MrTuskfish
Team RC
Good stuff! Why doesn't it surprise me?
Well, I think I have Ich!
- Thread starter Patrick Cox
- Start date
Good stuff! Why doesn't it surprise me?
Patrick Cox
Active member
OK, thanks. That sounds like a logical answer.
SaltwaterAdict
New member
There is no way possible to have a tank free of ich. I don't care who tells you it's possible it's really not. If you are a person like me who adds fish quite often a fish is bound to transfer a white dot into the dt regardless of what you do. I've seen people take the most drastic approaches on RC trying everything and it never works. They'll end up saying after all this time I've devoted trying to have a tank free of ich it ended up showing up.
Saltwater ich is not something to be overly concerned about. As long as you feed your fish healthy food and maintain pristine water quality I don't see any issue with ich being in the system. You just have to accept it's there. UV sterilizers will not kill ich only the free floating cysts which make it's way into them and even then it's not always certain they will get zapped.
Also, do not try any of those products that say they're reef safe. Most are not and usually do more harm than good.
In the future, if you purchase a new fish it wouldn't hurt to put him in an "established" QT and observe him. I only qt fish because I don't like to risk transfering fungal infections etc into the dt. I don't qt fish for Ich. If I purchase the fish from a friend who has a tank setup and know the fish doesn't have any diseases I'll put him directly into the dt.
Most any new fish will get ich because they lose their slim coat due to the stress of transporting him from one place to another and will be susceptible to ich at this time. No need to panic just simply feed the fish a healthy diet and he'll rebound in short time. I actually think it's "good" that fish are expose to ich, as crazy as it sounds because they will build up an immunity to it and if something ever goes wrong down the road like a temperature change, ph change, etc then your fish has already dealt with it before thus allow him to cope easily rather than being exposed to it for basically the first "real" time.
Good luck HTH
Saltwater ich is not something to be overly concerned about. As long as you feed your fish healthy food and maintain pristine water quality I don't see any issue with ich being in the system. You just have to accept it's there. UV sterilizers will not kill ich only the free floating cysts which make it's way into them and even then it's not always certain they will get zapped.
Also, do not try any of those products that say they're reef safe. Most are not and usually do more harm than good.
In the future, if you purchase a new fish it wouldn't hurt to put him in an "established" QT and observe him. I only qt fish because I don't like to risk transfering fungal infections etc into the dt. I don't qt fish for Ich. If I purchase the fish from a friend who has a tank setup and know the fish doesn't have any diseases I'll put him directly into the dt.
Most any new fish will get ich because they lose their slim coat due to the stress of transporting him from one place to another and will be susceptible to ich at this time. No need to panic just simply feed the fish a healthy diet and he'll rebound in short time. I actually think it's "good" that fish are expose to ich, as crazy as it sounds because they will build up an immunity to it and if something ever goes wrong down the road like a temperature change, ph change, etc then your fish has already dealt with it before thus allow him to cope easily rather than being exposed to it for basically the first "real" time.
Good luck HTH
SaltwaterAdict
New member
Yeah, no problem man. Glad to be of help. 
rssjsb
New member
The issue with the "I can't see it so it's not a problem" school of thought is that no one's tank is "perfect," at least not forever. When you have a hiccup -- conflicts that develop between fish, heater failure, skimmer going on the blink, topoff sticking, etc., add a new fish that turns out to have flukes -- the "invisible" ich can show up again with a vengeance and wipe out your whole tank surprisingly quickly. I've experienced it, and it's horrible.
Saltwater Addict's sig line says it all (even though he apparently hasn't hit this particular wall yet). If you haven't run into these types of hiccups you haven't been doing this very long.
If you're just starting out, I would suggest that you look on craigslist for a cheap used 30 or 40 gallon tank to keep around for a quarantine/hospital tank.
Please bear in mind that none of us is perfect. I haven't always followed my own advice. I've always been reluctant to pull fish out of the display for the same reasons you cite. In the end, though, it's not nearly as bad as "starting over." Get your fish into a hospital tank, treat them, and you'll feel much better. QT everything. So much better than watching your fish get sick.
Saltwater Addict's sig line says it all (even though he apparently hasn't hit this particular wall yet). If you haven't run into these types of hiccups you haven't been doing this very long.
If you're just starting out, I would suggest that you look on craigslist for a cheap used 30 or 40 gallon tank to keep around for a quarantine/hospital tank.
Please bear in mind that none of us is perfect. I haven't always followed my own advice. I've always been reluctant to pull fish out of the display for the same reasons you cite. In the end, though, it's not nearly as bad as "starting over." Get your fish into a hospital tank, treat them, and you'll feel much better. QT everything. So much better than watching your fish get sick.
MrTuskfish
Team RC
I agree completely with the above two posts. The quote" QT everything" is THE secret to an ich free tank, IMO. Ich can arrive on a shared net, coral frag, even a snail. I've had to completely tear down a 240 in order to eliminate ich---never again.
MCCOOL
Active member
While I agree, everyones entitled to their own opinion, this statement is simply not true. It's very possible to have a tank free of ich. Just qt absolutely everything thats going into your tank, including rock, inverts, corals and fish.
If you let the rock, corals and inverts sit in a fishless tank for 8 weeks, and treat all fish, you'll avoid introducing the parasite.
Edit: looks like MrTuskfish beat me to it, I agree with him for sure.
MrTuskfish
Team RC
wet reefer
New member
Patrick Cox
Active member
Well, I thought I would follow up on this thread. I was out of town for a few days with my wife and daughter watching the tank and in that time, my Kole Tang and my Bartlett's anthias both died. These were the two new fish that I recently introduced to the tank. My two clowns are still alive but I can see they both have Ich. My cardinal does not appear to have Ich. I am now thinking that I need to remove the three remaining fish from my tank. So am I understanding correctly that if my tank remains fish free for a period of time that the Ich will die? So corals, crabs and snails are not able to "host" Ich? Then I obviously need to quarantine and treat any new fish before being introduced.
Not good news. But I won't make this mistake again!
Thanks,
Pat
Not good news. But I won't make this mistake again!
Thanks,
Pat
Patrick Cox
Active member
Another question - The LFS owner told me today that the introduction of a fish with Ich should not cause an existing healthy fish to die and therefore there must be something else going on in my tank. I find this hard to believe because my two clowns and cardinal seemed to be very healthy and active fish before the tang brought Ich into my tank and I have now lost one clown and the other is not far behind. So, is it possible or even to be expected that if one fish shows signs of Ich that the other will catch it and possibly die because of it?
Thanks!
Thanks!
ezhoops
New member
if one fish in your setup has ich all your fish in your tank have ich. the ich will continue to live in your tank until the tank is fishless and without any additions for at least 8 weeks. Then and only then would I add anything (after proper QT of course)
to answer your question another way. YES!!!
to answer your question another way. YES!!!
Patrick Cox
Active member
Well, that's it. One Kole Tang with Ich killed every fish in my tank in just over one month. The tang, bartlett's anthias, two clowns and one cardinal. The interesting part about it is that my elegance coral has never looked better and I am finally growing coraline algae. The LFS guy is trying to tell me there must be something else going on in my tank because the ich should not kill previously healthy fish but it just doesn't add up. So, how long should I leave my tank empty of fish before adding new fish? Also, anything else I should do or consider?
Here is what I currently have in my tank...
Elegance Coral
Tube Anemone
brain coral
two zoanthids
Akan
Duncan
LR & LS
10 or so crabs
3-5 snails
Thanks!
Pat
Here is what I currently have in my tank...
Elegance Coral
Tube Anemone
brain coral
two zoanthids
Akan
Duncan
LR & LS
10 or so crabs
3-5 snails
Thanks!
Pat
lhm nole
New member
Since you have no fish I would go fallow at least 8 weeks. Imo adding a fish with ich to a establish tank that has fish is a disaster waiting to happen imo.
Years ago I had a fowlr 240 and all my fish were doing great no ich flashing flukes, one day went to a new store that just opened and saw a male square pink anthias that I had to have he was in a system that had other fish that had ich but I was arrogant and bought because I felt my tank was perfect and he would not cause any issues in my tank well I was WRONG, within 2 weeks I had a full ich break out that I treated aggressively with coppersafe and ended up losing the anthias but was able to save everyone else all the fish look like someone sprinkled salt all over them.
So be careful if you buy fish from a chain store or any store that runs a fish system that is connected together, look at all the fish if one has ich they all have it thats where proper qt will prevail.
Well said "“ after many years of experience and multiple outbreaks of ich, I have only lost a few fish. Mostly the ones prone to the disease in the first place i.e. an Achilles tang (those d@mn things.)
I keep my fish well fed and the water quality high and they all recover. Although the parasite might still be in the tank "“ the parasite is not a problem.
I keep my fish well fed and the water quality high and they all recover. Although the parasite might still be in the tank "“ the parasite is not a problem.
rssjsb
New member
This is an odd thing to say here, given the OP's experience. As I said upthread, there are very few of us who can guarantee no bumps in the road that could cause ich to spiral out of control. I (and I suspect most of the other posters on this thread) have had the same false sense of security that you describe based on ich that cropped up then seemed to resolve itself. Then something happens and things go south faster than you can imagine. It's a hard lesson to learn.
Here is the synthesis of what everyone here has said: Ich is not a problem, until it is. Do your best to prevent it (QT, etc.), and be prepared if you fail.
