Freshwater dip HOWTO

[Mihai]

I know that it's a good idea to give freshwater dips to fish and corals (right?) before they go into quarantine. Say 5 minutes. (Of course, skip this for other inverts) But before I give the dip I need to make sure that the temperature and pH match with the one in the bag. Temperature is easy. Assuming that the bag has 8.2 pH, (or 8 ), how much baking soda do I need to add to pure freshwater (RO/DI) to make it 8.2 (or 8 )?

Thanks,
Mihai

 

[Anonymous]

IMO a freshwater dip on corals is too stressful and doesn't do anything for fish.

 

[Mihai]

Oh... are you alone? All books I've read preach about freshwater (and/or iodine) dips...

I thought it may knock off some parasites on fish (ich, the velvet, etc.) and some pests in corals (flatworms, maybe even the red bugs)...

What I can tell you is that freshwater dip in a coral with RTN doesn't stop it. That's about the limit of my experience with freshwater dips.

Mihai

 

[SnowManSnow]

the only time ive ever done a FW dip was to rid a cup coral of flatworms, and that was only 20 secs or so. I would think a 5 min fw dip would be EXTREAMLY stressful.

B

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah, same here, I have only done the FW dip to kill flatworms, which works quite well!

If it's going into a Q tank anyway, why stress it by dipping? In the unlikely event that something pops up, deal with it in the Q tank.

 

[Anonymous]

I have used freshwater dips to try and remove parasites - it has been a long time though. If you are putting the in a Q T what is the point in the freshwater dip?

 

[Mihai]

Well, my QT doesn't have the lights of my display (not even close) and, thus, it's inapropriate for photosynthetic corals. At the same time I'm a bit freaked that I may get the acro bugs and I'd like to avoid it if possible.

Also, my QT is setup like a small nano now, and I already got flatworms in it - I can't really get rid of them as I'd like.

Anyway, I got the point about corals and freshwater dips - will not do.
I thought that the practice is widely spread (like everybody except the noobs do it). It seems that I was way off base.

M.

 

[Anonymous]

Did you see this thread? Something new from Terry B. for acclimating fish.

http://www.reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.p ... highlight=

 

[Mihai]

Thanks, I read the article. However, it assumes that I own of a calibrated pH monitor :-( .

M.

 

[Rob Top]

When I do fw dips I use 1 part of a 2pt Ca sublement to increase the Ph. Works very well for that purpose. I always add iodine to the water. 5 drops per gal. The only corals I use this on are transshipped, and only if there is signs of tissue damage. If the coral was not shipped that long, or shows no signs of tissue damage I don't FW dip

 

[Mihai]

That's what I was thinking as well: I can use the Alk part of the B-ionic to increase the pH. But do you have any idea how much do I need to use to increase the pH to 8.2? (for example, 200 meq/l for one liter of water).

Thanks,
Mihai

 

[pwj1286]

I had a Sailfin Tang that had a bad case of ICK (I got him from PetCo, I felt terriable for it. They treat their tanks like crap, go figure!) and did a fresh water (RO water) dip to get all of those white spots off.

I did it for three minutes. Then put him back into a clean quartine tank. Never had ick again.
_________________
Lung / Respiratory Disorders Forum

 

[JennM]

Freshwater dip for ectoparasites on fish... try to aim for temp but don't worry about pH - in fact a change in pH is a good thing to shock and kill parasites. A 5-7 minute dip is great to remove gill flukes. I do this routinely in my shop without ill effects. Freshwater baths are our first line of defence for most minor infestations and are quite effective.

A 1-minute or less dip on corals removes flatworms and leather-eating nudibranchs. I wouldn't dip corals any longer than that.

Iodine dips for disinfection should be done in saltwater for corals. I like Tech D for this, or Lugol's at 40 drops to a gallon of saltwater. Dip for no longer than 7 minutes and discard the water afterward (don't put it in the tank!!! Some folks have done that - doh!).

HTH

Jenn

 

[pwj1286]

Freshwater dip for ectoparasites on fish... try to aim for temp but don't worry about pH - in fact a change in pH is a good thing to shock and kill parasites.
Jenn

I agree...I have read in several places and been told by a few people that this is best.

For fish a seperate tank with UV and water treatments for parasites is another option. A week of that then a couple of water changes of new saltwater and eventually no water treaments for parasites. Then move it back to the main tank.

Long but sure fire way to keep down ick and others.
_________________
Bushmaster 2000

 

[Rob Top]

not sure how much alk i used. i just kept adding, and testing the ph. sorry

 

[JennM]

If one is having ongoing parasite problems I'd first want to figure out the cause, fix that, and then worry about treating the symptoms.

BTW any advice I give is what I DO, not what I've read No slam on anybody here but I've seen many instances of people repeating what they've heard or read... for what it's worth I only offer up what I do that works for me (or doesn't work as the case may be.)

If there are ongoing issues with parasites, first look at the source of your fish - are you inadvertantly buying sick fish? Quarantine *should* be standard practice for hobbyists but I live in the real world and I know that most people don't. So having said that, be sure of your sources.

If the fish are becoming sick after entering your care, examine your system for possible stressors - aggression from other fishes, insufficient quiet/dark time at night, possible stray voltage, water quality, diet and other factors can stress a fish to the point of succumbing to illness.

UV and medications are "band-aid" solutions. Fix the actual cause and you shouldn't have any more problems.

HTH

Jenn