Is this Ich or something else on my EBA?

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rookiefishguy

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Hi All,

I have a 55g with a school of 15 black skirt tetras and then 2 Electric Blue Acaras, both extremely young, 1 about 2.5 inches and the other maybe 1.5 inches. I believe this ich but i'm not 100% certain. I noticed small spots on one of my tetra and immediately raised the temp to about 82F degrees and added aquarium salt. I also used Tetra Ich Guard. About a week latter, all my tetras are 100% spot free however my two EBAs are now covered in spots and I have never seen so much on a fish. I'm wondering if what is on them is not Ich and is something else I'm not aware of. I've posted pictures below, let me know your thoughts/remedies.
EBA.jpg
 
Hi! My EBA got ich too!!! When mine had ich, I raised the temp to 86 degrees and did daily substrate vacuums. Raising the temp speeds up the life cycle of the ich, and vacuuming the substrate helps to drastically reduce the population. You can also do a large, 80% I think, water change
 
this was my acara when he got ich
3F2556C4-A444-495E-B102-243F0E7964BA.jpeg
 

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I do just have to ask, have you had any trouble with your two being different sizes? I am thinking about getting another EBA but am afraid they may fight or something
 
Hi! My EBA got ich too!!! When mine had ich, I raised the temp to 86 degrees and did daily substrate vacuums. Raising the temp speeds up the life cycle of the ich, and vacuuming the substrate helps to drastically reduce the population. You can also do a large, 80% I think, water change
Do you know if the 86 degrees is critical or can i get away with 82? and yeah ive been vacuuming the substrate every other day and doing water changes of about 50% every other day. (readding salt and meds as needed)


I do just have to ask, have you had any trouble with your two being different sizes? I am thinking about getting another EBA but am afraid they may fight or something
From what I've heard about these fish, it really depends on the personalities. I was lucky enough to buy these at the same time from the same breeder who had them mixed with all different sizes. The bigger one seems to think its a tetra so it schools with them and pays very little attention to the small one. The small one kind of flies solo in between driftwood and such. I would recommend trying it since I dont think they see smaller ones as threats to them (but just have a back up plan in case)
 
Do you know if the 86 degrees is critical or can i get away with 82? and yeah ive been vacuuming the substrate every other day and doing water changes of about 50% every other day. (readding salt and meds as needed)
86 degrees is probably the best option as ich not only dies off in hot water but it also drastically lowers chance of reinfection for a short period of time giving your fish time to recover and even possibly build a stronger immunity to the parasite!

I do just have to ask, have you had any trouble with your two being different sizes? I am thinking about getting another EBA but am afraid they may fight or something
EBA's are really docile! Especially when compared to the true blue counterpart (which in itself is not that aggressive at all) the only factors of aggression would be tank space and territories as cichlids are all territorial at times (apart from keyholes) and possibly at feeding time but apart from that you should be fine! (obviously some cichlids are born to be alone as they all have ranging personalities)
 
86 deg F is critical. If it's lower than that, it won't kill the ich in its third stage. All 82 deg F will do is speed up the life cycle so it'll reinfect the fish faster.
 
86 deg F is critical. If it's lower than that, it won't kill the ich in its third stage. All 82 deg F will do is speed up the life cycle so it'll reinfect the fish faster.
Silly question, is there a limit as to how long I can leave my tank at this temp before it adversely impacts the fish?
 
From what I've heard about these fish, it really depends on the personalities. I was lucky enough to buy these at the same time from the same breeder who had them mixed with all different sizes. The bigger one seems to think its a tetra so it schools with them and pays very little attention to the small one. The small one kind of flies solo in between driftwood and such. I would recommend trying it since I dont think they see smaller ones as threats to them (but just have a back up plan in case)
EBA's are really docile! Especially when compared to the true blue counterpart (which in itself is not that aggressive at all) the only factors of aggression would be tank space and territories as cichlids are all territorial at times (apart from keyholes) and possibly at feeding time but apart from that you should be fine! (obviously some cichlids are born to be alone as they all have ranging personalities)
Ohhhh ok! I think I will make a thread so I can ask more questions.



I agree with what everyone else is saying about the tank temp!
 
When I treat for ich, I usually use a product like CopperSafe. It kills the parasite larvae & the increased temperature will speed up their life cycle. This has always worked for me.
I would check to ensure that your plants/fish can safely tolerate it, though.
 
When I treat for ich, I usually use a product like CopperSafe. It kills the parasite larvae & the increased temperature will speed up their life cycle. This has always worked for me.
I would check to ensure that your plants/fish can safely tolerate it, though.
probably should have mentioned i have 4 otos in the tank as well so ive avoided medication like that. I have heard half to 3/4th doses with the Tetra guard is okay with them so thats what I've used. will keep that in mind for my other tanks though!
 

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