Ick Outbreak Help!!!

slider101

slider101

Member
My clown showed signs tonight for the first time of ick, was fine yesterday. My hippo is also. I know I am going to have to hypo in a QT tank all my fish but my question is how long do I have? I am going out of town Monday and i dont know if I can get a QT hypoi tank set up that fast. Could someone give me step by step instructions of doing a hypo tank? Need quick responses so I can take care of theselittle fellas before I leave.
 
richl

richl

Member
I've only done hypo once and it was fairly easy and successful. I have a 20 gal QT and only had 3 fish. I started by removing 4 gallons and (slowly)dripping in 4 gallons RO fresh water. Kept repeating process until SG down to 1.009. I started mine during the week when I had to work, so it took me about 3 days doing changes in the morning and at night. Use air tubing with a knot or a gang valve for the slow drip. I was afraid the low SG would affect the fish adversely, but they actually thrived in it. Just make sure you don't bring it down too fast. The ick seemed to disappear when it got down to about 1.011 - 1.010, so I think the 1.009 recommendation might a little safety cushion. Try to keep it at 1.009 for at least 3 weeks, then bring it back up slowly over week #4. Depending on how long you will be away, you may have an issue with evaporation which will increase the SG. Without freshwater top off, my SG went from 1.009 to 1.010 in about 2 days. Do you have someone to add fresh water top off (and to feed your fish)? Hope this helps
 
richl

richl

Member
One other thing. My fish were in bad shape soon after the ick outbreak. Since it takes time to get down to 1.009, I gave them freshwater baths (20% saltwater + 80% fresh water) for 5-10 minutes on day 1 and 2 before reaching hypo on day 3. It seemed to give them temporary relief. When we got down to hypo it was like a miracle. They were suddenly healthy. They tolerated the freshwater baths, so I would not hesitate to do so again. Just make sure you observe them closely and get them out if they are obviously distressed. Good luck
 
slider101

slider101

Member
Originally Posted by RichL
http:///forum/post/3007298
One other thing. My fish were in bad shape soon after the ick outbreak. Since it takes time to get down to 1.009, I gave them freshwater baths (20% saltwater + 80% fresh water) for 5-10 minutes on day 1 and 2 before reaching hypo on day 3. It seemed to give them temporary relief. When we got down to hypo it was like a miracle. They were suddenly healthy. They tolerated the freshwater baths, so I would not hesitate to do so again. Just make sure you observe them closely and get them out if they are obviously distressed. Good luck
Thanks for the info. I have been doing freshwater baths to kind of limp the process along. I didn't want them to get to bad. Only 2 of my 6 fish are exhibiting signs of ich right now but I know it is a matter of time. My mother will be coming by and feeding so she could add water. I like the idea of dripping freshwater in to lower the SG. I will be leaving on Monday so if I start tonight I should be able to get it down to a stable point and let it hold while I am gone. Mix up some water with the same SG and have her add it to the tank. Thanks again!
 
slider101

slider101

Member
Hypo treatment has begun today. Set up QT tank and have all my little fishies in there. Pray for me that I do this right and they all survive!
 
al mc

al mc

Active Member
Slider...I hope you read Beth's thread about setting up and cycling the QT/HT. IMHO, more fish die from poorly cycled tanks/ammonia/nitrite toxicity and pH problems than from the parasite itself if you have a poorly cycled tank. If you did not have time to cycle the tank I would suggest that you consider having some Amquel plus on hand to 'neutralize' the amoonia/nitrites and some buffering agents because when you have less salt in the hypo situation you have the potential for more dramatic pH shifts as there is less buffering capacity.
 
slider101

slider101

Member
Originally Posted by Al Mc
http:///forum/post/3008760
Slider...I hope you read Beth's thread about setting up and cycling the QT/HT. IMHO, more fish die from poorly cycled tanks/ammonia/nitrite toxicity and pH problems than from the parasite itself if you have a poorly cycled tank. If you did not have time to cycle the tank I would suggest that you consider having some Amquel plus on hand to 'neutralize' the amoonia/nitrites and some buffering agents because when you have less salt in the hypo situation you have the potential for more dramatic pH shifts as there is less buffering capacity.
All the water that I started up with is from the display tank that is well established. I am using PVC as an artifical reef and Beth's thread says to use no substrate in the tank. There is nothing in there that should have to cycle. I tested the water after letting it sit for a day with the filter, heater, and powerhead running. I tested the levels and eveything is reading 0 except for the nitrates which were at 10ppm. I will be doing a water change to lower those. My ph was at 8.4. All seems good so far.
 
mantisman51

mantisman51

Active Member
Well, the problem is that they are creating waste, simply by existing and with no bacteria in or on anything, it will cycle. Do you have a filter from the DT that you can place in there?
 
al mc

al mc

Active Member
The DT water column has virtually '0' nitrifying bacteria in it. If you need to start a HT tank in a hurry it would be best to add a cup of substrate from your DT to help establish bacteria. Some people add some of the filter media from their DT filter as an alternative. Not trying to make you paranoid, just trying to keep you from having trouble with your nitrogen cycle.
If you re read Beth's thread it will indicate that you need something that will provide nitrifying bacteria if you intent to start a HT from scratch and put fish in it immediately.
 
john57

john57

Member
You mentioned you were going to mix up some water to the same SG to have your Mother add while you're away. If she is only going to be topping off to compensate for evaporation, she should be using RO water only. You're only loss from evaporation is the water, not the salt.
 
slider101

slider101

Member
Originally Posted by mantisman51
http:///forum/post/3008819
Well, the problem is that they are creating waste, simply by existing and with no bacteria in or on anything, it will cycle. Do you have a filter from the DT that you can place in there?
What type of filter? One of the pull out filters from my emperor 400? THe HT has a HOB on it.
 
mantisman51

mantisman51

Active Member
Yes, take the media out of the Emporer and put it in the HOB. It should be chock-full of bacteria. You'll still need to test Nitrate/Nitrite/Ammonia a couple times a day. I did what you are doing AND I used the the internal filter from my DT and still got a mini-spike in my 55g QT/HT. The spike was easily controlled with water changes for about 4 days.
 
slider101

slider101

Member
It has been a little over a week into my hypo and all signs have disappeared on my fish. I know I need to leave the DT tank fishless for at least 3 weeks but can I start slowly raisind my SG in the QT? I don't like leaving them with the SG that low for too long. Shouldn't the Ick in the QT be gone now with the SG at that low a level for over a week so I could start raising it again?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top