Ick

[bellmcc]

I have done the ick gaurd treatment and the water changes for a week. It looks like the fish are back to normal,so i'm thinking one more 25% water change but don't know how long to wait before I replace the 14 that died.
thanks

 

[mattlee]

add some carbon to the filter to remove any remaining meds, then leave the tank alone for a week or 2 and then think about adding more fish. its better to be safe than sorry

 

[bellmcc]

add some carbon to the filter to remove any remaining meds, then leave the tank alone for a week or 2 and then think about adding more fish. its better to be safe than sorry

Thank You!!

 

[Bignose]

1 week is not enough time to be 100% that all the ich organisms are dead. I would treat with medication exactly as per the instructions for at least 1 more week.

Then, you need to treat the tank like it is in quarantine for at least another 6 weeks to be sure that there aren't any reoccurrences.

And, finally, when you do bring more home, you need to quarantine them for around 6 weeks as well to see if they develop any issues as well.

I know that this is a long time, but to help pass the time, I suggest you read and study this: http/www.skepticalaquarist.com/docs/health/ich.shtml it is by and far the best document about ich that I have ever found on the Internet. Talks about a lot of the misconceptions and truths about ich.

 

[Lund]

I find the best way to be rid of Ick is to raise the temperature of the water gradually to circa 30degrees (86Fh). The parasite cannot withstand the increase in temperature.

 

[bellmcc]

1 week is not enough time to be 100% that all the ich organisms are dead. I would treat with medication exactly as per the instructions for at least 1 more week.

Then, you need to treat the tank like it is in quarantine for at least another 6 weeks to be sure that there aren't any reoccurrences.

And, finally, when you do bring more home, you need to quarantine them for around 6 weeks as well to see if they develop any issues as well.

I know that this is a long time, but to help pass the time, I suggest you read and study this: [URL="http/www.skepticalaquarist.com/docs/health/ich.shtml"]http/www.skepticalaquarist.com/docs/health/ich.shtml[/URL] it is by and far the best document about ich that I have ever found on the Internet. Talks about a lot of the misconceptions and truths about ich.

Thanks!!!

Thank You all for your help.

 

[Bignose]

I find the best way to be rid of Ick is to raise the temperature of the water gradually to circa 30degrees (86Fh). The parasite cannot withstand the increase in temperature.

Unfortunately, this isn't 100% true any more. It depends on the strain of ich infecting your tank. There are strains today that can survive just fine well above 90 *F. So, you need to be at the ready to treat with medications is this heat method doesn't work. This is discussed fuller in the link I posted above.

 

[Schmill]

I find the best way to be rid of Ick is to raise the temperature of the water gradually to circa 30degrees (86Fh). The parasite cannot withstand the increase in temperature.

I was under the impression that the increase in temperature just increased the speed of the lifecycle of the Ich, making it more likely it would be in it's vulnerable stage whilst you were treating the tank.

 

[Bignose]

I find the best way to be rid of Ick is to raise the temperature of the water gradually to circa 30degrees (86Fh). The parasite cannot withstand the increase in temperature.

I was under the impression that the increase in temperature just increased the speed of the lifecycle of the Ich, making it more likely it would be in it's vulnerable stage whilst you were treating the tank.

not "just". There are strains that will become stressed and die at higher temperatures, and for a long time 86 *F was often cited as the magic temp where that happened. However, again, there are strains today that can survive significantly higher temperatures. So, again, if you want to try just the heat method, that is fine, but you will need to be ready to use medication if the ich infection doesn't respond to the high temperatures.