treating for ich - new fish?

[andreahp]

As of tomorrow I should be done treating my tank for ich (with Ich Attack). The bottle said to use it for 3-4 days after seeing the last spots. When I began using it Friday afternoon I hadn't seen a spot since probably that morning and it was gone when I got home from work. I am looking to get more danios and corys and wondered whether once I'm done with the meds whether I need to wait any longer to get more fish? Do the meds only treat what might have been hiding in the fish or also kill what was in the tank as well?

 

[tyspot1000]

I would wait 2 weeks before adding any fish, the Ich parasites life cycle is 2 weeks. In addition, you could raise the temp up to 86F to make sure that you kill all the Ich (Heat speeds up Ich's life cycle).

 

[andreahp]

I can't raise the temp because I have 2 danios in there and it's my understanding that they need cooler water - already have the tank at 78 so I'm concerned how they would handle that. Isn't the ich attack good enough?

 

[tyspot1000]

I can't raise the temp because I have 2 danios in there and it's my understanding that they need cooler water - already have the tank at 78 so I'm concerned how they would handle that. Isn't the ich attack good enough?

Yes it is, but I was just saying for extra precaution. What kind of danios do you have?

 

[andreahp]

2 zebras - I guess I'll just wait. At this point, I need to have a cycled tank ready for quarantine anyway so I'm planning on making a sponge filter to sit in my current tank for a few weeks. Do you think it would be safe to treat the tank another day or two or is less medication better?

 

[tyspot1000]

Unless you see the ich or any flashing, I wouldnt treat the tank extra. The zebra danios should do fine in 86F water.

 

[mudraker]

I always treat for at least a full week after spots disappear, especially if the water is under 86 degrees.

The parasite can only be killed during certain stages of the lifecycle and as it can hide in the gills, I would rather be safe than sorry.

Like ty said, I'd definately wait at least 2 weeks to add more fish.

I'm glad you have a QT tank for new arrivals. How long to do plan to QT new fish?

 

[andreahp]

I don't actually have a QT tank yet. I plan on getting a 10gal from Petsmart (can't find a used one on craigslist or freecycle in my area) and then making a sponge filter (found plenty of youtube videos on this). I was advised to let the sponge filter run a few weeks to accumulate the BB and then I can just put it into the new tank with de-chlorinated water. I plan to QT new fish for about 2 weeks because the fish that came with the ich showed signs within a week and an extra week is worth not having to watch more fish bite the dust. Also, if a new fish shows signs of ich in the QT tank, I begin treatment immediately right? Gosh, this ich stuff is like an nightmare when I'm new at this and all I want to do is see more fish in my tank!

 

[mudraker]

Well, you are on the right track for sure.

Definately always treat suspected ich right away.

Just something to think about: I used to do two week quarantines, but now do it for 4 full weeks.

Last summer I bought a lot of fish at once, did a 2 wk qt but the new fish and then put them into several different thanks because they appeared so healthy. The spots didn't show up until a week after I'd put them into the other tanks because the infestation was hiding in the gills. I then had 4 tanks with ich instead of just one.

Just my experience. I now really recommend a month of QT though I did 2 week QTs for years with no problems.

 

[OhNeil1969]

Hello andreahp.

I too have had to deal with ich and have a zebra danio. I raised the temperature to 86 with no ill effect on the danio. Raising the temp helps insure that you get all the ich out of your tank. During certain parts of ich's life cycle they are immune to meds. Raising the temp quickens that life cycle so that you can catch them when they are vulnerable to the meds. I read on the site referred to by the sticky in this forum that at certain low temps the ich life cycle can be as long as 6 weeks (albeit really low temps). The point being that if you don't raise temps you could be dealing with ich for a long time; time your fish may not have. In my experience, zebra danios can handle the increase in temp as long as it's done slowly. Besides, to my knowledge, there are very few freshwater tropical fish that actually "live" at 86 degrees. The temp raise is purely temporary and meant to aid your fish. In fact, the med I use (Kordon ICH Attack) recommends on the label to raise the temp to at least 86 while dosing.

Hope your fish get better!

 

[andreahp]

OK - so if raising the temp isn't bad for the danios, I feel better about doing this to get rid of the ich. If I don't see the parasites on the fish, how do I know at this point if they are vulnerable to meds? I raise the temp by a degree every hour right? How long do I keep it at 86? I am also using Ich Attack.

 

[tyspot1000]

The 1 degree per hour is correct. You would keep it for 1-2 weeks until you add fish. Even though you dont see the spots on the fish, that doesnt mean its gone. They can even be in there gills. By raising the temp should get rid of them.

 

[andreahp]

Ok with 1-2 weeks to go until I can be safe about the ich, I still need to wait until I have a filter ready to put in a QT tank. Would 2 weeks be sufficient or should I lower the temp after 2 weeks whether or not my QT tank is ready?

 

[tyspot1000]

You can turn the temp down, but I would wait till your filter for the QT is cycled (so that you can QT the new fish) before adding any fish.

 

[OhNeil1969]

I'm not too sure I understand your last post. I read where you were planning to get a qt tank for new fish and that is a great idea. But the treatment of your ich outbreak really is a separate event. Are you concerned that you'll be transferring ich to your qt tank with the sponge filter you're cycling now? I've been running a thread in the General Discussion forum and have been advised that your qt tank really will be a temporary set-up (I was actually looking for a way to maintain a permanent one without allowing the beneficial bacteria to die). Chances are you'll be dosing your qt tank with meds anyway so I really wouldn't worry about it. I like the idea of using the Kordon Ich Attack from day one in a qt tank. As I understand it, a fish that is not showing signs of ich may still be carrying it. So if you don't treat for it while they are in qt, you'll still run the risk of infecting your main tank (no proof - just my opinion after careful consideration).

As a side note, I never like to quarantine a fish with ich and treat JUST that fish. If one fish has ich that's proof that ich is in your tank - period. I always treat the whole tank for ich once it's found. The only time I might remove a fish infected with ich is to give it a salt bath to help it survive while the meds are working (from what I've learned, a salt bath will help a fish breathe - especially one that has ich in it's gills).

Finally, just remember that when you no longer see any white spots on your fish you'll be well on your way to killing them off. The reason you'll keep the temp up for several days after that is to get any ich that may still be in their "protected" part of the life cycle (the ones you won't be able to see).

 

[andreahp]

I went to Petsmart yesterday and while the woman there didn't have any experience dealing with ich, she said their guidelines for raising temps for a danio are no higher than 82 degrees - I suppose going as high as that would be better than keeping my tank at 78? I saw another white spot yesterday on one fish in the morning but it was gone as of that afternoon so the meds are keeping it at bay I suppose.

OhNeil I'm glad you raised the question about running a new filter in my current tank for QT purposes considering the ich problem ( lol ), but if I finish the course of meds & wait 2 weeks (& no fish get spots), would it be safe at that point to run a new filter for the QT tank or should I just set up the QT tank and cycle it like I would any other tank?

 

[Tim Wheatley]

I would treat for longer than that. It occured to me that they may be telling you to only treat for that long so that you see it works, but when it returns have to go buy more. I would just treat for longer and be done with it.

 

[OhNeil1969]

OhNeil I'm glad you raised the question about running a new filter in my current tank for QT purposes considering the ich problem ( lol ), but if I finish the course of meds & wait 2 weeks (& no fish get spots), would it be safe at that point to run a new filter for the QT tank or should I just set up the QT tank and cycle it like I would any other tank?

Once you're done treating for the ich outbreak it should be ok to run a new filter for the qt tank on your main tank. It'll give the bacteria a place to grow and thrive while waiting to be used on your qt tank. Cycling a qt tank will probably be a lot of unnecessary work (my opinion) for a tank that will only be used sporadically.

 

[andreahp]

Tim - I think I will probably treat for longer than what's on the bottle - I was hesistant at first because there are some out there who believe in the least amount of meds possible but my fish are tolerating it and I really would like to be able to get more fish at some point! When I mentioned cycling the QT tank I forgot it's used only sporadically - someone else on another forum mentioned keeping a 2nd filter (an easy sponge one that I will make myself) in a main tank for QT purposes so I wanted to do that.