New To Site....have Major Ich Problem! Need Help

[xx-erin-xx]

I have a 10 gallon freshwater tank. It had 2 tiger barbs, a green barb, a ruby barb, a yellow barb (dont recall the actual name) and a sucker fish.

Well, one of the tiger barbs died last weekend when they all first got Ich..this morning the green and yellow barb passed...i have been treating the ich just like i have read on many sites....but i dont think it is helping. THe only other tank i have is a little 1 gallon...i was thinking about taking the tiger, ruby and sucker and throwing them in their while i heat up the other tank(to like maybe 90 degrees) and throw out the rocks in there. But i dont know if that 1 gal is ok..or should i leave them all in the big tank and heat it up to about 85? its at 78-80 right now.

Please help ASAP!!

 

[fluttermoth]

Who's going to do this one then; minnnt? I see you lurking; you haven't done much typing today

 

[Caprichoso]

Start doing daily water changes of 25% . Do this for 10 days. I don't personally advocate meds so you'll have to wait for someone else to help you out there if that's what you want to do. I successfully treated ich with water changes and heat. I slowly heated the temp up to 80F, I didn't go higher than that, did lots of water changes and gravel vac and the ich went away.

Welcome to the forum and good luck!

 

[xx-erin-xx]

I do about 50% of the water daily since this ich came about lol. Im afraid that the little things might be hiding in the rocks at the bottom...I kinda want to throw them out! and the tank is usually like i said 78-80 degrees. I use the Tetra Ich disolving tabs. There is almost no white spots on the ruby barb or the sucker, but the tiger has it bad..i was thinking to remove them from the tank so maybe the ich that is hiding wont get to them...but all i have is a crappy 1 gal.

 

[fluttermoth]

No, don't put any fish in the 1 g; it's too msall for fish and you need to treat the whole tank. I'd increase the heat to 85°F if it was me.

How long have you had the tank set up? Was it cycled at all? Ich is present in most tanks but only becomes a problem when the fish's slime coat is weakened through stress; often from poor water quality.

 

[Caprichoso]

I do about 50% of the water daily since this ich came about lol. Im afraid that the little things might be hiding in the rocks at the bottom...I kinda want to throw them out! and the tank is usually like i said 78-80 degrees. I use the Tetra Ich disolving tabs. There is almost no white spots on the ruby barb or the sucker, but the tiger has it bad..i was thinking to remove them from the tank so maybe the ich that is hiding wont get to them...but all i have is a crappy 1 gal.

How many days have you been doing the water changes? And is the ich getting worse since the water changes? If it's not getting any better after about 5 days of doing the water changes then you need to find a different solution. I think my method was effective but I also only had a few spots on a few fish.

 

[xx-erin-xx]

I have had this tank for about 2 months now. The pet store said to start the cycling with some hardy fish like barbs (which is what i wanted anyways!!) so i started out with only 3 barbs, 2 tigers and a green. After a month i added the ruby, the yellow and the sucker.

The Ich showed up about a week and a half ago. And i have been doing daily water changes since. Before that i changed about 50% of the water every saturday morning. I use aquarium salt, and tetra safe plus with every change.

I was thinking when i introduced the new fish, maybe they got stressed? Or maybe one of the new fish (im thinking the yellow..he seemed like a loner at the petstore...i felt sorry for him D'=) brought it into my tank?

 

[fluttermoth]

Without having detailed test results, I'm only guessing, but it's more than likely that the new fish overloaded the filter so it couldn't process all the ammonia, causing an ammonia spike and water-related stress problems which allowed the ich to take a hold.

 

[xx-erin-xx]

I have a betta in a 3 gal who also has some white spots from time to time..So maybe it is the water where i live? I change his water 1-2 times a week, and use aquarium salt and tetra betta safe for tap water.

But...he was sick when i bought him. He has a fungus all over his face...and that has cleared up and never came back..but he is just very lethargic now...maybe he is depressed and lonely! lol.

 

[fluttermoth]

How are you maintaining your filters?

You don't need to use salt in freshwater aquaria.

 

[xx-erin-xx]

I just now did a little water test strip to see what the water is doing..

The nitrate levels are great (0-20), The nitrite levels are in the caution/stress zone(.5-1.0), The water is very hard(the pet store said that really doesnt matter[300]), The alkalinity is high(300), and the PH is about 8.4.

I do keep up with the filters. I buy the tetra whisper bio bags. They come with time strips, lasts about 3-4 weeks.

And the salt was recommended because it helps prevent diseases, improves color, gill function, disease recovery, helps keep them from being stressed and so on. (and i read it helps with Ich alot.)

 

[fluttermoth]

If you're replacing your filer media that often, your tanks are constantly being uncycled as you're throwing all your good bacteria out! No wonder your fish are sick mate

From now on, just rinse them out in old tank water.

Yes, salt is a good treatment for ich, but you do not need it on a regular basis; these are freshwater fish; not marines!

 

[xx-erin-xx]

lol ok! i am kind of new to this still.

I have been keeping betta's for about 4 years now. But they are fairly simple.

I will stop changing the filter so often. How often should it be changed?

And i am just now starting to raise the temp in the tank. its at 80 like usual but i am going to 85. is that ok for barbs??

 

[Caprichoso]

I just now did a little water test strip to see what the water is doing..

The nitrate levels are great (0-20), The nitrite levels are in the caution/stress zone(.5-1.0), The water is very hard(the pet store said that really doesnt matter[300]), The alkalinity is high(300), and the PH is about 8.4.

I do keep up with the filters. I buy the tetra whisper bio bags. They come with time strips, lasts about 3-4 weeks.

And the salt was recommended because it helps prevent diseases, improves color, gill function, disease recovery, helps keep them from being stressed and so on. (and i read it helps with Ich alot.)

Those bio-bags are terrible, but you can modify them to prevent having to replace them. Buy some thin Fluval sponge filter and using the existing bio-bag as a template, cut the sponge to fit. You can also buy some mini ceramic bio-rings and put them in a mesh bag and place them in the bottom of the filter. This now becomes your biological filtration. Just rinse in tank water when the sponge and bio-rings bag becomes very dirty or you notice decrease filter flow. Swish them in tank water only.

 

[xx-erin-xx]

and do you have any idea as to what is up with my betta being lethargic? He is VERY healthy and had plenty of room to swim in his private 3 gallon. but he likes to lay in the rocks, on his castle, or on a leaf for most of the day.

Oh thank you Caprichoso!!

I thought those Bio-Bags were great. Well, some beginners fish site said they were awesome and the pet store did too lol