When to treat for Ich

darkslide820

darkslide820

Member
Hello all.
I just got a Coral Beauty angelfish 8 days ago. He's in the quarantine tank and I think he might have ich. It's not an obviously bad case, but I see a white speck on his "mohawk" top fin, and he has a faint white spot on his right cheek. He's been breathing kinda hard from time to time (again, nothing that looks like he's having a heart attack or something). Yesterday I saw him scratching his cheek against a shell.
I've been quarantining all new fish since my last tank got wiped out within a week's time, but this is the first new addition that I think might actually have ich. I know that the best way to treat it is the hyposalinity, but I'm worried about how to go about this since I've never done it before and I know it has be pretty exact and the pH might drop as I do it. Can anyone point out to a good step-by-step guide on it, or a video on YouTube? And is this even a good time to try hypo or should I wait to see how the fish goes for a little while longer?
Thanks.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Can you get a picture....make sure it is ich and NOT lymphocystis
IF IT IS ICH....Do HYPO....NOTHING ELSE WORKS!!!! (I KNOW) There is a detailed explanation in the disease and treatment section on exactly how to do hypo
make sure you follow the instructions exactly
 
mr. limpid

mr. limpid

Active Member
Copper is not good on angles, may have bad effect, do not recommend. Hypo if done correctly works great and safe for fish. One word of advise its say 3 weeks after ick is gone, its hard to determine that because it could be in gills and cant be seen so I always add an extra week in hypo to make sure. I also had entire tank wiped due to ick and said never again.
Good Luck
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
While it is true that angles have a low tolerance to copper, copper is still the treatment of choice of many hobbyists. In fact I would bet at least 90 % of LFS run copper in their tanks. If I was going to use copper on an angle I would ONLY use cupramine as it is safer then copper sulfate or chelates. It is also easily removed with carbon or what I prefer to use a poly filter pad
 
darkslide820

darkslide820

Member
First off, we tried taking a picture of the fish but nothing came out good enough to show the white spots.
He's been in the tank 11 days now. I noticed yesterday that the spot on his cheek is gone and the spot on his topfin looked loose, like it was about to fall off; like a scab. Today I come home from work, and I see that the mark on his cheek is definitely gone, and the spot on his topfin is completely gone now, too !!
Is this too good to believe? If it makes any difference, I did a water change 6 days ago. Should I believe that the ich, if he had it, just went away?
As I stated in the first post, I'd rather not do hyposalinity if I don't have to since I've never tried it. I'm still going to leave him in the QT for 4 full weeks.
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
It's not gone, it just dropped off to go on to the next phase of their cycle. They'll be back.... and they will bring their daughters with them.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
I have said your quote over and over and it still sounds like something Yogi would have said. Anyway tis may be a good time to research the life cycle of ick and how to deal with it
Quote:
I'd rather not do hyposalinity if I don't have to since I've never tried it
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
Hyposalinity is much safer for the fish, but it is best to have a refractometer to ensure correct reading of salinity.
If you wish to do copper, you must have a well established QT, not something you recently set up and just cycled. Your best choice is Seachem's Cupramine, and compatible copper test kit.
You will need to follow the directions carefully. And will need to diligently check for copper levels to make sure you maintain therapeutic levels, and don't overdose on copper.
I would do a small water-change every other day, making sure that the copper level is maintained.
 
darkslide820

darkslide820

Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by florida joe http:///t/387605/when-to-treat-for-ich#post_3412875
I have said your quote over and over and it still sounds like something Yogi would have said.
Simple. I've never done hyposalinity; therefore, I'd rather not attempt it, potentially do it wrong and kill the fish, unless I absolutely have to.
My current QT is actually the first saltwater tank I had; it's 5 months older than my current display tank. QT running since Feb 2010. What does using copper entail?
 
kiefers

kiefers

Active Member
It entails a safer and quicker time the ich clears and you can get your community back in their old neighborhood. (JMO)
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kiefers http:///t/387605/when-to-treat-for-ich#post_3413327
It entails a safer and quicker time the ich clears and you can get your community back in their old neighborhood. (JMO)
It's stilla chemical..you have to make sure you do a lot of testing
IMO with hypo...all you do is gradually lower the salinity....keep it that way for a period of time...then bring it back up.....no additives or chemicals...all you need is a refractometer, which you should already have anyway
 
kiefers

kiefers

Active Member
And in some cases chemical ware fare is necessary.
I do agree with hypo however, the op is very green with the details. If they chose to step up to the plate and sleep next to the tank every night..... let it begin.
We have done both so,..... i like the copper.
 
meowzer

meowzer

Moderator
I have not done either...BUT am about to do hypo.....THEN I will never have to worry about anything leaching into my tank seams
 
kiefers

kiefers

Active Member
hypo in theory, my theory anyway, is safer. Either way I have lost more fish during hypo than copper. To the OP..... do your homework. Learn everything there is to know and weigh both pro's and cons of both ways of tackeling this issue. If you have questions there will be folks on here that have done these before and can help you and your critters.
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by meowzer http:///t/387605/when-to-treat-for-ich#post_3413333
I have not done either...BUT am about to do hypo.....THEN I will never have to worry about anything leaching into my tank seams

Just as a point of info. Cooper is absorbed into silicone and some substratum if you are using any in your HT. then it leeches out and into your tank water. I have had discussions at length over the phone with tecks from sea chem and they tell me the amount of copper leeching out from silicone is too low to register on any home test kit
 
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