Marine Ich

[Trustfall990]

I'm currently treating my whole tank with Kordon Ich Attack which is labeled 100% safe for reefs and live rock.

My questions are:

1. Has anyone experienced a positive solution with this?

2. Since I have to turn off my skimmer, will this affect the oxygen levels over a period of time? (Bottle says to treat for a week after the last signs of Ich; I'm currently at 1 week with the Ich starting to receed)

 

[DustinB]

There is no such thing as a reef safe medication for marine ich. The only thing it may do is help boost the immune system helping the fish to recover, but not getting rid of the ich.

There are only 3 known methods of getting rid of ich.
1) Copper Treatment
2) Hyposalinity
3) Transfer Method

None are reef safe and all require hospital tanks. All treatments should last for 6-8 weeks to ensure all stages of the lifecycle have completed and any parasites have since perished.

The copper method involves adding a copper treatment and daily water changes to reduce ammonia. Water change water is added with correct the copper level to avoid fluctuating levels. Frequent testing is required to maintain the high level that will kill the parasite, but not high enough to kill the fish. This method is very stressful and some fish are incapable of tolerating it.

Hyposalinity involves reducing the salinity of the water to a level that will keep the fish alive but will affect the parasite. This method is less stressful and is recommended for fish such as tangs or any others.

The transfer method involves setting up multiple hospital tanks and transferring the fish between the tanks frequently and restarting the previous tank after sterilizing. The idea is that when the parasite encysts and falls off the fish to multiply, the cyst is removed from the previous tank. After doing this enough there are no parasites left. This would be the least stressful but could get very expensive given the cost of salt.

When treating the fish the main tank can be allowed to run fallow for the 6-8 weeks. A tank with no fish(inverts are ok) will have no suitable host for the parasite, thus the lifecycles will complete and the parasites will starve to death.

Choose your best option and do a search for the treatment method you will use. There is plenty of info on how to properly treat your fish with each method in previous threads.

 

[david1983]

I had 1 fish and it died just got snails and crabs now.Would running a uv sterillizer help?Would hyposalinity help too in a fishless tank?

Thanks

 

[Uncle Salty 05]

There is no effective reef safe treatment for ich.
The only effective treatments are removing all fish to a quarantine tank and treating with either copper or hyposalinity. (copper is more effective IMO)
The tank must remain fallow (no fish in it) for 8 weeks for the ich in the tank to die off.

I have seen instances of keeping your parameters spot on and feeding lightly with nutritious foods tanks clearing ich on their own, but if it is a new tank (under one year old) and your parameters are not rock solid your chances are not good.

 

[Sk8r]

GO to the fish disease forum. Read the stickies.

 

[DustinB]

I have seen instances of keeping your parameters spot on and feeding lightly with nutritious foods tanks clearing ich on their own, but if it is a new tank (under one year old) and your parameters are not rock solid your chances are not good.

The tricky thing about this is that the ich is usually still there, just not running rampant. Any time the fish are stressed the ich will take over again. I believe there was one case where after a couple years the cycle was shown to exhaust itself if no new parasites were introduced into the tank from an outside source. I'm having trouble finding the article.

As stated, the only surefire methods for true elimination of the parasites are the ones listed above.

 

[MrTuskfish]

I had 1 fish and it died just got snails and crabs now.Would running a uv sterillizer help?Would hyposalinity help too in a fishless tank?

Thanks

UV won't do much of anything to help. The only thing UV kills is what passes through it. Also, it is only effective with the proper flow rate and properly maintained bulb & sleeve. If you've read the life cycle of the ich parasite (if you haven't, please do , its vital info) you'll see that its impossible for all the newly free-swimming ich parasites to be sucked into the UV unit before finding a host fish and perpetuating the cycle. Ich requires a 100% kill rate. IMO, UV can actually be dangerous; it gives hobbyists a false sense of security, delaying real treatment. I think everyone who has dealt with an ich outbreak wants to find an easier way. I'm afraid there just isn't one. Hypo in a fishless tank won't speed the "fallow period" and can kill beneficial bacteria and other organisms. Just let the tank go fishless for (pick your source as to time) and that will wipe out the little bastards.

 

[david1983]

Nice one.In the next couple of weeks i will be setting up a little tank next to my main tank and let the fish stay in for 4 week hopefully that will sort it.
Thanks

 

[EllieSuz]

Four weeks is not long enough. You need to do some research on this subject and re-read the comments above. Your Display tank has to remain "fishless" for at least eight (8) weeks.

 

[david1983]

Ive heard six weeks many times too so which one do you go by?I said i was setting up a qt in the next couple of weeks then waiting four weeks so thats 6weeks.

 

[DustinB]

I would actually go 8. I've seen many cases where 6 weeks didn't work. Keep in mind these treatments have strict parameters that need to be kept in line.

For example, say your copper level was a little low or your salinity was a little too high for a few days, and it just so happens that's when some of the cysts begin to hatch. Once the free swimming parasites attach to the host, the treatments are not effective as they will only affect the parasite in the free swimming phase. If this happens you have just extended the necessary time by at least 2 weeks.

Aside from that, based on different factors, some parts of the cycle can take longer than others for some of the parasites. It's good to maintain everything as perfect as possible and give yourself a little buffer time. After all, it would really suck to go 6 weeks and have to do it all over again, especially when you could have just waited 2 weeks longer. Even still, 8 weeks is not a guarantee.

 

[rgonzalez]

Quinine Sulfate will also work and is less harsh than Copper. However, it is not reef-safe and for that matter, NO ich treatment is reef safe.

You need to go at least 8 weeks with a fallow tank in order for the parasite to end it's cycle. Turning up the temperature to 82ish will help speed up the parasite life cycle, but NOT kill it like some people think.

So take out ALL fish from your DT, set them in a QT and treat with QS, Copper, or hyposalinity. Then leave your DT empty (minus inverts and corals) for at least 8 weeks and then introduce already QT'ed fish. I'd even go as to say 12 weeks with no fish just to be safe.

 

[tmz]

I had 1 fish and it died just got snails and crabs now.Would running a uv sterillizer help?Would hyposalinity help too in a fishless tank?

No, hyposalinity in a fishless tank would likely slow the parasites life cycle which could make the cysts remain viable for longer than the known max 72 days.
Uv wouldn't do much either even if oversized since it only gets what goes through it. It might be helpful against some secondary infections from bacteria or dinofalgelates like oodinium(velvet) .

 

[snorvich]

tmz is correct. For further information read Marine Ich (cryptocaryon irritans)