New Life Spectrum Ick Shield

[Dmorty217]

Yikes, I didn't even notice it was you! lol :facepalm:

:thumbsup:

 

[Salty150]

:thumbsup:

You use Ick Shield at double the recommended dose?

 

[eshtog]

Ha, I'm going to let that go... Anyway I can assure you I have used ich shield powder more than most on here and since using it at 60mg/gallon I have had 100% success. Just recently treated a Venustus and two banner fish at this level, a griffis angel pair, and my Gem tang comes out of CP on Tuesday after 3 weeks... How many fish have you put thru CP salty?? The fish that died from the thread you linked was from bad CP and velvet, I was too slow to recognize it was velvet

Thanks so much for sharing your experience! I had a feeling that the recommended dosage on the bottle might be on the low side. I just upped my dosage to about 55mg/gallon to be safe. I would hate to use it for a month only to find out it wasn't a strong enough dose.

I did have another question. I plan on adding more fish about two months from today. Of course I will quarantine them and for Ich will probably do the TTM plus Prazipro for flukes. I am treating my display tank. Will it be safe to add the fish to the display tank after they are done with quarantine? Will all Ich/Velvet be killed after treatment with CP?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Dmorty217]

You use Ick Shield at double the recommended dose?

I don't follow the per scoop dose or the .6 for 20g or whatever the bottle reads. I had done this and after 3 weeks would notice behavioral issues that lead me to believe the meds at that dosage wasn't working. I got the dosages I use out of the marine feeding and health handbook and also Nogas fish disease book 2nd edition. The books recommend 10mg/L for preventative and 15mg/L for active infections. I round up to 4L equals 1 gallon (which it doesn't quite) and have been doing this for the past few months now. The banner fish and Venustus were in what the bottle recommends for 3 weeks then I didn't like the behavior I witnessed (twitching, somewhat erratic movements) so I upped the dose and treated another 3 weeks. Everything handled it great. My Griffis pair and Gem tang both went straight into the CP at 60mg/g

 

[Dmorty217]

Thanks so much for sharing your experience! I had a feeling that the recommended dosage on the bottle might be on the low side. I just upped my dosage to about 55mg/gallon to be safe. I would hate to use it for a month only to find out it wasn't a strong enough dose.

I did have another question. I plan on adding more fish about two months from today. Of course I will quarantine them and for Ich will probably do the TTM plus Prazipro for flukes. I am treating my display tank. Will it be safe to add the fish to the display tank after they are done with quarantine? Will all Ich/Velvet be killed after treatment with CP?

Thanks in advance!

If there are fish in the DT now while you are treating, yes the ich will be gone in the DT after the treatment. Is there sand in the DT? I have had trouble treating fish in a tank that has sand in the past. Seems the sand absorbs the CP some, or something similar happens when sand is present

 

[eshtog]

If there are fish in the DT now while you are treating, yes the ich will be gone in the DT after the treatment. Is there sand in the DT? I have had trouble treating fish in a tank that has sand in the past. Seems the sand absorbs the CP some, or something similar happens when sand is present

Yep, unfortunately I do have sand. But, at this point I am willing to roll the dice. My plan to partially offset this is to do larger water changes every 3 days. I have sand in my DP and Marinepure blocks in my sump. You can see pics of my set up by clicking this link: https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=!AFDw0bI5UBgtyAI&id=FD1ABED786C6C909!45895&cid=FD1ABED786C6C909

 

[Newms118]

So new issue guys, I have a flasher wrasse in the QT tank with my diseased chromis. Dont have a way to separate them. So I plan on trying metronidazole (Metroplex) first to see if I can fix the chromis. (BTW the chromis has had a red spot/bruise for 7 days and still acting fine, not sure if it is even uronema). So this post says to treat metro at 34 mg/L:
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2388437

I have 15 gallons of water, so that dose is 129 mg/gallon or 1 gram and 935 mg of metroplex. Is that right?? That seems like a huge amount of drug.


What is the normal dosage for metroplex? Or is it just high because its treating the water and not internally administered?

 

[Newms118]

I don't follow the per scoop dose or the .6 for 20g or whatever the bottle reads. I had done this and after 3 weeks would notice behavioral issues that lead me to believe the meds at that dosage wasn't working. I got the dosages I use out of the marine feeding and health handbook and also Nogas fish disease book 2nd edition. The books recommend 10mg/L for preventative and 15mg/L for active infections. I round up to 4L equals 1 gallon (which it doesn't quite) and have been doing this for the past few months now. The banner fish and Venustus were in what the bottle recommends for 3 weeks then I didn't like the behavior I witnessed (twitching, somewhat erratic movements) so I upped the dose and treated another 3 weeks. Everything handled it great. My Griffis pair and Gem tang both went straight into the CP at 60mg/g

Have you treated any wrasses with CP? Like McCosker's flasher wrasse?

 

[jmm]

So, the question that I have is:

Does the Ick Shield treat the tank at the same time it treats the fish? In other words, is the tank safe for ick-free fish after you have cured the ones in it?

 

[eshtog]

So, the question that I have is:

Does the Ick Shield treat the tank at the same time it treats the fish? In other words, is the tank safe for ick-free fish after you have cured the ones in it?

This was answered in post #145 of this thread. The answer is yes the ich should be gone.

 

[monkiboy]

So, the question that I have is:

Does the Ick Shield treat the tank at the same time it treats the fish? In other words, is the tank safe for ick-free fish after you have cured the ones in it?

i'd be inclined to say no. the effectiveness of this product, anecdotally anyway, has been shared hit or miss. the purity of it not substantiated especially it being chinese CP. if worked with vet prescribed CP, then you still need to provide more information about your system that you are treating in. if you have rock and/or sand or other components that may take up the CP, it can very well fall below therapeutic ranges and therefore not make the tank "safe" for parasite-free fish.

 

[Dmorty217]

Have you treated any wrasses with CP? Like McCosker's flasher wrasse?

Flasher wrasse don't do well in CP. I have treated a Melanarus several times with CP with no Ill side affects. I know of at least one other account that the Melanarus didn't survive the treatment

 

[Dmorty217]

So, the question that I have is:

Does the Ick Shield treat the tank at the same time it treats the fish? In other words, is the tank safe for ick-free fish after you have cured the ones in it?

If the Infected fish that were treated in the system don't get reinfected after CP has been removed for 30 days, then yes the tank is good for all fish that are indeed ich free

 

[jmm]

If the Infected fish that were treated in the system don't get reinfected after CP has been removed for 30 days, then yes the tank is good for all fish that are indeed ich free

Yay! I used the CP at instructed strength, turned off the protein skimmer, carbon, and GFO. I started to remove the snails, since no one seemed to know whether or not they would make it, and then realized if I put them in any other tank, they might have the parasites on them, so I put them back. I figured the hermits and shrimp would eat them when they died. The first day many of them crawled out of the water, but the next day they went back in and they have been behaving normally for a couple of days now.

The fish cleared right up on day one and has resumed normal behavior. I've kept the lights off except for room lights. I'll start water changes, protein skimming and carbon/GFO filtering after 21 days. Then, if nothing comes back for 30 days, I will put the new fish that are now in quarantine into this tank.

Thanks DMorty for a clear and uncomplicated explanation. You're the man.

 

[Dmorty217]

Yay! I used the CP at instructed strength, turned off the protein skimmer, carbon, and GFO. I started to remove the snails, since no one seemed to know whether or not they would make it, and then realized if I put them in any other tank, they might have the parasites on them, so I put them back. I figured the hermits and shrimp would eat them when they died. The first day many of them crawled out of the water, but the next day they went back in and they have been behaving normally for a couple of days now.

The fish cleared right up on day one and has resumed normal behavior. I've kept the lights off except for room lights. I'll start water changes, protein skimming and carbon/GFO filtering after 21 days. Then, if nothing comes back for 30 days, I will put the new fish that are now in quarantine into this tank.

Thanks DMorty for a clear and uncomplicated explanation. You're the man.

The snails not dying worries me. IME all inverts without a exoskeleton die (if they don't molt) I would do a 21 day treatment minimum, I personally leave the fish in the meds longer than the 21 days the bottle says (no set time longer per say but always additional days)

 

[Salty150]

Hmm... the directions say it will not harm inverts...

 

[jmm]

The snails not dying worries me. IME all inverts without a exoskeleton die (if they don't molt) I would do a 21 day treatment minimum, I personally leave the fish in the meds longer than the 21 days the bottle says (no set time longer per say but always additional days)

Well, it's only been 4 days. Maybe they will die. I fully intend to stick to the 21 days before trying to get rid of the chemical and then, like you said, 30 more days of clear skin and fins on the one fish left in there before putting the new fish in the tank.

I notice you dose stronger than the directions. Do you think New Life Spectrum scaled it back so it doesn't kill the snails?

 

[Dmorty217]

Well, it's only been 4 days. Maybe they will die. I fully intend to stick to the 21 days before trying to get rid of the chemical and then, like you said, 30 more days of clear skin and fins on the one fish left in there before putting the new fish in the tank.

I notice you dose stronger than the directions. Do you think New Life Spectrum scaled it back so it doesn't kill the snails?

I'm not sure about that. The two disease books I have say 15mg/L for active infections and 10mg/L for a preventative. I assume all fish have active infections and treat them regardless as if they do. Has worked well for me thus far. I have killed snails with CP before so I know they don't survive it. Not sure about starfish but I don't think they fair well either. Corals definitely not

 

[Newms118]

Alright boys and girls, just added NLS ich shield powder to my QT tank. Did 600 mg into 15 gallon (the 40 mg/gallon dose). Here goes nothing.

 

[jmm]

I'm not sure about that. The two disease books I have say 15mg/L for active infections and 10mg/L for a preventative. I assume all fish have active infections and treat them regardless as if they do. Has worked well for me thus far. I have killed snails with CP before so I know they don't survive it. Not sure about starfish but I don't think they fair well either. Corals definitely not

Well the snails did die after 5 days. I'm now on day 7 and I noticed the filter socks needed replacing. As you may remember, I had the lights out, turned off the protein skimmer and had discontinued carbon and GFO filtering. What I had forgotten was a small bag of Purigen in one of the filter socks. I'm wondering if that reduced the CP concentration. The fish is still clear, the snails are now dead and the algae (what little there was) is now a lifeless gel.

But, guess what. There were large copepods (or amphipods) in the filter socks and they were very much alive. They look like shrimp so maybe they have an exoskeleton. What do you think?