Ich won't kill fish?!

r.bergonia19 · May 20, 2016

Hey guys I got ich in my reef tank for a month or longer and my two fish died two weeks ago and I still have a yellow tail scissor damsel that doesn't have any white spot but I see him sometimes flash to the rocks. He is eating like a pig. My question is, is he gonna be ok and fight off the ich and can I put other fishes in the tank after a month?

rayn · May 20, 2016

Well....you need to QT him and let the tank go fallow. The QT all new fish. Time line is 76 days of a fallow DT. Any new addition is at risk of infection and not making it.

kgeig001 · May 20, 2016

It's just that his immune system is strong and was able to keep it at bay. He may still develop it but it's definitely still in the tank. You need to starve it out. Rayn's right, qt the damsel and go fallow in DT for 76 days.

Rob.D · May 20, 2016

Good advice ^^^^^^^^^

FishOfHex · May 20, 2016

r.bergonia19 said:
Hey guys I got ich in my reef tank for a month or longer and my two fish died two weeks ago and I still have a yellow tail scissor damsel that doesn't have any white spot but I see him sometimes flash to the rocks. He is eating like a pig. My question is, is he gonna be ok and fight off the ich and can I put other fishes in the tank after a month?

Ich doesnt alway kill fish but it sure does make life hell, I recommend you get your remaining fish out of the tank and in hypo salinity. Ich really starts to take its toll on weaken immune systems and im sure in time all your fish will die from it. Ich is one of the easiest things to prevent with patience and a quarantine system.

melypr1985 · May 20, 2016

All good advice above. The one thing I would suggest is not using Hypo to treat for ich since there are several hypo resistant strains out there and also Hypo is hard to maintain correctly. CP, Copper and TTM are much better for treating ich with TTM (tank transfer method) being my personal favorite. As long as you have a fish in you DT the ich will remain. Your damsel is related to the clownfish and has a think slime coat that helps the damsel cope.

mikesilverado8888 · May 20, 2016

I don't qt my fish I just get the biggest uv I can put in my tank I run it 24-7 and I have no ich

saltyhog · May 21, 2016

UV won't eliminate ich. Either you have ich and don't know it or you have been lucky. No quarantine is like playing Russian Roulette, the end is usually the same...some just get to play the game longer than others.

tthouston · May 21, 2016

melypr1985 said:
All good advice above. The one thing I would suggest is not using Hypo to treat for ich since there are several hypo resistant strains out there and also Hypo is hard to maintain correctly. CP, Copper and TTM are much better for treating ich with TTM (tank transfer method) being my personal favorite. As long as you have a fish in you DT the ich will remain. Your damsel is related to the clownfish and has a think slime coat that helps the damsel cope.

With his issue, he can't use TTM because he doesn't has saltwater to do it and he can't use saltwater in display tank.

melypr1985 · May 21, 2016

tthouston said:
With his issue, he can't use TTM because he doesn't has saltwater to do it and he can't use saltwater in display tank.

He can't use saltwater in a saltwater tank? I think I'm confused now.

tthouston · May 21, 2016

melypr1985 said:
He can't use saltwater in a saltwater tank? I think I'm confused now.

Because saltwater in display tank had ICH parasite. He can use it for cooper treatment or hypo treatment but can not use for TTM treatment.
TTM treatment is just transfer from tank to tank with regular saltwater.

melypr1985 · May 21, 2016

tthouston said:
Because saltwater in display tank had ICH parasite

Ohhhh. I wasn't getting what you meant. So your saying he can't make saltwater or buy saltwater already made to set up a quarantine tank? Then the only option is to try hypo in the display or just live with it and only buy fish that have a thick slime coat and are naturally resistant to ick. While they are resistant, they still carry it in their gills and in some bad cases it will over take them.

http://reef2reef.com/threads/ich-eradication-vs-ich-management.188775/

tthouston · May 21, 2016

We can not put fishes in new mix saltwater or buy new saltwater in lfs....they will die. We need to use saltwater with bacteria in DT first then mix up with fresh saltwater later on.
After he finish whatever treatment beside TTM with fishes and with the tank then the next fish he buy, he can using TTM to treat the new fishes. At this time, he can using saltwater from DT for this metal.

BoneXriffic · May 21, 2016

Ive descovered, for someone like me having a hard time being able to do a qt tank was... i got lucky with my 4 fish and decided not to buy more lol.

TTM requires patience and the will to put the work it....it is probally best method i have seen but not for anyone without patience imo

melypr1985 · May 21, 2016

tthouston said:
We can not put fishes in new mix saltwater or buy new saltwater in lfs....they will die. We need to use saltwater with bacteria in DT first then mix up with fresh saltwater later on.

That's not true. You can use fresh mixed saltwater to set up a QT and dose a bacteria in a bottle product for the filter to get that started. Then you have an ammonia alert badge to keep track of the ammonia build up which will let you know when to do water changes. Please read this link.

http://reef2reef.com/threads/how-to-quarantine.189815/

tthouston · May 21, 2016

melypr1985 said:
That's not true. You can use fresh mixed saltwater to set up a QT and dose a bacteria in a bottle product for the filter to get that started. Then you have an ammonia alert badge to keep track of the ammonia build up which will let you know when to do water changes. Please read this link.

http://reef2reef.com/threads/how-to-quarantine.189815/

you are right, I forgot about those product to setup with new fresh saltwater but that is risk also. I have been there with that kind of that product and I don't trust much. You can change new saltwater and some prime to reduce ammonia but those kind of prime can't reduce Nitrite. Fishes will die from here.
If you said fishes ready to put in the tank with fresh mix saltwater with that product then we don't need cycle the water anymore.

melypr1985 · May 21, 2016

tthouston said:
you are right, I forgot about those product to setup with new fresh saltwater but that is risk also. I have been there with that kind of that product and I don't trust much. You can change new saltwater and some prime to reduce ammonia but those kind of prime can't reduce Nitrite. Fishes will die from here.

You can't use prime with copper - which will have to happen if the other options arn't used. You'll just have to trust me when I say that water changes will be enough until the tank cycles. That's what the ammonia alert badge is for. It tells you when ammonia is present and you change the water before it turns into nitrite. Read the links I posted... they will help clarify a lot of this for you.

Tahoe61 · May 21, 2016

It's not the water that is cycled. The water column from an established tank carries very little of the beneficial bacteria. It's the mediums of filtration (sponge/floss/charcoal), substrate, rock that provide the needed beneficial bacteria in an adequate amount.

tthouston · May 21, 2016

I am not saying use prime then treat with cooper!!!

tthouston · May 21, 2016

melypr1985 said:
You'll just have to trust me when I say that water changes will be enough until the tank cycles. That's what the ammonia alert badge is for. It tells you when ammonia is present and you change the water before it turns into nitrite. Read the links I posted... they will help clarify a lot of this for you.

The cycle done has to pass from ammonia to nitrite then nitrate. Are you agree me about that?
Let me tell you this, doesn't matter how much water change, nitrite still staying HIGH over night and fishes can not handle that.