Ich Breakout In SPS Dominated Reef Aquarium.

[Jasonanatal]

Well after forgetting about the rule to quarentine my recently purchased fish I am now paying the price. My SPS Dominated Reef Aquarium has been struck with an outbreak of Marine Ich and have employed some measures to ensure the continued life of my newly and previously purchased friends. I have installed a 27 watt Ultraviolet sterilizer that is running 24/7 as of two days ago and I purchased Exodin by Aqua Medic and dosed that aquarium. I have also started soaking their food in garlic After three hours before leaving to work all my Corals where still happily entending their polyps and my shrimps, snails and crabs happily forraging for food. Does anyone have any advice, tips or tricks that I have not employed. Thank you for the advice in my time of crises.

 

[OliverM3]

I use to go crazy when my fish had ich. Trying everything out to treat my fish.

Most fish can fight off the ich themselves. Just keep the water quality pristine.
The UV will help and so will the garlic if they are loosing their appetite.
Also once it starts dropping off of the fish vacuum the gravel if you can.
That will help remove some of the new cysts before then hatch and reattach to your fish.

If you can catch the fish and treat them in a copper medicated tank that would work the best.
But other then that I wouldn't add anything to your display tank.

 

[wooden_reefer]

UV does not work well for ich in general. Even if it does for you (if your tank is small) it likely wouldn't irradicate it, so you will need it for a long time.

 

[wooden_reefer]

Do you have a separate package of well-cycled nitrification medium?

If your UV is working to the extent that ich is slowed down, you should not waste precious time. If you do not have a separate well-cycled medium, you should start a cycle now with a small amount of bacteria seed and decay of fish food.

The final solution to your problem would likely be weeks of separation of fish and invertebrates. You want well-cycled medium to support your fish in QT during this separation and treatment of fish to get rid of ich.

 

[wooden_reefer]

The equipment that fits the purpose of slowing down ich infestation is not the UV but the diatom filter. I have a Vortex Diatom Filter. It does greatly reduce the concentration of waterborne ich but still will not eradicate ich.

It is not that I recommend anyone buy a diatom filter, but in a jam such as this one the diatom filter is the best. It works best or only when infestation is low, just a few dots on a few fish. It gives the aquarist time to plan for permanent eradication.

The best is to commit to thorough quarantine, always.