ich in my reef!

[Neal]

I have a new tank with some polyps zoos and shrooms but my fish appear to be getting ich and i know i can't catch them all any suggestions?

 

[Neal]

oh ya I do have a uv steralizer hooked up I heard that helps

 

[Reefman150]

Garlic! They say you are what you eat, and in the fish world, the garlic is supose to mask the fish so the ICK does not see the fish as a host. A couple drops soaked in the food for a while before feeding has always done the trick for me. Within a day or two,...ICK gone.

 

[bhanson]

There are many diseases that look similar to one another. You should try to post a picture of your fish to make sure it is really ich. If you are sure it is ich (Cryptocaryon irritans) you will need to treat in a quarantine tank. The methods that work will kill inverts and corals. There are products like Kick Ich that are "reef safe" but I have used it and it does not work IME.

You will probably hear people tell at some point about hyposalinity treatment for Cryptocaryon irritans or "saltwater ich". At a salinity of 15 ppt or 1.011 SG ich fails to encysts (attach) and excysts (hatch) this will kill the ich. Most fish accept salnity swings if the changing happens gradually. Inverts will not live in this lowered salinity so it would have to be done in a QT. IMO copper treatments can be harsh to the fish but I guess either way can be hard for our aquatic friends.

In short:
If it is ich you will see the spots (which are tomites) as they encyst into the skin of the fish. At some point they will fall off and become free swimming and at that point you will not see the spots however they will return to the fish to continue the cycle. Crypto has a three stage life cycle only during one stage will you actually see them as spots on your fish.

Hope that helps

 

[Kevin1000]

Start setting up a QT large enough to hold all of your fish.

Unfortunately there are no reef safe ick treatment that consistently work and you are going to have to treat with copper (cupramine) or hyposalinity (use a refractometer).

While your setting up your Qt you can try soaking your food in garlic - might help but positive results are sporatic.

If you leave you show tank empty of fish for 60 days the ick in the tank should naturally cycle and die of starvation.

Heres a link that might help
http://www.petsforum.com/personal/trevo ... neich.html

Good luck.

 

[hillbilly]

The poor fish in that tank are doomed, a new tank with uncured live rock, only 5 weeks old. They have almost zero chance of survival!

 

[Baianotang]

You are dismissed!

 

[Neal]

They have almost zero chance of survival!

My levels have all came down to zero all fish survived two mandrins survived from set up through cycleing and are going strong today, huh go figure.

 

[Neal]

They have almost zero chance of survival!

My levels have all came down to zero all fish survived two mandrins survived from set up through cycling and are going strong today, huh go figure. :lol:

 

[Anonymous]

What species of fish do you have? What size tank? I'm in agreement with quarantine and hyposalinity. It is safe and effective if administered correctly. The UV is likely not doing much at all. Garlic is a better preventative than a cure so don't count on that to help.
If in fact the tank is young and unstable, your fish may be compromised to a degree, preventing their immune systems from adequately fighting off the parasite. I'd also encourage you not to get excited about short term success with any fish. Sadly, mandarins take a few months to die of starvation if there isn't lots of live rock and they are not taking prepared foods.
Do you have a quarantine tank?

 

[tah532]

My fish had ich last month as well, yet i just left them in the tank. I upped my temp. to 84 for a week then back down to 80 constant, also put a couple of cleaner shrimp in and for the last month all the fish have been visually ich free, healthy and energetic. I am sure the ich is still in the tank, but i am pretty sure ich is in every tank, its just how stressed the fish are for some reason or another. Mine was that my temp was too low, now everyone is happy and healthy. Although i am sure some of the pseudo-biologists on here will disagree!

 

[tah532]

by the way i got this tip from the owner of Coral Reef Aquarium here in Ft Wayne. He keeps his tanks at I think 82degrees and a low salinity all the time of like 14. He is very knowledgable. My temp used to be at only 75degrees and salinity at 24 until we chatted and now its 80degrees and about 18salinity. Give him a call or give it a shot.

 

[bhanson]

Most fish can accept lower salinity, but I would not try to keep corals and inverts in salinity that low.

 

[cdeakle]

PLEASE READ THIS:

http://www.petsforum.com/personal/trevo ... inity.html

I have rescued many different fish with ich and have never lost a single one when I used hyposalinity treatment. The above link walked me through the treatment perfectly.

You will have to get the fish out of your tank and leave the rock/corals/inverts in the show tank while you treat the fish in a hospital tank...

 

[qwiksilver]

Isn't the problem with ich that they drop off their hosts, lay eggs and die, and then the eggs hatch and you start all over again. So, if you take the fish out and treat them, but don't treat the main tank where the eggs are, don't you end up with the same problem in another few weeks or so? I've seen it lots of times where it comes back worse than before. So, if that is the case, wouldn't you WANT to treat the main tank as well, where the young hatch and reattach to the host. I thought that was the good think about ECOLIBRIUM. It is safe for corals, inv's, LR, etc, and you treat at all stages. Sure you gotta spend some cash, but you gotta do that anyway when you treat them in a QT. ??

 

[Neal]

I'd also encourage you not to get excited about short term success with any fish. Sadly, mandarins take a few months to die of starvation if there isn't lots of live rock and they are not taking prepared foods.


Ihave had two mandins a spotted and a sychadelic for over a year they eat brine and any mysis small enough to get down when I set up my 150 I broke down my 29 and move 25lbs live rock and live sand from there to 150 unfortunatly I had no place but the 150 for my mandrins, maroon clown,lawnmower,engineer goby and crabs to goso into the 150 they went with a temp starting at 67 when they were introduced a week later i added 100lbs more of UNCURED live rock. I know i should have been murder but I had no options. Here we are 6 1\2 weeks later 80 degree water levels are great fish seem better than ever eating great vibrant colors happy as can be from what I see. So for those who say you can't keep a mandrin in a less than perfect tank from my observations its all depending on the fish and my fish seem to be living under the never say die motto. So just remember fish are indivduals to they can survive if they want to or give up and die. So keep a your tank as good as yuo can and when things go to hell just hope you have a fighter not a quitter. TRy to buy fish with smiles and are making plans for the future not ones looking for the nearist route back to the ocean via a toilet.

P.S. did i go to far there? oh well live long live well don't waste your life in an empty shell :wink:

 

[bhanson]

Isn't the problem with ich that they drop off their hosts, lay eggs and die, and then the eggs hatch and you start all over again. So, if you take the fish out and treat them, but don't treat the main tank where the eggs are, don't you end up with the same problem in another few weeks or so?

Yes it is true Crypto has a three stage lifecycle like you described. If the newly hatched tomonts cant find a host within a few hours they will die. This will stop the lifecycle of ich in the show tank. The tomonts will not encysts inverts.

 

[Archer]

I have got same ich problem for my blue tang, ı use garlic water in the foods "tetra bits" ı have tried 2 weeks and 2 days ago my fish very happy there is no ich in his body. I think y use garlic this is a solution for your problem.