White Spots On Clown Loach!

[Samj11]

I need some help and advice for my 300L tank! These are the current fish I have in the tank:
 
- 4 clown loaches 
- 8 leopard danios
- 1 brittlenose pleco
- 1 opaline gourami
 
I don't know the pH or the ammonia/nitrate levels. I got my danios and my pleco  earlier this year and loaches and the gourami just under a week ago.
 
And they've all been doing good! They're all extremely active, but on one of the loaches I noticed some white spot on it's fin and tails. It doesn't have any other symptoms. I haven't noticed any rubbing against objects or anything but I've noticed one my loaches does seem to nip the poorly one every now and again. But the one I'm concerned about is active and is eating happily enough, it doesn't lie on the bottom, or anything! So have I just caught it early? Or is it not white spot? I took some pictures of my tank and one of the loach in question.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Sorry the pictures are large and grainy! It was taken with an iPhone, plus the loaches are so active, it's hard to get decent shots of them!
 
I'm not overly concerned about the other loaches but two of them also have one small spots on them, but it's not that clear. 
 
Some more information:
- I do a 25% water change every week on this tank and my 100L, but do I need to do more with loaches, do you think?
- The tank was left alone with the water for a few weeks and I used a fair amount of the water from my cycled 100L. I then added my leopard danios and left them alone for a few weeks before adding my pleco.
- I have picked up King British white spot control. But I'm nervous about adding this as I know how loaches are sensitive to meds! Any advice on how to administer it? Should I use only half the recommended dose? Should I do a large water change and then add the meds?
- I also have bio rings, balls and a bag of activated carbon in the filter. The carbons gotta come out if I'm adding meds, right? Should I dispose of the carbon bag once I take it out? It would be too risky to readd it once the problems taken care of. 
 
Obviously I need to act ASAP, so any quick advice will be greatly appreciated!
 
Many thanks!

 

[TwoTankAmin]

This might help:
 

Freshwater Ich
Symptoms: Fish look like they have little white salt grains on them and may scratch against objects in the tank.
 
White spot disease (Ichthyopthirius multifiliis) is caused by a protozoan with a life cycle that includes a free-living stage. Ich grows on a fish --> it falls off and attaches to gravel or tank glass --> it reproduces to MANY parasites --> these swarmers then attach to other fish. If the swarmers do not find a fish host, they die in about 3 days (depending on the water temperature).
 
Therefore, to treat it, medicine must be added to the display tank to kill free-living parasites. If fish are removed to quarantine, parasites living in the tank will escape the treatment -- unless ALL fish are removed for about a week in freshwater or three weeks in saltwater systems. In a reef tank, where invertebrates are sensitive to ich medications, removing the fish is the only option. Some people think that ich is probably dormant in most tanks. It is most often triggered by temperature fluctuations.
 
Remedy: For most fish, use a medication with formalin and malachite green. These are the active ingredients in many ich medications at fish shops. Some products are Kordon's Rid Ich and Aquarium Products' Quick Cure. Just read the label and you may find others. Check for temperature fluctuations in the tank and fix them to avoid recurrences. Note that tetras can be a little sensitive to malachite green, so use it at half the dose.
 
Use these products as directed (usually a daily dose) until all of the fish are spot-free. Then dose every three days for a total of four more doses. This will kill any free-swimming parasites as they hatch out of cysts.
 
Another remedy is to raise the tank temperature to about 90 deg F and add 1 tsp/gallon salt to the water. Not all fish tolerate this.
 
Finally, one can treat ich with a ``transfer method.'' Fish are moved daily into a different tank with clean, conditioned, warmed water. Parasites that came off of the fish are left behind in the tank. After moving the fish daily for a week, the fish (presumably cured) can be put back into the main tank. The disadvantage of this method is that it stresses both fish and fishkeeper.

from http/fins.actwin.com/aquariafaq.html
 
And yes, do a big wc and vac before medicating.

 

[star4]

If you can take the king british back to the shop and exchange it for Esha Exit this is safe to use with loach (I have used it with loach present) it is a very low dose medication and the only one that works on the actual cysts and the free swimming stage killing ich at all levels of its cycle, unlike other medications which only work on the free swimming stage.
 
How long has your carbon been in the tank? its only usually works for a few weeks. Fresh carbon would be better once the ich has cleared.

 

[Samj11]

Sadly I'm unable to get to any stores over the next few days and as I have to treat now, I'll have to make do with what I've got! So King British won't help the ick on the fish then? That's not good, if I'm paying for a product, I expect it to be able to kill the parasite no matter how advanced they are. I'm in the process of a water change now and then I'll add the medicine but half the recommended dose because of the loaches.
 
Thanks for your advice, guys! I love my fish and want to give them the best possible life so it's much appreciated! 

 

[star4]

King British will help, you will need to check the instructions carefully regarding treating loach present (sorry I have not used that one myself). Most medications can only kill the parasite in its free swimming stage, before it attaches to the fish (when you see the spots) its these spots that then burst producing more, which is when the medication can kill them. it is recommended to raise the water temperature when treating ich as it makes the parasite "hatch" faster enabling the medication to kill it. Which is why most ich medications you need to use over a course of several days and half dosing with loach it could take longer. Saying that I have never used King British so I maybe incorrect on the length of time that medication takes.

 

[Samj11]

Yeah, I will definitely make sure to only apply half the recommended dose.
 
Over the past days I've slowly turned up the temperature of the tank to 80f. I know loaches and gourmais prefer the warmer water anyway but I just hope my danios and pleco can adapt, especially the pleco as I've had him a very long time now.

 

[star4]

They should be fine short term  

 

[Samj11]

Thanks for all the help!
 
I did a hefty water change (the biggest I've ever done in my life!) and added 15ML of of the medicine. It was 30ML recommended for the size of my tank, so I halved it. I hope to see my loaches doing better soon! It recommends adding more every 48 hours, would everybody agree with that because I read in the other article that every day is more effective? 
 
I'll keep you updated.

 

[star4]

Do you have an airline in the tank? just thought with raising the temperature and adding medication you would need to increase the air going into the tank, easiest way is to raise your spray bar/filter outlet above the water line.
 
Best of luck

 

[Samj11]

Yes, I can't think of the name of the type of filter that I have but there's a pump at the bottom which sucks in water and takes it around the top of my tank (where all the filter material is) and then it drops it back in the other side. It also blows out a heavy stream of bubbles near the top of the tank which is constantly moving the surface area of the water and there are small little bubbles floating everywhere! I used to turn the air bubbles off of a night as the tanks in my room and it's very noisy, but since the loaches got ill I've left it on 24/7! The things you do for your pets!

 

[Samj11]

No sign of the spots wearing off yet, but the medicine wasn't put in until last night!
 
Should I continue treatment today even if the instructions said every 48 hours?

 

[star4]

No stick to the every 48 hours as instructed, as I said you will not see the spots disappear KB does not attack the spots only the free swimming stage of the parasite, which should stop new spots appearing, once the spots on the fish burst then the medicine works, hence treating every 48 hours to catch the free swimming stage.

 

[Samj11]

Oh right, OK! Thanks for clarifying. This is the first time I'm dealing with white spot/ich so I'm a little inexperienced!
 
Should I do more water changes during treatment or will that take the medicine out of the water? 
 
So all the spots will definitely leave the loaches eventually when they burst? 

 

[star4]

No, dont do water changes as this removed the medication. I am not sure with King British but some medications only work for a certain time hence having to re-dose as per the instructions. You will need to do a wc once the course has been completed, 48 hours after usually.
 
The spots on the loach should disappear, keep a close eye as sometimes they burst but still leave a slight mark, this is nothing to worry about initially and should heal quickly.

 

[Samj11]

I have noticed less spots on the tail of the loach already! So, it's looking promising thus far!