Hypo-salinity in Display or Quarantine?

[joe143]

Hey everyone. So recently i added in a potters angel. Couple weeks later he starts showing some signs of ich. I know, my mistake. From now on I will be quarantining fish from now on.

Anyways, the fish is ok. I have to give him a freshwater dip every 3-4 days to keep the ich away. Other wise he gets itchy and white spots will come back. Its only a temp fix and I gotta get treatment going ASAP.So i'm planning on a hypo-salinity treatment with the angel and three other fish.

My question is whether to use hypo-salinity treatment on my display or a quarantine. I do have about 30 pounds of live rock and a few crabs. I would plan on moving live rock/crabs to quarantine tank. Or is it better to move the fish to quarantine? Will hypo-salinity have any affect on the beneficial baterica in the display tank?

Thanks!

 

[Chris27]

It's best to treat the fish in a QT - and leave the DT fallow for 5-6 weeks. Hypo won't necessarily kill your bio-filter, but it will kill every invert on the rocks and in the sand.

 

[sfboarders]

I agree with what Chris said but I'd leave DT fallow for at least 8 weeks. Hypo is rather simple to do but maintaining pH is a PITA.

 

[joe143]

Thanks guys. I'm gonna get the quarantine set up this weekend. Poor fish is nervous still from the freshwater dip. On the good sign hes not showing signs of ich at the moment. It seems to keep him symptom free for a couple of days.

Couple questions on the quarantine tank. I'll probably set up a 20g tank. Do I need any sort of filtration? Or will water changes and ammonia treatment be enough to keep the water clean. I'm gonna use an air stone/pump as well to keep air in the water.

Also, is PVC safe to use for hiding spots for the fish?


Thanks Guys!!

 

[jason2459]

You should get your bacteria going now. Get some sponges and through them in your sump/tank to get them going. PVC is a great cheap way to provide some cover. You'll want a heater to. HOB filter and some power heads would help with water movement. If you end up treating with any meds makes sure to take out any GAC from the filter.

If you add in the fish right away you'll probably need to do some massive (50%) water changes daily until you can build up the bacterial support. When I setup my QT the first time I did 50% daily changes and used a product called stability to help build up some bacterial support. After about a week I was able to reduce my water changes to once a week and continued to add the stability after each water change for another four weeks.

You can see my QT setup here.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=16602061&postcount=518

I've got four fish I just recieved in there right now.

 

[Chris27]

I agree with what Chris said but I'd leave DT fallow for at least 8 weeks. Hypo is rather simple to do but maintaining pH is a PITA.

Why 8 weeks vs. 5 or 6? The lifecycle is really only 3 weeks long at temperatures >80F....

 

[KingwoodMarcia]

Reed other articles on ich on RC and wetwebmedia, 3 weeks not long enough.

 

[sfboarders]

Why 8 weeks vs. 5 or 6? The lifecycle is really only 3 weeks long at temperatures >80F....

Lots of documentation out there says to leave fishless for at least 8 weeks. Also higher temp does not affect SW ich, only FW ich.

 

[joe143]

Doesn't raising the temp increase the parasites life cycle thus making treatment quicker?

 

[sfboarders]

Doesn't raising the temp increase the parasites life cycle thus making treatment quicker?

Read # 6 and 7 here.

 

[Chris27]

Read # 6 and 7 here.

Be careful referencing forum posts vs. published articles w/ references...

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-08/sp/index.php
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/dec2003/mini2.htm
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Aquarium_Ich.html

 

[RBU1]

Be careful referencing forum posts vs. published articles w/ references...

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2003-08/sp/index.php
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/dec2003/mini2.htm
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/Aquarium_Ich.html

Your published articles are good but they don't say anything different then the forum post. Ich in saltwater can be slowed by reduced temperatures. At least thats my take from the reading I have done. It is not increased when you raise the temp. Higher temp also reduces oxygen level in the water which in my opinion is worse then leaving the tank at normal temp.

In one of your references it states the longest time for an ich life cycle is 72 days......How many weeks is that? I always suggest 12 weeks fallow just to be safe. Whats another few weeks to be safer then risk the chance of putting fish back in to have a problem all over again.

A couple interesting Quotes from one of your references....

"The geographical, temperature and salinity ranges of Cryptocaryon irritans are becoming alarmingly broader and isolates from Taiwan have widened the diversity of the species (Diggles & Adlard, 1997. Yambot, et al., 2003). These reports bring to light the fact that Cryptocaryon irritans is capable of adapting to new environmental conditions. This makes the need for new strategies and treatments for its control crucial. All previously reported strains of Cryptocaryon irritans could be destroyed by hyposaline conditions (Colorni, 1987. Rigos et al., 2001)."

"Several new strains of Cryptocaryon irritans have been identified in Taiwan and other locations (Burgess & Mathews, 1995. Diggles and Adlard,1997). Highly aberrant and divergent isolates from Chiayi and Kaoshiung are of particular interest (Yambot, et al., 2003). The Chiayi isolate was discovered in a pond with a salinity of only 5ppt. This was the first recorded incidence of a Cryptocaryon irritans outbreak at such a low salinity. The Kaoshiung isolate was obtained from 12th-generation tomonts that originated from a cage at 10ppt salinity (Yambot, et al., 2003). Diggles and Lester, (1996a) suggested that the range of Cryptocaryon irritans has extended into estuaries." I guess that means Hypo doesnt work anymore also......