Ich Infestation

[kirinafa]

Tank size: 55
pH: 6.5
ammonia: My test doesn't doesn't do it
nitrite:0
nitrate:0
Hardness: 75
Alkalinity: 80
tank temp: 85 on thermometer, heater is set at 75

Fish Symptoms (include full description including lesion, color, location, fish behavior):
Everyone except the angelfish is showing signs of ick. At the moment the baby black phantoms are showing the worst of it.

Volume and Frequency of water changes: None as of yet

Chemical Additives or Media in your tank: bactershield, parashield, (tap water conditioner, stress zyme+ when i started the tank a few weeks ago)

Tank inhabitants:
2 black phantom tetras (4 have died)
1 angelfish (1 has died)
1 orange tetra (1 has died)
1 male platy (1 female died)
And also a pleco sucker fish died

Recent additions to your tank (living or decoration): The only fish that have survived from my 5 gallon is the platy and orange tetra. I was adding a few fish a week, the rest are my new ones.
 
It first spread to my 5 gallon, and since i was slowly introducing all my fish to my 55 gallon it spread to there. Right now everyone is in the 55 gallon.
I have some questions regarding ick. How long do i need to add the medications to the tank? On the bottle it sais to not do gravel changes, and it sais to do it for only 5 days. Yet it sais it can take up to a month for ick to be gone? I am so confused. I have some decorations from my 5 gallon tank, how long before i should add them  to my 55? Can the ick survive out of water? Should i remove my live plant thats in my 55 gallon now? Should i do gravel changes? Can ick spread by tank to tank via my hand? I have to handfeed my frog, and i'm worried i am spreading it to my other 2.5 gal tank somehow. If everyone dies how do i get rid of ick in the tank?

 

[kirinafa]

Another baby black phantom died now just have 1

 

[kirinafa]

I only have 3 survivors now, the male platy who is looking lively and showing no sighs, the orange tetra that is still showing signs and the angelfish who has never shown signs of it. So far almost 10 deaths. I'm still not sure if i'm doing the right thing.
 
How often do i change the water? Any gravel changes? Should i remove my live plants from the tank?

 

[DoubleDutch]

Are you sure it's Ich? Looks like powdersugar over a fish. Not every white spot is Ich. Ich shouldn't have to kill your fish. If Ich you have to understand the lifecycle of the ich parasite. It isn't only at the fish, but in your whole tank in different stages. When they swim (not been seen by us) they can be killed. Therefor most treatments last at least for a day or five. Don't change fish,
Ornaments, plants or water aso from other tanks during that time. Greetz Aad

 

[the_lock_man]

I am very concerned about this tank. It appears you are using paper strips to test your water. These are notoriously inaccurate, and you don't have a test for ammonia, which is essential. I strongly recommend you obtain a liquid drop test kit, such as the API. This can be obtained from Ebay for around £20 in the UK, I would presume it will be around the same level in whatever your local currency is.
 
Your nitrate test shows 0ppm. This may be a false 0, as these strips aren't very good. If it is correct, then there is major problem. In a correctly filtered tank, without heavy planting, you would expect to see a nitrate reading of around 20ppm above your tap water level. The fact that you are also showing 0ppm for nitrite indicates that you do NOT have a correctly filtered tank. The way to confirm this is to do an ammonia test, which I suspect would show an exceptionally high level.
 
This is being compounded by the fact that you have not done any water changes since you set the tank up 5 weeks ago.
 
You are quite lucky in that your pH is quite low, meaning that the ammonia is less toxic than at a higher pH, at the overall levels that you must have in your tank, there is still an awful lot of the toxic stuff there. THat is why your fish are dying and why they have been infected by the ich.
 
Youi need to get an ammonia test.
 

How long do i need to add the medications to the tank? On the bottle it sais to not do gravel changes, and it sais to do it for only 5 days. Yet it sais it can take up to a month for ick to be gone? I am so confused. I have some decorations from my 5 gallon tank, how long before i should add them  to my 55? Can the ick survive out of water? Should i remove my live plant thats in my 55 gallon now? Should i do gravel changes? Can ick spread by tank to tank via my hand? I have to handfeed my frog, and i'm worried i am spreading it to my other 2.5 gal tank somehow. If everyone dies how do i get rid of ick in the tank?

 
1) Theoretically, follow the instructions on the bottle to the letter. However, see my comment below.
2) If you suspect you have the parasite in another tank, you should treat that tank too.
3) No, the parasite can't survive out of water.
4) No, leave the live plants in.
5) Why are you wanting to do gravel changes?
6) Yes it can, if there is a parasite in water drops on your hand.
7) If everyone dies, you continue treating, as per the instructions on your bottle.
 
In the meantime, I'm not sure what's best to advise - if you carry out water changes to remove the ammonia, you will also be removing the ich medication. Overall, I think you need to get a control of the ammonia first, so please change 95% of the water NOW. Just leave enough for the fish to swim upright in. Make sure you use the tap water conditioner, and try to match the temperature as best you can. Then dose the ich medication, as per the day 1 instructions.
 
Tomorrow, carry out a 50% water change. Dose the ich medication at 50% of the day 2 instructions.
Each day after that, carry out a 50% water change, and dose the ich medication at 50% of that day's instruction.
 
And get an ammonia test as soon as you can.