ICH: how to cure it, id it, understand it.

The biggest tendency in this hobby is to overpopulate, particularly to the newbie.

Quarantine all you like; it does nothing for the overpopulated tank.

I was speaking to the everyday, new reefer. Thought that's the essence of any forum. The biologists here have offered fish advice. I'm offering aquarist advice.

Discussions in my lfs always revolve around this exact point, regarding marine ich.

In my post 233, I offered that overpopulating was the immediate cause for my mistakes over 20 - 30 years either through upsizing to larger tanks or relocating/moving. Again, I've had three or four ich outbreaks over that time frame and am stating exactly why.

Evidently, my offering didn't sit well and was refuted in post 235 and 236, including being told I've still got ich and have been living with ich for 30 years.

Make this a science project, if you like.

Succinctly, two points to marine fish / reef keeping:

1) research your fish / never, ever over populate.
2) take care of your water and there's little need to take care of your fish.

Good luck.
 
Overpopulation should be avoided but is really off point.

When there is no ich in the tank and none brought in with new fish overpopulation not a relevant issue for this thread. Ich is a parasite that reproduces very rapidly and easily invades tanks with the best water quality and healthy fish when a carrier often with no immediately observable symptoms is introduced. Quarantine and preemptive treatment for new specimens prevents it.Keeping a tank fishless for 72 days eradicates it from the aqaurium. Not a science project; just husbandry based on some rudimentary understanding of the parasite and it's life cycle .
 
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a properly sized and set up UV sterilizer will control ich and perhaps prevent an explosion of population. however, it does not cure ich simply because not all of the water passes through UV. ich also spends little time in the water column.
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I used a combination of Brightwell Aquatics RedoxIclean and AqualLife Cure by Aquarium Life Support Systems and it cleared up the ich
 
I over feed and use garlic extract and the ich on my purple tang has never seem to go away completely.It seems to come back every once in a while.I guess I should do a fresh water dip.I do not know what to look for with signs of trouble.I am some what new to this sort of thing.Any advise would be of great help.
 
How would a person QT a fish that needs a large tank? I realize a QT the size of the DT would be ideal bit thats just not doable.

How hard is it on a large fish (lets say large Tangs and such.) to keep it in a small tank? (55 gal QT? for 75 days?) I will be setting up a large tank ( 500 gal) and this is something i have been thinking about for a while.
 
Im setting up a large DT (500 gal). even using a 55 gal as a QT that seems verry hard on a fish that wants a large tank...

Should I be thinking about a 100 gal QT? 75 days in a 55 seems quite hard on the fish...
what about fish that eat pods? how dose one keep a fish like that alive in a sterile BB tank for the life cycle of ICH?

even 75 days seems sketchy as there's no telling where the ICH is in its life cycle. so 90 days? That lets me stock 4 fish per year...
 
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Cope said:
How would a person QT a fish that needs a large tank? I realize a QT the size of the DT would be ideal bit thats just not doable.

How hard is it on a large fish (lets say large Tangs and such.) to keep it in a small tank? (55 gal QT? for 75 days?) I will be setting up a large tank ( 500 gal) and this is something i have been thinking about for a while.
Click to expand...

I am keeping a 6" tang (tennenti) in a 20g for 28 days right now. whereas life likely isn't fun, they can and do just fine. i have kept 6 4" tang's in a 30g for 60 days before. same thing. just keep focused on your end goal of giving them ample space in a 500g tank... they will love you at the point, well worth the wait (relative to other options other than the sea of course).

i have a 450g and have QT'ed every fish that has gone in there... probably 50+ by now. i have viewed the slow adding process as a positive, both for $$$ reasons and also to 'get to know the new fish'... sounds dumb, but I feel that i do have a more personal connection with fish that I have cared for in the QT process (1 on 1 attention).

I'm not sure where you are getting 75 or 90 days from, but for a fish it only takes 12 days of treatment (TTM) to be sure Ich is gone. It is up to you on how long to observe your fish subsequent to the 12 days. I do 28 days, some do 60. It is all up to your own personal risk tolerance. most say the bare minimum is 28 days to ensure no velvet or brook pops up (will show its ugly face within 3 weeks).
 
How can I treat my entire reef tank for ich?

How can I treat my entire reef tank for ich?

I have a blue hippo tang, a yellow tang, a scopas tang, a fire angel, rainbow wrasse and two maroon clowns. Everyone was QT before they went into the main tank. I've noticed the blue tang rubbing a little on the rocks and visiting the cleaner shrimp "garage". Is this an early indication of ich? Is there a way to safely treat the entire tank? My tank is a reef tank, complete with corals, live rock, sand and anemones. All of the readings have been on target. We run a sump pump and have good water flow and movement. There have been no drastic changes in temperature or water quality. We feed reef frenzy and raw shrimp with some dry flakes thrown in once in a while. Everyone is eating well. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Some of these fish are so fast there is no way I'm gonna catch them!!
 
What method of QT did you take? Just observation, or did you do TTM, Copper or Hypo? Describe the process, length, etc.

Have you added any non-fallow treated wet non-fish recently (last few months)?

I personally would not jump to conclusions until you see the white spots. There are many reasons why the Hippo may be flashing on rocks. Could be defensive.

How large of a tank do you have?

There is no reef safe remedy for Ich unfortunately. If you do have Ich and you want to remove it, then you will have to remove the fish, treat them with [in order of preference] TTM, Copper or Hypo, and leave your main tank fallow/fishless for 72 days.
 
It might be an ich indicator; it could be something else. I'd watch the tang an the other fish closely for a while . Are any of the tangs fighting
If it is crptocaryon irritans ,there really is no reef safe way to erradicate it form the tank short of keeping a fishless tank for 72 days. Some suggest ich strains may have a life limit without introducing new strains but that limit is anywhere from 11 months to a couple of years based on my experience and reports I've read.(see post 225) Coping methods folks try include; no new fish , stable parameters, good nutrition, uv sterilization.
 
Fish stock.
-Yellow tang *Ich*
-Cole Tangs *Ich*
-2x clowns fish
-2x chromis
-2x Ignitus Anthias

Got a aquaclear hang on filter / heater around + tank.

What are two top copper medicine brands to look to buy? (asking for two just in case ones not available here)

Now do i put any bio balls on my filter or after treatment? since i would need to do copper treatment then let them live here until my display tank is 70+ days without fish?

If above so, how to run a cycle after treatment if fish still in QT? :(

Will need to start tomorrow, yellow tang is rubbing itself and swimming funny.

Thanks alot.
 
I've found a few seemingly respectable, albeit old, references that state that hyposalinity works to eradicate C. irritans. It seems likely that these references predate the knowledge of strains that are resistant to this treatment, though. I've also found a few articles that describe the life cycle of the parasite that would lead me to believe that TTM SHOULD work.

What I can't find are studies that show that TTM does, in fact, work. Lots of opinions, no studies. Can anyone point me to one, please?

Thanks much.
 
tmz said:
Colorni, A. 1987. Biology of Cryptocaryon irritans and strategies for its control Aquaculture 67: 236"“237.

There it is . Can't find a free link to the book though.

FWIW, I've used it for many years now. I also like the acclimation advantages it affords for new specimens. This thread may be of interest if you are considering it:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/s...tion+and+preventative+treatment+tank+transfer
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Thank you! If the article isn't available online I can probably get it through the library at work.

Sent from my MotoG3 using Tapatalk
 
It's entirely accurate that each reefer will have different methods and preferences when treating ich. I'm new to the marine side and have only dealt with ich in my freshwater tanks once. In that instance I removed the affected fish at first signs and put him into a medicated hospital tank until he recovered.
However only 2 months into my first saltwater tank and one of my damsels looks to have ich. I wanted to do the FW dip but catching the little guy in a 90 gallon corner bow front is proving extremely difficult and stressful for him and his 2 tank mates. As the infection looks minor, I'm thinking about leaving him in the aquarium. Im slowly dropping the SG a bit for a couple weeks and trying everything I can without chemicals. I've been having the worst anxiety over it. I don't want it to spread out of control or kill any of them. I'm really attached to them already. But if things don't improve or get worse, I will have to make the call as to whether removing the fish would be in the best interest of the fish, after all thats one of the most imporant points.
 
Display has ich- please help

Display has ich- please help

My fault for not quarantining a new fish.

Question, will removing my fish to a quarantine tank and treating them, leaving the display fishless for 2 months, cause any ill effects to the nitrifying bacteria I the live rock?? Since there's nothing to stimulate the "cycle"???
 
You could add a lbit of food to the tank . It will provide ammonia nitrogen and other nutrients as it degrades;just like fish waste does.
 
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