Ick BB tank with UV

[rogergolf66]

I know the life cycle of ich and I have read everything in the sticky on top of this forum but what would happen if you had a BB tank? I am asking becuse ich lays there eggs in the substrate, so what if there was no substrate to lay the eggs into. Also if you had a UV on the tank to kill them also.

Roger

 

[tmz]

I believe the cysts lay anywhere they can and reinfest when the hatch. They genreally leave the fish at night and form into cyst which multiply. The cysts are ussually right near the fishes sleeping spot on the bottom or in the rock or wherever which facillitates reinfestation which also occurss at night

Cryptocaryon irritans is a relatively large protozoan parasite. For a sterlilizer to be efrective against it it would need to be significantly oversized and even then it would only get those that pass through it not those living in the fish's flesh or its gills nor those on the glass or anywhere else in the tank.

Both a bare bottom and a sterilizer may be of help but would not be able to erradicate the parasite, in my opinion.

 

[Puffer Queen]

Cysts can be on the bottom of the BB, on coral, inverts, etc. The cysts will hatch (not all at the same time) and become free swimming. This is when the parasite is looking for a fish to feed off. Only the feeding stage can be seen by the human eye.

Only the free swimming stage can be eradicated by the UV and the UV is only effective if the water is free from detritus, the exposure time is appropriate and the bulb is not worn.

UV can decrease the parasitic load but total eradication is not possible.