HYPOSALINITY how low to go?

[john f]

From my understanding salinity of 14-15ppt is the proper treatment range. This is above the internal salinity for boney reef fish so you are not hurting the fish.
Sharks and Rays are a different story.
As for what specific gravity you will need to find a chart and convert from 14ppt for your temp.
At 1.019 you have not cured the fish of cryptocaryon. They still have it, maybe just at a subclinical level.

John

 

[jwtrojan44]

The salinity can be dropped to 1.009 in just 48 hours with no ill effects to the fish. I just completed hypo with a small purple tang. You need to restore the salinity at a slower rate, over a period of 4-5 days. You don't want to raise it in just two days as that would be too stressful.

 

[MandarinFish]

dry their food out

soak it in garlic extract (Kyolic drops, for example) and fish vitamins (many brands, all have good vitamins in them)

when dry, feed to your fish

This has helped me... my female true percula was "itching" herself against rocks. She no longer does.

 

[FMarini]

Iron:
hypo to eliminate ich requirre salinity levels at 1.009. To ensure your salinity is correct, you'll need either a calibrated floating hydrometer or a refractometer. Most swing arm hydrometers are innacurate.
W/ that said JW is right on the money. Lower your salinity over a 2days period (4-6 water changes) w/ buffered water. Keep it there. Once you've reach 1.009 then start counting down days (30days). Just a word of note, once 1 fish has ich, all your fish have ich. They just aren't showing it. Might want to treat everyone.
After 30days increase the salinity back to normal levels over 5-10days.
frank

 

[IronChef]

I want to treat my my fish for ick using lowered salinity instead of copper. I want to do this in a hospital tank, and I want to keep them there for 30 days (to make sure the ick in my main tank is dead right?. I have a sterilizer running in the hospital tank and the signs of ick are minimal but not completly gone, after a week my sg is down to about .019 from .023 but lfs said go to .015. Is this right and how long can I keep my fish at that level without harming them.

 

[Anonymous]

Years ago I used to keep my fish at 1.019 ALL THE TIME! So this isn't doing squat for you. You need to drop it down to 1.009.
Jim

 

[IronChef]

I realize that I need to go lower( because there is still a small amout of ich on my fish) so you suggest .009. At what point do the fish become unhappy and how long should I take to go that low?
The Ich has already receeded so I dont feel the fish are in danger from ich, therefore I dont feel rushed to make drastic changes. Just a suggested timeline would help.
Thanks

 

[IronChef]

FM, thanks for the info,
I have all of my fish(6) in a hospital tank but only have a swing arm to measure salinity. I think it says calibratied at 78 degrees but I will look agian. Also Im running a Sterilizer Im pretty sure that has helped alot in the smaller hospital tank, I dont think with the slow pump it got enough of the main tank water passed through to help much.

 

[dizzy]

I would like to read some discussion on the recommended hyposalinity levels for dealer systems. There was some discussion on the subject on the AMDA forum, but I think degenerated into a flame war. How do you sell fish to people with typical salinites near 1.023, if they are kept at 1.009? Would it be best to quarantine for at least two weeks and then move them to normal salinity systems prior to selling? What if ich gets past the quarantine process (and we all know it does sometimes) then what should you do. How do hobbyists want lfs to handle the fish? Hypo, garlic, copper, natural systems, UV or what?

 

[stevebydac]

Dizzy,
As a hobbyist my main concern is getting fish that are parasite-free and as unstressed as possible. My suggestion is to run lfs tanks at approx. 1.015 salinity and with copper. Running them at 1.009 could cause problems for newer hobbyists who don't acclimate fish slowly enough upon arrival home (though I know from experience that that level certainly works to help eradicate parasites). Use the copper as a second weapon as well. While we can all agree that the less copper the better, having some short-term at the lfs is better than selling a sick fish that might infect a home tank (where copper is more likely to be misused). Lastly, ease stress at the lfs. Separate fish as much as possible to prevent the fear/chasing/injuries, etc. that contribute to some of these problems in the first place.

 

[Lynn]

How inaccurate are the swinging arm gravity meters? I looked at a refrachometer here and they wanted $289.00 (cdn) .. thats crazy!

 

[EmilyB]

Lynn, you can get a (temp adjusted) refract online, US via mail much cheaper.

BTW, my SeaTest are right on, when I keep them clean.

 

[Lynn]

Thanks,
Also, at what salinity do fish start dieing?? 1.009 kills ich. What kills the fish 1.008???if thats the case, I'd have to say thats running a little close for my liking??

 

[Lynn]

Also meant to ask EmilyB where can I get the type your talking about? and what exactly are they called?
thx

 

[Anonymous]

i've got a question re: this whole ich/salinity thing:

my understanding has always been that the encysted phase of the parasite is fairly indestructible, and that most treatments deal with the killing of the cilliate stage.
does the hyposalinity actually kill the cilliate, or does it cause the fish to 'push' it off of it's gills and body, by changing the osmotic pressure of the fish's body relative to the water?(and thereby starving the cilliate, breaking it's life cycle?)

 

[dizzy]

i've got a question re: this whole ich/salinity thing:

my understanding has always been that the encysted phase of the parasite is fairly indestructible, and that most treatments deal with the killing of the cilliate stage.
does the hyposalinity actually kill the cilliate, or does it cause the fish to 'push' it off of it's gills and body, by changing the osmotic pressure of the fish's body relative to the water?(and thereby starving the cilliate, breaking it's life cycle?)

vitz that is a good question. I think Martin Moe Jr. was one of the first people to promote the use of a freshwater dip to kill parasites in Beginner to Breeder. I also remember reading later where Martin realized the dip did not explode the parasites as he first believed, but only that it made them fall off the fish, and that they were still alive. This is pure fresh we are talking about not hyposalinity (1.009) and it is for a much shorter period of time. Hopefully someone is out there lurking that can answer your question.