Alright, at what Temperature is Ich KILLED???

[silver]

I need a really approximate answer here from A SCIENTIST or something!!!??/


I want to kill the little devils, but not my fish.....

How hot can I make it without frying my FISH???

Also, will rasing temp get rid of other parasites, not just ICH?

 

[NinjaSmurf]

Um, tropical or cold water? My tropical got ich and I put the temp up to eighty Fh. for about three or four days, changed the water, and the ich went away.

 

[jasmine]

Raising the temp to 82 will help to kill the whitespot but you will still need to treat the fish.

 

[ger87410]

Most viruses and bacteria can stand temperatures upwards of 130 farenheit. Don't try to kill the ick with heat. Heat just speeds up the life cycle.

 

[Dwarfs]

Most viruses and bacteria can stand temperatures upwards of 130 farenheit. Don't try to kill the ick with heat. Heat just speeds up the life cycle.

That would be true, but ich is a parasite, I raised my temp to 85 when ich broke out, and Only lost one out of 7 fish

 

[Bignose]

ger87410 is right. Heat from our aquariums will not be suffienct to kill Ich. Most biologists use high pressure steam to kill off their buggies and sanatize their equipment. Most bugs, except those that live in thermal geysers and the such, are taken care of this way. So, while the bugs can't live at 212 F, obviously neither can your fish!

Now, the reason it is usually recommended to raise the temperature a little in your tank is that it speeds up the life cycle of Ich. Ich medicines can only kill them off when they are in their free swimming period of life -- NOT when they are on the cysts appearing as white spots on your fish. So, higher temperatures mean Ich grows faster, and the cysts burst sooner and then the medicine kills them faster.

Since the medicine only works on one stage in their life-cycle it is usually recommended to dose the medicine for several days (7-14) even after the white spots disappear to ensure it does not reappear.

 

[silver]

Hmmm, alright!!!!

I knew all the basics, I was just under the impression that heat will actually KILL the ich as well as speed up their life cycle!

So there is NO reason to raise the temp above 84??

 

[Teelie]

Ich is not a bacteria or virus but a kind of worm if I remember correctly and higher temps, 80°+F usually does them in after a few days. It's a parasite like dwarfs said. Medicine will definitely kill them off though an extended time in hotter water works as well. Sometimes you can't raise the temperature though for temperature sensitive fish so keep that in mind.

 

[endparenthesis]

At around 85F the water is warm enough to stifle their lifecycle/reproductive process. I don't remember the scientific reason. It takes care of the outbreak sometimes but it isn't failproof by any means... however hitting them with temperature and medicine combined should do the trick.

 

[G_Sharky]

I have my tank set at 30 C/ 86 F and i never see ICH anymore, I think if you keep it up for a week or so it would get rid of the parasite. I'm not sure if all tropical fish can take this high temp, but I have all my fish(in my sig) on this temp everyday and they are doing really well. I had ICH before my Discus when my tank temp was around 26 C and they all dissappeared when i raise temp...Good Luck with those annoying parasites.....

 

[jimmihendrix]

If u search google for ick treatments you will fine that half say heat kills them half says it doesnt! I can't find the page to link it, but i did read from a scientific research, that most ick is killed between 84-86 fh. However on this site it also said that some ick can become immune to the heat depending on the strain ur fish have. So to me it sound like heat will probaly do it for ya, and it has always worked for me. Try addin a tablespoon of epsom salt or aquarium salt for every 5 gallons of water. Only do this though if u have no scaless fish in there(plecs,cories,catfish,etc..). Gl Hope that helps javascript:add_smilie("")
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[Bignose]

The Skeptical Aquarist's Extensive Page on Ich says that 86 degrees F is often quoted as stressing the parasite. Stressing does not necessarily mean killing, though it will help make it far more susceptible to treatment. Since the formadahyde/methalene green combo that is the common treatment for ich is also poisonous to your fish, it is often recommended to start at just a half dose and increases doses as needed. The higher temp combined with the drug is a potent one-two punch.

Skeptical's article goes on to quote some studies with the various different strains of Ich, some of which can live through fairly high temperatures. "Though they all follow the same life-pattern, there are countless strains of Ich, some harder to kill, some more virulent. Bad news comes in from all over: Ich has traditionally succumbed at temperatures over 85oF, but in the 1990s new Florida "strains" were reported that could survive temperatures as high as 90o, which might overstress most tropical fish."

If you choose to go on the cheap, raising the temp and frequent water changes may just stress Ich to death. But, monitor it closely so that if the symptoms do not recede, you will medicate.

Edit: Oh! there is some good news here at the end though. Once your fishes lives through Ick, it develops some immunity to it. Not neough to neglect your aquarium-keeping duties, but at least it may be one item to move lower on your worry list.

 

[jimmihendrix]

same article i was talkin about ty gj

 

[Opcn]

ich is a protazoan.

 

[kashmir]

Well, I live in florida, so my tank temp is always about 80 degrees fh and I never have any ich problems