Cryptocaryon Irritans - tank transfer method

Hi Everyone,

Sorry if I'm over thinking this, but I want to make sure I'm following the correct procedure.

Let me give you a bit of history. I QTed 2 gobies and 1 Coral Beauty, when I first got them. I noticed that the CB had Ick after about 2 days. I decided to give the TT method a try.

I'm in the first stage of the TT method. I moved the fish from my contaminated QT to a new tank to start the process. I moved the fish at 9pm. So do I count that first day (even if it's only technically 3 hours) as day #1 or do I just skip that and the next FULL day is day #1.

If I put the fish in the new tank on Monday at 9PM, do I move the fish to the 2nd tank in the morning of Thursday or Friday? I think it should be Friday, but I want to make sure I'm doing it right.

Thanks!
 
Hi Everyone,

Sorry if I'm over thinking this, but I want to make sure I'm following the correct procedure.

Let me give you a bit of history. I QTed 2 gobies and 1 Coral Beauty, when I first got them. I noticed that the CB had Ick after about 2 days. I decided to give the TT method a try.

I'm in the first stage of the TT method. I moved the fish from my contaminated QT to a new tank to start the process. I moved the fish at 9pm. So do I count that first day (even if it's only technically 3 hours) as day #1 or do I just skip that and the next FULL day is day #1.

If I put the fish in the new tank on Monday at 9PM, do I move the fish to the 2nd tank in the morning of Thursday or Friday? I think it should be Friday, but I want to make sure I'm doing it right.

Thanks!

My recommendation is to count the first day or partial day as day one, then two full additional days then moving the morning of day "four". So in the example cited, you would move on the morning of Thursday.
 
This is probably a weird question, but how do you catch the fish with a container (tupperware, Glad container, etc.)? Being it is in the morning they should be sleeping I know, but the fish I have had will sleep in or under PVC pipe or in clay flowerpots (clownfish). Do you just use one hand to guide them into the container?

After in the container do you just dump the fish in without the old water correct? Like picking them up with your hand and placing them in the new container. I just don't want to do the actual transfer wrong.
 
This is probably a weird question, but how do you catch the fish with a container (tupperware, Glad container, etc.)? Being it is in the morning they should be sleeping I know, but the fish I have had will sleep in or under PVC pipe or in clay flowerpots (clownfish). Do you just use one hand to guide them into the container?

Yes, transparent containers are not a problem; hand guide will work. You can also buy an acclimation chamber (with slits for draining the water) but this is not necessary.

After in the container do you just dump the fish in without the old water correct? Like picking them up with your hand and placing them in the new container. I just don't want to do the actual transfer wrong.

You can drain the water using your hand; transferring water is a no-no. After you do this once, it will become very, very easy.
 
Thanks Steve! The help and tip is much appreciated. I think it should become quite easy after I do it once or twice, just knowing what to do helps. Thanks again!
 
Ok looking for advice:
I received a shipment of healthy fish on Friday, and will receive 2 more fish on Sat.
I want to do tank transfer but don't know what to do about the 1 day:
1.) Keep batch A in for 3 days and batch B in for 2 days (then proceed with the first transfer on the 16 day treatment)
2.) Keep batch A in for 4 days and batch B in for 3 days (then proceed with the first transfer on the 16 day treatment)
3.) Use option 1 and then add an extra transfer on the back end of the 16 days. So the total treatment would be 19 days.

The fish I'm receiving on Sat will be from live aquaria so if they use fresh water to pack the fish. The shipping day possibly could be counted as 1 day.
Right now I'm leaning towards option 3 but wanted to hear what others thought.
 
Ok looking for advice:
I received a shipment of healthy fish on Friday, and will receive 2 more fish on Sat.
I want to do tank transfer but don't know what to do about the 1 day:
1.) Keep batch A in for 3 days and batch B in for 2 days (then proceed with the first transfer on the 16 day treatment)

This option works fine

2.) Keep batch A in for 4 days and batch B in for 3 days (then proceed with the first transfer on the 16 day treatment)
3.) Use option 1 and then add an extra transfer on the back end of the 16 days. So the total treatment would be 19 days.

This option also works

The fish I'm receiving on Sat will be from live aquaria so if they use fresh water to pack the fish. The shipping day possibly could be counted as 1 day.
Right now I'm leaning towards option 3 but wanted to hear what others thought.

In general, adding another transfer will work fine. Make sure the SG matches
 
Should the water for the TTM method be RODI, or can I use the waste water from my RODI? Thanks for the great info on this easy method!

You want the water to be the same for all tanks so there is no acclimation problem. Waste water does not guarantee that.
 
Thanks, that is what I assumed but I thought I should check. One more quick question that I think I know the answer to. Can marine ich be transferred to a freshwater system, or can marine ich live in freshwater for any period of time? Thanks again.
 
Thanks, that is what I assumed but I thought I should check. One more quick question that I think I know the answer to. Can marine ich be transferred to a freshwater system, or can marine ich live in freshwater for any period of time? Thanks again.

There is a freshwater version, Ichthyophthirius multifilius, which is different than cryptocaryon irritans, the marine version. Cryptocaryon irritans, once it reaches the tomite stage of the life cycle, will perish in fresh water.
 
Assuming the DT is disease free, do you see any problem using display tank water for the transfer and putting the new water into the display tank? I like the idea of having a water change every 3 days lol :)
 
Assuming the DT is disease free, do you see any problem using display tank water for the transfer and putting the new water into the display tank? I like the idea of having a water change every 3 days lol :)

That is a big assumption, but if it is true, it should be fine. Best practice, however, is to match the SG of the transport water of the new fish so there is no acclimation other than temperature.
 
Is it possible to do the transfer without taking the fish out of water?
I read an article that advocated such and it mentioned that exposing fish out of water could increase problems.

I did my first transfer with multiple buckets of freshwater before transferring to the second tank. Is that OK?

Thanks
 
Assuming the DT is disease free, do you see any problem using display tank water for the transfer and putting the new water into the display tank? I like the idea of having a water change every 3 days lol :)

Even if I were sure about "disease free", I'd still use newly mixed water aged overnight. The tank water will have organics and other nutrient material it. Since your transfer tank doesn't have the benthic biofilter your dispaly tank has, it's likely to produce ammonia more quickly than new water, ime.
 
Hello Everyone (and Steve)!

First, I wanted to report back on my experience with the TT method and to ask another question.

In an earlier post you will see that I did the TT method on 2 gobies and a Coral Beauty after I saw Ich show up on the CB in normal QT. Well, I wanted to report back that it *looks* like it was a HUGE success. All the fish came our of TT (and into QT for a few more weeks) very happy, fat and heathly. In the past few weeks of monitoring the CB (which had ich spots), it has remained clear.

Now, I have a another question. A local reefer was getting rid of some fish and I picked up some of them. A Christmas wrasse and a brown tang. The wrasse is about 4.5 inches and the tang is just a bit smaller. In my previous TT experience, I used 5 gallon buckets to house the fish. Is a 5 gallon bucket with a few PVC pieces and a tupperware container of sand (for the wrasse) large enough for the TT method?

I know that both these fish need swimming room when in the DT, but is it OK for them to share a 5 gallon bucket during the TT method, then move them to a larger QT tank for observation?

Thanks for any advice!

-Matt
 
Hello Everyone (and Steve)!

First, I wanted to report back on my experience with the TT method and to ask another question.

In an earlier post you will see that I did the TT method on 2 gobies and a Coral Beauty after I saw Ich show up on the CB in normal QT. Well, I wanted to report back that it *looks* like it was a HUGE success. All the fish came our of TT (and into QT for a few more weeks) very happy, fat and heathly. In the past few weeks of monitoring the CB (which had ich spots), it has remained clear.

Now, I have a another question. A local reefer was getting rid of some fish and I picked up some of them. A Christmas wrasse and a brown tang. The wrasse is about 4.5 inches and the tang is just a bit smaller. In my previous TT experience, I used 5 gallon buckets to house the fish. Is a 5 gallon bucket with a few PVC pieces and a tupperware container of sand (for the wrasse) large enough for the TT method?

I know that both these fish need swimming room when in the DT, but is it OK for them to share a 5 gallon bucket during the TT method, then move them to a larger QT tank for observation?

Thanks for any advice!

-Matt

Those two fish should do fine in a 5 gallon bucket. The sand must be discarded after every transfer with new sand being provided. Very important not to have any water sharing or sharing of non-sterilized equipment.
 
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