Ich in a Reef Tank, how to treat it best

[GerryL]

Hi,

I have read almost every section I can find regarding ich and so far I have been able to treat the ich in my two reef tanks with success. I always use No-Ich together with raising the temperature of my tanks to 84.

After I added my last fish (a Maculiceps Tang - 9 inches in length) in my 150 GAL, I had an ich break-out as expected. More stress oftenly causes that. However, this time, it seems he is not able to shed the ich. I have treted him now for 10 days. He still looks healty, eats good, swims actively. But is is covered with very thin white powder.

My 10 gallon quarantine tank is too small for him. Anyone has any idea's?

By the way - my water readings:
Ammonia : 0 ppm
Nitrite: (as I just added him) 0.1 ppm
nitrate: 1 ppm
PH: 8.3
Salinity: 1.029

I am doing 10% waterchanges weekly at the moment.
I also turned off my skimmer and remove all carbon filters to prevent the medicine from being filtered out.

Thanks

[leebca]

WELCOME TO REEFLAND!

I'm a bit confused. . .If you're that well read, then curing the fish is straightforward. Preventing the cured fish from getting the disease is easy.

Using the product you have been using is not curing the disease. It may be suppressing it long enough for your fish to develop a bit of immunity to the parasite, but the parasite continues to live on in your tank. You'll find more info about that here: Marine Ich - Myths and Facts

So, I'm not sure what to write or say. Have you come to the decision to finally get your fish cured? Have you now decided to prevent further infections to your fish? Because until you've come to these decisions -- there isn't anything I can help you with. Your fish will continue to have the parasite even when you don't see it displayed on the fish.

There is no easy way to deal with this parasite. All true cures require you remove the fish from their display tank, cure them by one of the three known methods, let the parasite die-off in the display system which is now fishless, then use a quarantine tank for all new marine life to prevent the parasite from entering the DT system again.

There are posts here that explain two of the curing methods. I and others can help you through the process -- if that is what you've decided to do.

[GerryL]

Lee,

Wow, thanks for the info. I followed your link and read you bible. Good stuff. Now I just have to figure out how to remove the ich from my tank. I guess I was not carefull enough in the earlier stages.

I guess I am not as well read as I thought I was - and I guess I don't have to ask stores as that's where I did hear all those 'rumours'.

So knowing that I have a 150 gallon display tank, with probably Marine Ich, containing about 100lbs of life rock, several mushrooms, four anemones, invertebrates, and (small medium and large) fish of course. How would I go about clearing that of ich?

I don't realy have a big quarantine tank. I could just treat/quarantine maybe 1 large or two medium fish at-a-time. But would they not get infected when I move them back?

Thanks for all your input - it really thought I was on the right track ; (SLAP maybe?)

~Gerry

[leebca]

No problem Gerry. There is more mis-information out there than facts. Most people you tend to listen to are those trying to sell you something. All I can say is be as careful about who you listen to as you would in selecting a doctor. Get their background and prefer to listen to those with nothing to sell. My bio is here: Bio - Lee (a.k.a. leebca)

All fish have to be taken out of the display system at the same time and put into quarantine. I know it seems like an impossible thing to do, but keep two things in mind -- they were caught by people in an ocean (and all you have to do is catch them in a small box); and, you are smarter than they are (my assumption here). It can be one large quarantine tank or more than one. You can use the water from the display system to start with, but then use only new and freshly prepared water for water changes.

You can start doing this immediately, even if you don't have an active biological filter in the QT(s). You will take ammonia and nitrite measurements three or four times a day and if any is found, perform an 80%+ water change. NOTE: you could be doing 2 or 3 water changes like this per day! At some point during the cure and quarantine, the biological filter in the QT(s) will be functioning and no more testing will need to be done BUT large water changes will still be needed every 2 or 3 days just to remove proteins and dissolved wastes. So, be prepared to make up a lot of water or have access to it on a continual basis.

Once fish are out, just let the display tank go on as usual. After 8 weeks, all the parasites in the display system will die. They can't live without fish (thank goodness). Leave all invertebrates in the display tank. That is, you can leave everything in the display tank, except fish. Be sure to keep the system running just as if fish were there and feed those invertebrates!

The quarantined fishes are then treated and cured of the parasite by one of two methods -- copper or hyposalinity. After you have finished the treatment, then you hold the fish in quarantine at least another 4 weeks to verify they are cured. Then the fish go back into the display system. If you have a lot of fish, best to return them one at a time over a few weeks so the display can gear up again.

For details on the above, starting with how to catch these fish, here are a list of posts to read through:
How to Catch Fish -or- Goin' Fisin'
A Fish Quarantine Process
How to Make a Successful Water Change
Copper - Treatment, Use, Problems
Hyposalinity Treatment

A lot of reading. But the details you need are there. Ask if you have questions, but begin by doing the reading. ;)

[leebca]

Gerry,

This post will maybe help you through the process as a kind of overview: Curing Fish of Marine Ich

[GerryL]

Thanks lee. - I see I have my marching orders. I'll let you know if I still need mre advice.

~Gerry

[mr_brix]

from my experience i did hyposalinity drop my salinity to 1.019 and put nitrate remover.. i have canister filtration on my 72gal tank.. i did not do water change i just add R/O to top it off the salinity...

[cwoods5]

lee,

What are your thoughts on using garlic? I soak my food in garlic extreme everyday since I had an ITCH outbreak and it seems to be gone now, was this luck? or does garlic actually help prevent.

[leebca]

Garlic does not kill nor rid fish of Marine Ich. Studies have shown it does improve innate immunity. Technically it may help, but it isn't a cure. I can assure you that, although you don't see it, the Marine Ich parasite is still there, living on.

Keep in mind that of all the multiple stages of the life cycle of Marine Ich (Cryptocaryon irritans) only one place can we humans see it with the unaided eye. Spots can come and go in the dark, overnight. They can live in the gills, or the parasite doesn't have to form these 'spots' and instead multiple right on the fish.