New way to cure ick

[garychef1]

I currently have 2 clowns and a foxface undergoing hypo in a QT. My LFS guy said that hypo will rid the ick off of the fish but it is still in the tank water. He said to finish the hypo and to slowly raise the temp to 84 over the course of 1 week. He runs his tanks at 86. He also said use garlic extreme wich will help the immune systems of the fish. HE said let the tank run like this for a while and if you still see some symptoms dip it in pure RO water. He said that the fish could survive for a few minutes but the ick won't. IT all sounds logical to me. I really am not sure if it works but he has a beautiful tank at his house and everything is fine. Also, i see a white spec (not an ick spec) on my sixline. It is too big for an ick spot and it is sometimes there and sometimes not. The foxface in the QT has spots like the description above as well. Does the foxface even have ick? There are just tiny white blothes on his tail. I am really confused and was wondering if anyone could help me.

 

[nicetry]

Your lfs guy is wrong. Hyposalinity will in fact kill the parasite, if performed properly. Raising the temp simply speeds up the life cycle but does nothing to help rid your tank/fish of the illness. Dips are risky, and many fish don't tolerate them well. They are appropriate with a heavy infestation where you need to quickly provide the fish with immediate relief.
W/O a picture, it's hard to say what the white blotches might be. It could be a secondary bacterial infection, which would require medication.

 

[beth]

I disagree with keeping tanks at higher temps. To actually raise the temp high enough to kill any parasites, the temp would also likely kill and stress fish.
Hypo stands alone in its effectiveness. And as long as infected fish are not in the display tank, your tank will be cleared of ich.

 

[garychef1]

well... hypo does not seem to be orking. I got it down to .009 in 48 hours and i am beginning to put it back to normal over the course of 48 hours. The faxface still has these small (bigger than ick) dots on his tail and a big one on both cheeks.

 

[autofreak44]

give it a little time

 

[autofreak44]

you have to leave the salinity at 1.009 for 3 weeks then raise it back to normal slowly over 1 week

 

[mx mr bean]

and during that three weeks u need to remove all of your fish from the display tank inorder for the parasite to completely die out. if theres no fish then the ick does not have a host and thus dies.

 

[mkzimms]

i was under the impression higher temperatures, like those over 85, cause issues with oxygenation. wouldn't flow need to be increased significantly to offset this and bring more water in contact with the air/water interface?

 

[geridoc]

i was under the impression higher temperatures, like those over 85, cause issues with oxygenation.
Exactly. Oxygen solubility goes down with increasing temperature. Compounding the problem, the oxygen utilization rate goes UP as temperature increases, so oxygen availability is down and use is increased - a lethal combination. Just ask fish who die downstream of nuclear generating plants that use river water as a source of cooling.

 

[coral keeper]

What if you do the hypo in the main tank will that still kill the ick?

 

[michaeltx]

yes but it will also kill everything else in the tank as far as micro fauna thats why we remove the fish to a seperate tank to keep from killing everything else that benifits the tank.
mike

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by Garychef1
well... hypo does not seem to be orking. I got it down to .009 in 48 hours and i am beginning to put it back to normal over the course of 48 hours. The faxface still has these small (bigger than ick) dots on his tail and a big one on both cheeks.
The ich will reproduce and come back 200 fold. Ich does not die upon contact with 1.009 SG. Please read Beth's Common Treatments FAQ so that you know exactly what you are dealing with.

 

[garychef1]

well it seems that all spots have left the foxface

!!! I am going to finish off the hypo and i am going to use garlic when feeding for the next month or so just to keep them strong and healthy to help prevent it comin back.

 

[beth]

3 weeks in hypo is absolutely required, regardless of not seeing any more ich.

 

[garychef1]

i know.

 

[sk8shorty01]

Originally Posted by Garychef1
well it seems that all spots have left the foxface

!!! I am going to finish off the hypo and i am going to use garlic when feeding for the next month or so just to keep them strong and healthy to help prevent it comin back.
That is a common sign of the reproductive cycle of the ich parasite. I would make sure you QT all the fish for at least 3 weeks in hypo to make sure that you dont infest your DT again. Also, let your DT sit without any fish in it for 6 weeks as to let the parasites die off, as they cannot live without a host.