Lost all fish in one day

brsdr32

brsdr32

Member
I am frustrated and thinking about turning my saltwater tank into a freshwater. I have lost all my fish in one day. They were great 2 days ago. I have had them for almost 2 months now and no problems.
It looks like Ich.
But they were healthy for 2 months without problems. I have 2 of those fish, Percula Clowns, for 4 months. My inverts, no trouble and they are still going. Live rock is the same. Plenty of crabs that are hearty. My levels are all normal, which I'm grateful, but how did my fish die. Can Ich be dormant? But I've never had it, so how did I get it? Can anyone please help me out before I give up.
I know most people learn from their mistakes, I know I have. But I thought I finally got this under control. Please help anyone.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Sorry fo your loss...Ich can be introdued in your tank by coral, water, substrate, fish, live rock. etc. The parasites only need be presnet on any of these things for it to get in your tank.
Infected fish and/or immune fish (carriers) is the most likely way ich gets in your tank. The others are only posibilities if they have parasites present on them...it is possible.
You can set-up a QT tank to treat your fish for ich before placing them in the displayr tank. This will reduce the chance of a fish carrying the disease once entering your tank.
I keep my temp at a steady 80 degrees which helps with the spread of ich. I have had all my fish for about five years (just added a new grouper) with no ich outbreaks. I feed my fish a couple times a week with food soaked in garlic...this also helps their immune systems.
I do recommed a QT tanks, but it should be big enough and includethe comforts of home .
Also, you need to concentrate on prevention by keeping your water qualtiy constant, etc, etc.
 
brsdr32

brsdr32

Member
Why wouldn't the Ich hit the fish earlier than now. They have been great for a while, but starting yesterday I started to see the signs of Ich, and this AM they died. I still have 2 holding on for dear life, but I don't know if they will make it. I under estimated them earlier, I certainly thought they were already dead.
 
fishcake

fishcake

Member
Ich is the herpes of fish!
No true cure only temporary fix.
They (fish) will always carry the parasite, you just have to use preventive measures like garlic etc..
and qt them whenyou need to. Ich is the bane of saltwater fish husbandry
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Life cycle/stages of ich...can take a few weeks to "explode". Early signs such as fish rubbing against rocks, etc usually is a sign of ich...even if not too visible to the eye.
White spots only indicate one stage of Ich (the only one that can be seen by the

[hr]
eye). After infecting the fish, the adult organism falls off into the gravel and becomes encysted in a free-living dormant stage known as a Tomont. THIS CYST STAGE IS INVULNERABLE TO MEDICATIONS. This is the reason why a raise in temperature is suggested IN CONJUNCTION with Ich treatments...it speeds up the life cycle and makes the stages that are treatable come around faster. If you do raise the temperature, do so very slowly so as not to stress the weak fish further. Raise it no more than 1-2°C every day, and do not allow this temperature to fluctuate. Also, consider the types of fish you are keeping...most tropicals can tolerate as high as 30-31°C, but most Goldfish will start to languish in the high 20's, so don't push them any further.
Depending on the water temperature, the encysted stage will take from several hours to several days to divide into 200-800 larvae, called Theronts. These must find a host fish within a short window of time or die. They usually infest fish when they scratch against the gravel, continuing the cycle of disease. Usually, all 3 stages will be present within the same tank, but the larval Theront stage is the one that medications and treatments really target.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Do not put snake oils like copper in your display tank.... fatal to inverts and you will never remove it from your tank. ....forgot to add that advice. You can also treat fish with ich using hyposalinity...a better way to go in my opinion. Copper is like chemotherapy for a fish....JMO
 
snipe

snipe

Active Member
you will never remove it from your tank.
Dont know if this stuff works but if it dose then what you said isnt true :) .
Rapidly extracts all types of copper and remains effective until it turns a deep blue-black color. When in continuous use, it pulls precipitated copper from the filter bed, allowing invertebrates to survive in tanks previously treated with copper. 100 ml. is adequate for up to 60 gallons and can remove over 3000 mg. of copper (or 12 ppm in 60 gallons). May be regenerated repeatedly. Freshwater or saltwater.
NOTE: A fine mesh bag is recommended for the 250 ml. size.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Not familiar with that snake oil...always read you can never totally get rid of the copper...maybe this snake oil works but a doubt it. Never know though :)
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Sorry..... my words for a quick fix or some chemicals that are supposed to correct all problems in a tank. Ignore my stupidity
 
offshore80

offshore80

Member
Settle down. I just lost a 10" Emperor angel to an eye infection from a scratch. I can't even count the ones that have not made it through an Ich cycle. Now I have huge UV sterilizers on my systems. Adding a fish to a established system is like have unprotected ---. It's a crap shoot. It's all part of the hobby. You will have days like that infortunatly. Most of us that have been in the hobby for years have thrown are arms up more than once. You just have to improve your system and move on.
You'll get over it.
 
scubadoo

scubadoo

Active Member
Ammonia should be zero. If the test is accurate that is what killed your tang in all liklihood. Also, 70 degree temp is too low. I like a temp at 80 with plenty water movement.
 
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