Kick ICH Solution

[ferbanz]

I just want to let people know I used Kick-ich solution wich active ingridient is 5-nitroimidazoles to cure my tank and fish from ick. I raised the temperature to 80 F, drop salinity to 1.022 and started the treatment. My fish were infested with ick and 6 days later they look like just born and healthy.
Prior this treatmen I was using QUICK CURE ( Formalin, Malachite Green). This does nothing to ick. at list to salt water tanks habitants.
Kick-ich can be used in your tank with out killing invertebrates or live rock. This is great so you dont have to put your fish in a quarentine tank. This product is made by Ruby Reef and I found it extremelly eficcient.
Thank you for those who gave me advise.

 

[thomas712]

Are you sure that the ick is all dead?
Could it be that the ick only released its hold on the fish and fell into the substrate?
Have you ever considered doing hypo salinity?
Welcome to the board

Thomas

 

[ferbanz]

I can talk for what I have seen. I have two cloun fish and they were going down hill very fast. I lost two royal gramma before starting the treatmen. I put the clown in a quarentine tank before finding KICK-ICH and they were not improving with Quick Cure. Four days after using KICK-ICH fisf are extremelly well and a Tang that remain in the fish tank is also so much better. I have not try hipo-salinity.

 

[diane4]

Hi all. I am battling ich right now. Tried running a brief course of kick-ich and no relief. I am on my way down to a Hypo treatment. My fish are scratching, jumpy and very uncomfortable. I, personally - have been very dissapointed with kick-ich. The product is only effective during the free swimming phase of the ich life cycle. Meanwhile, I am not patient to see if the product works when the ich reaches that cycle. I want reliefe for my guys. The lower salt already is a reduction in stress for my fish, they are eating more. Appetitie is coming back. Still itchy though.
Having trouble getting salt level down. Big water changes of 20-30 gallons on a 90 gallon tank using r/o water is reducing the SG by 2 points at a time. I started at 1.023 and after several changes, I am now down to 1.014. I have 4 more points to go to get to 1.010.
As I understand it, hypo is 1.090 or 1.010 SG. I use a refractometer - great tool.
Sorry, don't have much faith in the kick-ich product. I am dissapointed that there is no company address on the bottle, no phone number, no website for the manufacturer. I also called for information / directory assistance to get the phone number in MD for the company - Ruby Reef, and there isn't a listing for it. I worry about using a product that is made by a company you can't reach.
Has anyone ever been able to reach this Ruby Reef company?

 

[puffer32]

I used kick ich afw months ago, had a fish with ich, caught it at a very early stage maybe, or maybe it would have gone away by its self, who knows?

 

[ophiura]

Well, I hope it worked and if it did I am glad.
However, Kick Ick is NOT A KNOWN CURE FOR ICK and sometimes works, sometimes doesn't (and I think maybe more often doesn't). Some people, if I recall, have had catastrophic experiences with using it. It may work because whatever stress was an issue was resolved and the fish fought it off. It may be "resolved" because the normal life cycle of ick is a cruel joke - it will fall off, giving the fish temporary relief, and the hobbyist a false sense of security only to come back in 4 days or so even worse.
The only truly effective "cure" for ick is proper course of hyposalinity or copper. Additionally, if a stress in the tank exists, then removing it may allow the fish to fight off the parasite to a background level. Believe me, if a true "cure all, reef safe" treatment for Ick was around, there would be little mention of hyposalinity or copper, or even UV and garlic. So I would read a lot of experiences people have had with Kick Ick before using, and seriously think about taking a risk with treating a main display.
I would also add that a salinity of 1.022 in a main display can be a serious stress on inverts, and may result in some losses.
Darend -
You don't have inverts or LR in your tank, right??? Hyposalinity in a main display is a bad idea...a bad, bad idea. Not only does it take an excessive amount of effort to do (As you describe), but any inverts are toast.

 

[weaponusmc]

Ive heard that soaking your food in garlic is also good for Ick. Ive read it somewhere in this board about it helping alot.

 

[alextrif]

yes - garlic is excellent, but for a different reason. Rather than curing Ich, it builds up the fish's immune system. Garlic is referred to as "Russian Penicillin ". for us humans. It appears to have the same quality for fish. I soak food once or twice a week with garlic and I have two fish that can be susceptible to Ich (Purple and Chevron tangs) and I have had great success with them.

 

[yupi1982]

well. just for the record.....I LOS T MORE THAN 400 U.S IN FISHES because the f.....kick ich did.nt do anything !!!
i think OPHIURA KNOWS WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT !!!!
now i have to start over :happyfish

 

[kdfrosty]

Some people, like myself, believe that ich is always in your tank. It's whether your fish is stressed that creates the susceptibility.
I'm sure I'll get flamed for that comment, but that's what I believe. BTW, No, my fish dont have ich.
I do, however, believe that hyposalinity is a good treatment for ich.

 

[philgmiami]

Originally Posted by ophiura
Well, I hope it worked and if it did I am glad.
However, Kick Ick is NOT A KNOWN CURE FOR ICK and sometimes works, sometimes doesn't (and I think maybe more often doesn't). Some people, if I recall, have had catastrophic experiences with using it. It may work because whatever stress was an issue was resolved and the fish fought it off. It may be "resolved" because the normal life cycle of ick is a cruel joke - it will fall off, giving the fish temporary relief, and the hobbyist a false sense of security only to come back in 4 days or so even worse.
The only truly effective "cure" for ick is proper course of hyposalinity or copper. Additionally, if a stress in the tank exists, then removing it may allow the fish to fight off the parasite to a background level. Believe me, if a true "cure all, reef safe" treatment for Ick was around, there would be little mention of hyposalinity or copper, or even UV and garlic. So I would read a lot of experiences people have had with Kick Ick before using, and seriously think about taking a risk with treating a main display.
I would also add that a salinity of 1.022 in a main display can be a serious stress on inverts, and may result in some losses.
Darend -
You don't have inverts or LR in your tank, right??? Hyposalinity in a main display is a bad idea...a bad, bad idea. Not only does it take an excessive amount of effort to do (As you describe), but any inverts are toast.
woow!!!!!!!! your good at this ophiura

how long you been into saltwater fish and do you do this for a living?

 

[diane4]

Hi ophiura
StarShark,
Well, thank you for the advise and input. I will say that I have spent many hours over the past few weeks reading, reading, reading...and then reading some more on this forum. A wealth of knowledge out here and I thank you for it. I have only recently begun posting out here because I didn't want to busy up the forum by asking questions that are already out there. I had to much to learn before I could begin to speak intelligently to the salty friends out here on this board.
I have read that the live rock and inverts can't survive hypo AND copper is toxic to fish and can be a pain to get rid of in the tank when the treatment is done.
So, to reduce the stress for the fish, I setup a 50 gallon QT tank and moved my live rock and some inverts to it. I have some anthelia and green carpet mushroom. Plus all sorts of new blooms on it. I don't know what it all is yet, but it is gorgeous.
With the live rock and inerts in the QT tank, I am now as of tonight in hypo mode of 1.020 SG and 14 salinity in the 90 gallon display tank. It took almost 4 full days to get there. Moving down 2-3 points at a time. Checking PH along the way.
I left a couple large pieces of rock in the tank that is familiar to the fish and there isn't anything on the rock pieces (2 or 3 peices) to worry about trying to save. Just some algea. I angled the rock peices so the fish have hiding places and some rock for comfort.
I also have 2 heavy artificial saltwater peices that the fish use for hiding and sleeping. It's pretty homey for a tank with it's live rock removed.
I am going to leave the fish be for 1 week and not do water changes. Just check their params daily and keep it clean. As I understand the ich cycle, I need to wait until I see all of the white specs fall off completetly the fish, and then from that point - count 6 weeks. I am glad I have the purple tank, because it is obvious on her. Mandy is purple with white dots - poor honey.
My puffer is white already naturually so seeing specs on him is tough.
I will always use a QT tank for new inahabitants.
You folks are great out here. I appreciate all the knowledge that I learned from this forum.
I hope someday to be a great help to other new saltwater fish hobbyists like you are to me. This is a great forum. Luv it here.

:jumping: :cheer: :cheer: :cheer: :joy: :happy: