Need some help from the experts here

[mrcrab]

I was out of town for the past week and came home to this. I could sure use some help here.

I don't think it's ich. Seems to start off as bumps under the skin. The wife took some pics and saved the bodies. I need help with this. The bumps then seem to go almost like pimples, again raised off the skin much bigger than ich, then the skin starts to sluff off. Here's some pics hopefully someone can identify it and it's treatable. The PBT had lesions on it's skin like ulcers when I checked the body. Some sort of disease or pathogen?

Water parameters as of last night:
Salinity: 1.025
PH: 8.8 not sure why so high, need to calibrate a probe and check
NO3: 15mg/l
NO2: N/A
PO4: 0 mg/l
Ca: 300 low no flow from reactor will clean tomorrow
ALK: 3 meq/l
Temp: 80


This is the CBB in it's last throws. It didn't have the bumps but she said it looked dirty.

Powder Blue with the skin sluffing off

In this picture, not very good, the yellow tang has the raised white bumps and the Naso's skin is mottled but smooth without bumps.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I've been running all day and am still on west coast time. Jet lag's a b*tch. I'm going to do another water change tonight and calibrate the ph probe and retest the parameters.

 

[TerryB]

That tang does look like it has an advanced case of ich. Salt-like white spots all over the body. Lots of mucus overproduction is not unusual for ich. Do you quarantine all new fish for 30 days BEFORE adding them to your display tank? Do you keep a cycled quarantine tank running just in case of an emergency? I would get the fish out of the reef and into a treatment tank. I suggest hyposalinity.

Terry B

 

[mrcrab]

Unfortunately this is a new setup Terry, 345 gallons and I don't have a QT large enough to take all the inhabitants out plus the fact that catching them is problematic too. I don't think the corals would appreciate the hyposalinity either.

I do normally QT but impatients got the best of me and am paying dearly along with the fish.

 

[mrcrab]

Terry, the only reason I'm not sure it's ich is my yellow tangs have bumps under the skin now not a salt like appearance.

 

[TerryB]

You don't hypo rock, inverts, or coral. The fish should be removed to another tank for treatment. If you can't or won't remove the fish then you will probably lose them. The only suggestions that I can make in those conditions is to use a powerful UV and soak the food in garlic for a few weeks. It is possible to have more than one parasite at a time, but if you hypo then you may get them all under control. Not really any consistently effective reef-safe medications worth recommending.

Terry B

 

[mrcrab]

It's not that I won't more like can't. I don't have any where to put all the infected fish. At this point, I'd be more than happy to tear down the rockwork to catch them all.

I'll try my LFS tomorrow and see if he has a used setup I can borrow tha would accomodate evryone. I know hypo works as I've used it for ich in the QT system.

Thanks for your help.

 

[chrisstie]

I am still so new to the hobby about 1 year or so in (to marine tanks) and I don't know if I can help. I did a quick search on WWM for "peeling off" as you describe and show the fish's "skin" in your photos.

Came up with this
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/brooklynellosisart.htm

There are a bunch of other cool FAQs on disease on there. I have been lucky enough to only have to deal with disease a long long time ago ina fresh water tank where there aren't inverts like clean up crews, corals, and anemones to worry about like in reef tanks.

Hopefully a site like that to pick around can help while you wait for an answer from the experts. Good luck with your tank!!

 

[TerryB]

A simple, inexpensive Qtank consists of a food-grade rubbermaid container (I have a 44 gal), some PVC pipe for hiding, a heater and a sponge filter driven by an air pump. I keep some sort of cycled Qtank running at all times. Never know when you might need it. Sure works better when it is cycled. You can seed a sponge filter with bacteria by keeping it in the sump of your display tank. Better yet, keep two sponge filters.

Best wishes,
Terry B

 

[cschweitzer]

I'm sorry to say, but from that picture of the tang, looks like if you do not QT you will not be able to medicate and I would be led to believe they will die. You need to FW dip them, put them in a QT and then formalin bath with malichite green(there are also versions that go right into the QT tank, but I would recommend a significant water change after treatment. I don't like copper because I'm QT'ing breeding pairs and this can retard the breeding process, but it seems to be the cure-all of aquaria...DO NOT USE WITH INVERTS/BIO FILTRATION/CORALS!!

That looks suspectingly like brook, or if you're lucky just some parasites...

 

[Hattie B]

Just another thought to add to your discussion.

What are you feeding them? It appers that you YT is showing signs of MHLLE. The white line around his face and receding down the body.

 

[mrcrab]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9462864#post9462864 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by TerryB
A simple, inexpensive Qtank consists of a food-grade rubbermaid container (I have a 44 gal), some PVC pipe for hiding, a heater and a sponge filter driven by an air pump. I keep some sort of cycled Qtank running at all times. Never know when you might need it. Sure works better when it is cycled. You can seed a sponge filter with bacteria by keeping it in the sump of your display tank. Better yet, keep two sponge filters.

Best wishes,
Terry B

I've got all that but only a 30 gal QT. My lfs is lending me a 55 so that should cover it.

I appreciate the advise.

Hi ho, Hi ho it's off to hypo I go!

 

[mrcrab]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9463378#post9463378 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by cschweitzer
I'm sorry to say, but from that picture of the tang, looks like if you do not QT you will not be able to medicate and I would be led to believe they will die. You need to FW dip them, put them in a QT and then formalin bath with malichite green(there are also versions that go right into the QT tank, but I would recommend a significant water change after treatment. I don't like copper because I'm QT'ing breeding pairs and this can retard the breeding process, but it seems to be the cure-all of aquaria...DO NOT USE WITH INVERTS/BIO FILTRATION/CORALS!!

That looks suspectingly like brook, or if you're lucky just some parasites...

I do believe it's Ich, just the worst case I've ever seen. I've had great success with hyposalinity in the past and it's much less toxic for the fish so that's the route I've chosen. I appreciate the advise.

 

[mrcrab]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9464437#post9464437 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Hattie B
Just another thought to add to your discussion.

What are you feeding them? It appers that you YT is showing signs of MHLLE. The white line around his face and receding down the body.

Definitely HLLE, They've had it since I've had them. I feed plenty of greens and a good variety of food which I supplement with garlic, selcon and vitachem.