To copper or not to copper

[reefer44]

Its been a long time since i posted on this board so here it
goes.....I have worked at several wholesale and retail fish facilities (just as side jobs and as a kid) and some use copper and some dont. I always find it not very productive because whenever a fish is sold that has been introduced to copper it has trouble adjusting to the new tank. Also i have heard that copper rips apart fish gills....is this just a rumor or is there any physical damage that can be caused by copper?

Thanks,
Brad

 

[reefer44]

also not sure if this is a begginer question as far as treating fish only systems....so sry if it is......im a reef guy

 

[Paul B]

This is not a beginner question and has been debated for a long time. Copper like any medication in the wrong dosage will cause damaged gills, sores or death. Used correctly, it will clean a fish of ich in a couple of days with no adverse effects. Most fish in dealer's tanks are in copper. If they are not in copper they most likely have ich. I have used copper on thousands of fish for almost 40 years and never lost a fish due to copper. I lost hundreds because copper was not used fast enough.
Copper is the main reason there is a salt water hobby today. Without copper there would hardly be any fish for sale. In the seventees when this hobby started we had to keep copper in our tanks continousely. The fish lived just fine and died of old age.
Paul

 

[reefer44]

thanks for the information.......it seems that is the general census on the issue.... have u noticed any problems acclimating a fish from a copper system to a system void of copper. Also how do u think this effects the biological filtration???? It seems it would also kill most of the "helpful" bacteria.

Brad

 

[Paul B]

There are no effects of acclimating a fish to a system to no copper. If you buy a fish it is usually in copper so when you put it in your tank, there is no copper, we do it all the time.
There have been debates about it killing the bacteria, I don't think it does anything much to the bacteria since I used it in my tank many times with no problem. In any case, the copper does not last long and any adverse effects to the bacteria will be short lived.
Paul

 

[phc567]

i thought using copper in a reef tank kills worms? i've never used copper. its just what i hear.

 

[Paul B]

You can't use copper in a reef tank, the question was if it kills bacteria. It kills worms and all invertabrates.
Paul