Treating Ich With Salt

[c-dub]

Just wondering if normal every day table salt is alright to add to my tank...

Also I have a 240L community tank and don't know how much salt is enough or too much.

I have added medication but apparently adding some salt will help also?

Thanks!

 

[jacko32]

Just wondering if normal every day table salt is alright to add to my tank...

Also I have a 240L community tank and don't know how much salt is enough or too much.

I have added medication but apparently adding some salt will help also?

Thanks!

no you need aquarium salt but if you added meds now i would just run the course of meds and turn the temp up to spead up the life cycle of the ich

 

[c-dub]

Just wondering if normal every day table salt is alright to add to my tank...

Also I have a 240L community tank and don't know how much salt is enough or too much.

I have added medication but apparently adding some salt will help also?

Thanks!

no you need aquarium salt but if you added meds now i would just run the course of meds and turn the temp up to spead up the life cycle of the ich

Thanks pal, first time dealing with it... cheers!

 

[raptorrex]

Just wondering if normal every day table salt is alright to add to my tank...

Also I have a 240L community tank and don't know how much salt is enough or too much.

I have added medication but apparently adding some salt will help also?

Thanks!

no you need aquarium salt but if you added meds now i would just run the course of meds and turn the temp up to spead up the life cycle of the ich

Thanks pal, first time dealing with it... cheers!

I feel for you. read the instructions, carefully. you need to dose is, several, steps for ick.
salt can, and is, used to treat ick. can't see how it would help, if any other med is used too.

 

[OldMan47]

If you decide to use salt to treat ich, have a read through of the article that I link to in my signature area. I have used the method they describe in that article with good success. The link is called Ich Info but the article takes you right through the ich life cycle and using salt, any old salt, to treat it. It is the only way that I have had any success treating ich in my over 50 years of fish keeping.

 

[c-dub]

Yeah this absolutely sucks, I've treated the water but lost my 3 clown loaches to it considering they were the newest to the tank and most susceptible to it being scaleless.

I've noticed a few of my guppies are carrying it but only with minimal spots... nothing like the loaches had.

Fingers crossed it comes good as I've never dealt with this before and am pretty upset and annoyed I've already lost 3 young loaches.

Are water changes worth doing during treatment? Also it says nothing about how long to treat it for on the instructions... how long should I treat them it says on the White Spot Med every 3 days...

 

[raptorrex]

Yeah this absolutely sucks, I've treated the water but lost my 3 clown loaches to it considering they were the newest to the tank and most susceptible to it being scaleless.

I've noticed a few of my guppies are carrying it but only with minimal spots... nothing like the loaches had.

Fingers crossed it comes good as I've never dealt with this before and am pretty upset and annoyed I've already lost 3 young loaches.

Are water changes worth doing during treatment? Also it says nothing about how long to treat it for on the instructions... how long should I treat them it says on the White Spot Med every 3 days...

The ick bug has a life cycle. this is, largely, dependent on the water temperature. the bug is only open to treatment, for a short period. this is when the bug is in its "free swimming" form. the cycle can come round, anywhere from 3-7 days. this is why you need to treat, more than once.
I should mentioned stress. this is, more often than not, the cause of an ick outbreak. in healthy fish, the slime coat stop the ick bug from gaining a hold (causing an outbreak).
unfortunately Ick can be considered "endemic" within the trade. the common denominator, for outbreaks, is fish stress.
so, whilst treating the outbreak. it may be worth looking into why, it got a hold.

 

[c-dub]

Well the reason it got a hold as far as I'm aware is the fish may have already had it, OR the stress was from the move from the LPS. My clown loaches who were infected the most were relatively new fish.

Also, I have cranked the heat up to 28deg C. and am going to retreat later today with the meds.

Thanks a lot for your help I've done a lot of reading up on it in the last 24 hours!

 

[sumtin_crazy]

Just wondering if normal every day table salt is alright to add to my tank...

Also I have a 240L community tank and don't know how much salt is enough or too much.

I have added medication but apparently adding some salt will help also?

Thanks!

AQUARIUM salt is used to help prevent ich not a treatment DO NOT USE TABLE SALT iodized salt is no good for fish Ich should be treated with the right meds and for the full length of treatment so you kill it all!!! ich hides very well so even if fish dont show anymore signs continue with treatment until finished

 

[raptorrex]

AQUARIUM salt is used to help prevent ich not a treatment

actually, its the other way round.
freshwater fish, by their very name, don't need salt.

Well the reason it got a hold as far as I'm aware is the fish may have already had it, OR the stress was from the move from the LPS. My clown loaches who were infected the most were relatively new fish.

Also, I have cranked the heat up to 28deg C. and am going to retreat later today with the meds.

Thanks a lot for your help I've done a lot of reading up on it in the last 24 hours!

unfortunately, many of our tanks carry it. its when things get tough it builds up.
the new arrivals may be the answer.
anyway, best of luck,. keep us posted.

 

[c-dub]

Thanks the thing that annoys me the most it doesn't say on the bottle or on the online instructions how long to treat for... all it says is to repeat after 3 days so I'm stuffed if I know how long I'm meant to be medicating for...




Should I do a water change during the treatment?

 

[OldMan47]

Are you treating with salt or some other chemical? The salt treatment recommends a temperature over 30C, not a mere 28. Ich is a parasite that can only survive without a host for a very short time, it is not present in every tank but is often introduced with new fish, like the new loaches. The disease must be treated for several days after the last visible trace of the parasite is gone from the last fish. Otherwise you will be subjecting the fish to a re-infestation and the resultant stress that carrying the parasite puts on their system. A water change can be done at any time but the medication that you are using must be added back with the new water. You do not want to give the parasites present in the tank a chance to find a new host while you fiddle around with unmedicated water. If you are not in an active cycle, the next water change can wait until you have rid the tank of the darned parasite.

 

[c-dub]

thanks old man. no not treating with salt like i said only meds.

 

[c-dub]

just did a 1/3 water change and then re-added meds... hopefully i don't see any more spots appear!

 

[c-dub]

I'm about to lose my black ghost knife to it now. FAR OUT!