Ich Plan (failure) chapter 3 what now?

[platzap]

Well, after losing my 2 clowns to ICH, and then reading everything I could here...I set up my first QT/hosp tank, brought over main tank water, a piece of sacrificial live rock to quicken the cycling, and my 6 line wrasse..that i knew had ICh. I mailorderd refractometer and after 4 days I was able to get to 1.009. The plan was to treat 6 line in Hyposalinity for 4 weeks, and leave main tank (37 g FOWLR) fishless for 30 days thereby breakn the ICH's life cycle.
the bad news is my 6 line died yesterday. (belly had been distended for about 3 days) I am guessing the ICH got him though there was a small trace of Nitrites (0.3), ph 8.0, 1.009.
So..i am a bit confused as to what to do next. Obviously my plan to leave my main tank fishless for at least 30 days still makes sense to get rid of the ICH there, but what about my QT tank. It now is at 1.009, fishless, but with ICH in there, and beginning to have cycled (tank up for 1 week..with the quick starters thrown in as mentioned above). I would love to have fish again! I was thinking of starting with pair of clowns again (or another 6 line).
the question is: Do I dump my current QT, wash it out real well, set it up again (ICH free), cycle!? (not sure how to accomplish with what I have since theres ICH in my main tank, as well as my QT..so I cant really use live rock or water from there without bringing ICH into the new QT), add pair of clowns for 3-4 week quarantine...then add to hopefully ICHfree main tank.........OR......Do I keep my current QT which is on the way to having cycled (but has ICH in it), and keep it at 1.009, and add pair of clowns from LFS right into the hypo QT...for 3-4 weeks, and then add to maintank.
I apologize if this is too much info or a stupid question, but I guess I am asking is it better to keep my ICH filled partially cycled hypo -QT, or start fresh all over again...and what would get my fish in my main tank the quickest (and safest). By the way, one of my LFS says no need to QT their fish as they keep all fish in the store at 1.011, with copper in water (is this legit?).
all help greatly appreciated.

 

[beth]

The distended belly is not really ich. My guess would be a secondary infection due to severe stress brought on by ich, the move to the QT, then nitrites in an uncycled QT. The stress was the opportunity for the fish to get an infection which it obviously succumbed to. Secondary infections and ich nearly almost always go hand-in-hand because the fish’s immune system is compromised by the parasite. This is why it is so important to be sure to rid any in coming fish of parasites. Yes, sometimes a fish can “fight off” an ich infection but it is always a battle for the fish. The animal’s immune system could be put to better use to fight off common other pathogens that it may encounter; instead it is wasted on constantly fending off parasites in the aquaria. You could have attempted to treat the infection with antibiotics, but, the bottom line is that hobbyists must be sure that optimum water conditions and tank environment be maintained in the QT, otherwise the treatment is almost certain to fail.
You have an uncycled QT which you should be working on conditioning so that it will be a healthy place to house new fish. I would work on that for a month, then you should be ready for new fish. By that time, the display will also be clear. If you must buy something, get inverts, or cleanup crew, or something along those lines. Patience is critical when handling fish. Take your time and do it right, or you will end up with the same fate as the wrasse. Safety is what you always need to think about, otherwise, I can guarantee that you will run into problems. I would continue with what you have in the QT. Allow it to cycle by feeding the LR. At the end of a month, it should be god to go!

 

[platzap]

should i keep the fishless QT at 1.009?

 

[sov82]

My sixline also has/had ich. I've had him in the QT tank for over a week now and he shows no visible signs of ich for the past 4 days.
His body had a small discoloration spot on it that is now getting better. I've noticed his belly is sticking out a little more than usual. Should I be concerned?
He is not breathing hard.
He loves to eat.
He is very active in the tank...he often plays with the other fish.
It also looks like he has a small bubble on where he goes to the bathroom I believe...could he just be constipated for the stress of ich, moving, lowered salinity? What should I be doing for him?
He consumes a diet of frozen brine, krill, veggie flakes, and marine flakes. I just ordered some Kent Vitamin suppliment today to add to their food. I was feeding twice a day but have now moved to once a day. (He is in a QT with a Tang, Scorpion Blenny, and False Clown)
Thanks
Matt

 

[eagle1]

I was in the same situation. I set up an emergency QT and put all fish in it. After 4 weeks, I placed them back in the main tank. They have been ich free ever since.
What I did with my QT was empty it, clean it, and set it up again for use as a QT with normal parameters. I threw in a couple of damsels, some PVC and let the thing cylce.
It was a battle to keep the emergency QT clean. Water changes almost daily (that sucked!!). With that being said, that is the reason why I decided to redo the QT because water quality wasn't really great.
Hope this helps.