diseased display tank/what to do

[crete456]

hello to all and happy healthy new year!!!after dodging using a QT for all this while tragedy finally struck...I have a Ich breakout in the display tank that claimed a beautiful potter angelfish that I newly aquired ...totally bummed me out...I was ready to place my setup in the local newspaper and hang it up, but I'm no quitter,what I need is some advise on what to do next...tonight I setup a hospital tank to treat the two remaining fish that I have...how long must I keep my display tank free of fish before I can declare it disease free?... if that's possible, and do I need to remove the live rock, (3) mushroom and (1) hammer corals... do I still need to run my skimmmer and bio wheel filter during this phase in my display tank,and last are there any changes to water chemistry (temp,PH...etc.)in the display...thanks for taking time to help...Denny

[leebca]

Denny,

Happy New Year!

Glad to hear you're doing what's right. Congratulations! Assuming you have made the correct diagnosis, then to answer your questions. . .

1. The display tank is to be left fallow for at least 8 weeks. This means only no fish in the tank. Other, non-fish marine life is okay to be left in the tank. Do not put anything new into the tank to be sure that no fresh Marine Ich Cryptocaryon irritans sneaks in during this fallow time.

2. Keep running your display tank just as you would if the fish were in there. Keep all equipment running.

3. Maintain all conditions and water parameters and water quality in the display tank as you normally would. Practice keeping everything steady.

You might find some of these things interesting and useful:
Marine Ich - Myths and Facts

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Once the display is free of Marine Ich, do you have a plan to keep it free of this disease? It's lousy to have to go through this a second or third (or more) time.

Do you have a plan on how to treat the infected fishes? Ask if you have any questions.

[crete456]

Hello Lee...and thanks for the advice...unfortunatelly I didn't quarantine the angel, my bad but never again...I went out yesterday and purchased a 10 gal QT,right now I'm waiting til the temp and S.G.become stable, I've added copper safe and erythromicyn to the QT...coppers at .15...the treatment on the copper box says to treat for 14 days...meanwhile I'm going to do water changes to keep the ammonia in check since the display won't be ready for 8 wks...I'm thinking of getting a sponge filter and seeding it in my display tank then adding it to the QT but can't now because of the copper in the QT...I've read all your posts on fish acclimation and dips and will do when my tank is ready...by the way I also read your many posts on feeding and nutrition and it was very helpful...made a home made batch of food and gelled it for my triggers and they couldn't get enough of it!!!my clown trigger and cowfish quadrupled in size in only 5 months!!!, I finally had to trade them in because of there size,that's how I aquired the potter's angel...I still have a humu trigger but he's infected so I'm going to treat him before I trade him in but will keep the watchman goby...well thanks again if you have any input it's always appreciated... Denny

[leebca]

You're welcome Denny. I think you just made the leap to the next (higher) level of marine aquarists!

Some observations:
Erythromycin is an antibiotic that kills Gram Positive bacteria. These are the kinds of bacteria that are on/in the biological filter. As long as you put this antibiotic in the QT, you will not establish a biological filter. You may want to reconsider the use of an antibiotic during copper treatment, anyway.

Gram Positive bacteria are not the most likely bacteria to harm our marine fishes. When our marine fishes are infected, they are infected for the most part by Gram Negative bacteria.

Sponge filter is the way to go for the QT. However it usually takes about 4 to 6 weeks to get the sponge filter up and running, that is 'seeded' with the right bacteria. Water changes are fine.

Make sure you test the QT water for copper very frequently and keep the copper in the correct range as recommended by the medication manufacturer. Also, be sure to use the copper test kit recommended by the medication manufacturer. They know best what test kit gives the correct results for their medication.

I don't like saying bad things about any particular product, but CopperSafe is generally regarded by advanced aquarists familiar with treatments and diseases, (including Dr. Terry Bartelme) to be one of the worst copper medications available. Not that it isn't effective, but because it is so harsh on the fish. The Triggerfish will probably hold up to the harshness of this medication, but I'm unsure if the Goby will be okay.

Anyway. . .Good luck!