marine ich treatment?

[dragonnest02]

I am very new to saltwater fish. My experience has been limited to koi in my backyard pond. I started out 6 months ago and I am afraid I am not getting the best advice for taking care of my tank and as a result I have lost a number of fish. My latest problem is little white spots on my fish. I am told it is ich and was given a couple of products to treat my fish, ich-x and Cu S04 (copper treatment). I followed the pet store owner instructions but the ich remained. After doing some research I find 1. I was not supposed to use the two products together, 2. I needed to treat for a much longer time, and 3. I should not have treated my main tank. I did not know this stuff could kill my live rock and I did not know I may not be able to put my crabs back in the tank because of the copper. Any advice on how to treat the ich, will it ever be possible to put the crabs back in main tank, and if I can't put crabs back in tank what is cheapest/best way to set up a new display tank (I have a 75 gal with a snake in it I could use for a new display).

 

[MrTuskfish]

Your tank isn't ruined because of the copper; but all the LR, substrate, etc,may be.I'm not up to date on handling LR contaminated by copper; it may be terminal) The first thing you need is a QT to properly cure your fish (I'm very doubtful, for several reasons, that ich has been eliminated from your tank). When the dust settles, set up a QT and quarantine all new fish and never face this nightmare again. Id read the ich stickies at the top of the disease forum (at least the 1st page) so you know what you're dealing with. I'd also read a couple good books on the hobby too. You can't just jump in with an open wallet and expect success.

 

[HumbleFish]

If you used copper in your main tank, then IMO it is no longer suitable for corals/inverts. Even if you ran carbon or cuprisorb, that LR will continue to leach out copper for who knows how long (sand too). I would completely break that tank down and clean it thoroughly before ever using it with inverts again. The sand needs to be tossed; the LR may be safe to use again someday if you soaked it in muriatic acid. But the whole process is such a PITA, and there are so many "what ifs" that I would just use that tank and rock as a FO system. How big is the tank anyway? After this experience you may want to think about just turning it into a QT. After all, your fish still need to be treated properly for Ich.

 

[MrTuskfish]

If you used copper in your main tank, then IMO it is no longer suitable for corals/inverts. Even if you ran carbon or cuprisorb, that LR will continue to leach out copper for who knows how long (sand too). I would completely break that tank down and clean it thoroughly before ever using it with inverts again. The sand needs to be tossed; the LR may be safe to use again someday if you soaked it in muriatic acid. But the whole process is such a PITA, and there are so many "what ifs" that I would just use that tank and rock as a FO system. How big is the tank anyway? After this experience you may want to think about just turning it into a QT. After all, your fish still need to be treated properly for Ich.

You agree that the tank itself isn't ruined by the copper, right? The myth that a tank exposed to copper is doomed for life because the silicone absorbs the copper. For some reason, I'm missing half of what I read, my skimming habit in overdrive.

 

[HumbleFish]

You agree that the tank itself isn't ruined by the copper, right? The myth that a tank exposed to copper is doomed for life because the silicone absorbs the copper. For some reason, I'm missing half of what I read, my skimming habit in overdrive.

I agree; but I think it would be best for the OP to break the tank completely down, so he can thoroughly clean it, before housing corals/inverts in there ever again. I just don't trust copper absorption media to get it all out; or at least not enough of it to avoid "mysterious" invert deaths.

 

[MrTuskfish]

I agree; but I think it would be best for the OP to break the tank completely down, so he can thoroughly clean it, before housing corals/inverts in there ever again. I just don't trust copper absorption media to get it all out; or at least not enough of it to avoid "mysterious" invert deaths.

Yeah, ridding the LR & substrate needs more attention in a case like this. Who knows how long rock, etc. can hold on to copper. But there is still an old myth that says a tank (the tank itself) can never be used with inverts. I guess the thinking is that the glass or silicone will absorb & release copper. This question shows up from time to time and is just silly (IMO). I once had my kid's college chem lab test done on my QT water, after the tank was just rubbed down with vinegar and rinsed well. This was dosed at least 200 times with Cupramine; lab found no more copper than would be normal in a new tank with IO salt. Most salts have a bit of copper, I believe. Facilities that run low doses of copper 24/7/365 would really have a problem! The tech page FAQ cover this and I think SeaChem has great tech help. (http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/Cupramine.html)

 

[snake42490]

The tank itself is not ruined from the copper. What I would do is take the fish out and treat them in a quarantine tank. I would do large water changes in the tank and leave it fallow for 10 weeks. During that time I would run cuprisorb, test your copper levels and see if it shows up in the tank. I bet just by doing that you would be able to get it safe for inverts. The live rock will definitely leach out some copper for a while. That time frame who knows, I have read posts on people using that rock two years later and it's been fine and I have read posts on people that have used it 3 months later it was fine.


At some point it goes into how much work you are wanting to put into it. The safest way would probably be to get new substate. Take the rock out and rinse the holy crap out of it. Maybe soak it in a container with cuprisorb and do water changes weekly on it while you are treating the fish in hypo. Then you could add a invert back into the tank and slowly add a piece of live rock back in and see if it kills the invert.