Question from the cold North, Aloha from Norway:)

[Paalk]

This is my first post here ever so be gentle with a humble viking which has another native tongue hence excuse me if my English is poor... I have been a passive reader of this forum for a loooong time and I still learn a lot from it so thank you all!

I have been in the hobby since 1986 and believe it or not I have never had a fatal outbreak of any disease of any kind, in the early days over here we where happy if the fish survived more than 6 months anyway cause of all the bad methods which they used during collection like cyanide etc. Plus of course very limited choices in regards to equipment etc, I remember my first skimmer was 210cm tall with a wooden airstone in the bottom of it and that was at the time the best news to the hobby we could dream of but still not very good he he.

Anyway to the point, I have had a massive outbreak of some kind of disease which I have not been able to identify properly even with help from Norwegian salmon veterinarians but there are theories. We think it is a cocktail of parasites which have entered the tank in a mysterious way. I have had signs of itch(irritans), oodium( is that the right term?) and even black spots and bloated bellies maybe also brooklynella if that's what it's called. As of right now I have lost almost everything in the tank, and the tank I am talking about is a Red Sea S-Line 500:-/ All which is left is a file fish, two yellow tangs, one six line wrasse, one Dorry and three Blue chromis so it is fair to say I am devastated but still determined to save the rest of my loved ones
This is what I have done today: Bought myself a Red Sea Max 130D to use as a hospital tank cause my 40l quarantine tank is way to small for the fish which is left. After that I plan to tear the whole thing down and start it up again. Does this sound ok? I don't want to leave it for like 3 months with water in it to make sure all parasites are gone. So I thought just emptying the whole thing is the best way to go, I have had friends over here who have had the tank going with no more than water and rock after an outbreak for as long as 6 months just to experience a new outbreak 3 weeks after re-introduction of the fish. And I don't want that. Do you guys agree on my thoughts regarding this? If you do what would you use as a cleaning agent after the whole tank is empty to make sure there is none of the parasite buggers left.

Sorry for the long post but this is something I would appreciate some feedback on as disease is something I have been spared for in the past and because of that limited experience is my culprit, but I guess there is a first time for everything.
On the forehand thanks for any input.

 

[Deinonych]

A mild (10%) bleach solution is the best way to ensure the tank and equipment is sterilized. Just make sure you rinse everything thoroughly before using again.

 

[Paalk]

Ok, thanks Chris. Any thoughts regarding doing it that way instead of leaving it with water?

 

[Deinonych]

If you leave it fallow (without fish), you need to do that for 10-12 weeks so the parasites will die off. I have had to do that, and it's no fun staring at an empty tank, even if it does have some inverts. If I were ever faced with it again (which I plan to never be), I would probably break everything down, sterilize and start from scratch. I figure 6-8 weeks for a new tank to cycle beats 10-12.

But, to each his own.

 

[Paalk]

This is exactly what I'm thinking, and the best thing about it is that there is probably no chance of another outbreak if your quarantine routines are meticulous. I am probably going to loose all fish no matter what I do( it seems like it) I lost a hippo, flame angel and a yellow surgeon today so now the tank is a pretty sorry sight.

So my plan is to get the new Max up today and fill that up with the new fish and have them going there during cycling of the torn down tank. Any suggestions on which meds i should put into the QT tank?

Another thing i am wondering about is, can the parasites live in a sponge filter or is that safe to move from the DT to the QT to have some biological filtration in the QT from day one?

 

[Deinonych]

For QT, I typically do two Prazipro treatments at 5 days each, followed by 4 weeks of chloroquine phosphate at 10mg/l (40mg/gal). Only exception to this (so far) is Paracheilinus spp. wrasses, which do not seem to tolerate CP (I have lost a few within days of administering CP). For wrasses, I now do my normal Prazipro treatement followed by an 8 week minimum observation period. If they show signs of crypto or amyloodinium, I treat with Cupramine.

Parasite cysts can definitely attach to a sponge filter, so I would not reuse that in a QT. If you need a quick biofilter, I have had good luck with Biospira. Hopefully it, or a similar product, is available in Norway.

 

[Mrscribbled]

Make sure when using bleach to sterilize, it's fresh. Chlorine will leach out of the jugs over time. The caps are vented. I prefer a 25% solution.

+1 on the bio spira. Many of the other bacteria products are cultured land bacteria and will not colonize. Bio Spira is the same Patent as Dr. TIM'S ONE and Only. Both work great.

 

[Paalk]

I have obtained some Zeolit bac culture, any experience?