that, so it very well could be present in a lot of systems.

I do agree with it being more of a problem for fish with lower immune systems and that less stress is good. That really goes for a lot of saltwater ailments. That is why people talk about putting fish in appropriate sized tanks. Small tanks cause stress. Aggressive and/or territorial tankmates can cause stress. Out of whack parameters can cause stress.

 

[huma-huma]

dont forget to give thought to a dormant phase. also i would be hesitant to state that any treatment (outside of hypo and copper) has a 100% mortality rate against ich.... its an extremely resiliant strain that will also at some point, form a resistance to copper and/or hypo