Whitespot Treatments.

[Nick Sw]

I`m thinking of setting up a Marine Tank I have a tank already but it`s had a previous treatment for FW whitespot I`ve been told that the medications for this can contain copper and could leech back into the tank harming the livestock. So the tank shouldn`t be used.

What can be done if it is completely true ?

 

[SkiFletch]

Its very true that most ich meds contain copper and copper is lethal to many invertebrates. Your silicone seals will absorb some of the copper during treatment and slowly leech it back into the water over time... Not good. You can tell if a tank has comprimised seals if those seals look like blue-green oxidized copper (think the color of the statue of liberty). If the seals look like that, you cant use the tank for saltwater

 

[Nick Sw]

Thanks SkiFletch for the reply.
The seals are black but I know they have had whitespot treatment ! Bit gutted about that !

Is there anything that can be done ? (I don`t fancy resealing the tank)

 

[SkiFletch]

Sadly there's not. Covering them up with more silicone doesnt solve the problem either. And black silicone of course prevents you from figuring out if they were treated with copper. Do you know what specific medication was used?

 

[Nick Sw]

Yes I do , it contained Formaldeyde and Methanol (Interpet Whitespot Treatment no6) and Waterlife Protozin.



Just to add it was the type that contained blue dye.

 

[SkiFletch]

Well, formaldehyde and methanol will have degraded by now since their half-life is very short. I cannot however seem to find any info about whats actually in Waterlife Protozin. If you still have the bottle, look for a list of ingredients or active ingredients and find out what it actually treats. I cant exactly go to a store here in the US and look for you even if you dont have a bottle, cause nobody around here sells the stuff . As long as waterlife protozin doesnt contain copper you'll be good to go.

 

[Nick Sw]

Thanks again for taking the time to reply, I`ll do some research on the protozin and take it from there.

 

[Nick Sw]

I rang waterlife`s helpline, Protozin does contain copper.

They suggested maybe a copper test kit but were a bit unsure what to say.

 

[SkiFletch]

Yeah, figured as much. Everybody raves about Protozin's success at treating ich and copper is really the only treatment that really gets after the disease with effectiveness. Unfortunately its not the kind of thing that a copper test kit will help with. Here's what happens... There is highly concentrated copper now within the silione seals of your tank. You fill it up with RO water and salt mix that of course has no copper in it. Then you add LR, sand, fish, inverts, etc. Since there is no copper in the water, it naturally travels out of the silicone seal and into your tank water within a few months. Then the inverts assimilate it into their tissues and get slowly poisoned to death. Next thing you know, all your crabs, snails, and corals start suffering and dying, the whole tank crashes due to some animals releasing toxins upon death and you're ready to quit the hobby

Sometimes you're lucky and the copper is of relatively low concentration in the seals and it wont creep up on you faster than you can water change, but IMO, its not worth the risk. If you really want to go marine, you're gonna have to get a new tank, or replace your silicone seals yourself (a task I would never trust myself to do). Sorry about the bad news, but hey look on the bright side, tanks themselves aren't that expensive, especially if you can purchase a used reef tank

 

[guppykid2006]

omg i am using an old fw tank for sw that has ben treated for ick and the sealants are blue. the box says the blue is from dye. the ingrediants are Victoria green and acriflavine.

 

[Opcn]

Heres a simple solution, reseal the damn thing, take a razor and some distilled white vinegar and rip off the old sealant, then rebuild it with new sealant, the glass is perfectly fine I assure you.

Guppy kid, just don't kill any invertibrites by sticking them in there and it will be a no harm situation, if you cannot be bothered to reseal or buy a new tank for salt water than you certainly shouldn't be exposing animals to things that can kill them for your amusement (not that you would, or have, just so that other people reading this later will get the gist of what I feel)