First time asking advice, usually I just read the posts. I have a 55 reef tank that I populated after running for 6 weeks with rock and sand. Started with 4 Green Chromis and then two Oscellaris Clowns, then a Royal Gramma and a McCosker's Wrasse. Everything was wonderful and then I added a Blue Hippo and all was good until the Hippo showed signs of ich. I read the sales pitches and reviews about "reef safe" treatments and tried Rid Ich. The first few days things seemed to improve and then deteriorated quickly. Put the Hippo and the wrasse in a QT and treated with Microbe-lift Herbtana at the reserved recommendation of my local shop and once again things looked better but in about 3-4 days they both turned and looked horrible and died. I had no idea how fast things could spread. In the mean time I pulled the all the rest of the surviving fish and quarantined them even though they showed no signs of ich. I fresh water dipped each fish on a daily basis as recommeded in The Conscientious Aquarist and everybody improved except I saw a few spots on the Gramma. Separated that fish into it's own QT and started Cupramine as recommended in the article at http://www.bestfish.com/saltich.html. The fish looks wonderful after 16 days: eating, active, colorful, spot-free after just a couple days. The Clowns and the Chromis never did show signs and they were kept separate from the Gramma and fresh water dipped and continued on with the Herbtana. After further research I do believe the Herbtana is an option for either new fish in a QT or for keeping ich away if the fish have been in a tank with infected fish but never showed signs themselves.
The question is: how long should I wait to let the Gramma back in? I'm confident that the treatment has worked and that my display tank is clean givent the incubation time and how long it's been since I had hosts for the parasite in the tank.
Lastly, what does ich look like in the tank when it's in the incubation phase? I pulled a rock and had it in the QT before I pulled the fish and now that rock has white cotton ball pea-sized polyps that I think could be ich. Plausible?
Any info from anybody with experience would be greatly appreciated.
The question is: how long should I wait to let the Gramma back in? I'm confident that the treatment has worked and that my display tank is clean givent the incubation time and how long it's been since I had hosts for the parasite in the tank.
Lastly, what does ich look like in the tank when it's in the incubation phase? I pulled a rock and had it in the QT before I pulled the fish and now that rock has white cotton ball pea-sized polyps that I think could be ich. Plausible?
Any info from anybody with experience would be greatly appreciated.
