Yellow Tang Ick

[cky]

it appears that my yellow tang has some ick on his fins. This morning he didn;t have any but after I cleaned my tank glass it was there. I think he might have been stressed while I cleaned the glass and that's why he has ick. I just recently added him to my tank. Do you think it will go away if I stop doing maintenance in the tank and let him settle in? If not, then what kind of medication could I use? I do not hove a quarentine tank so it has to be safe medication.

 

[lion_crazz]

Can you list your water parameters for us?
We need ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, kH, salinity, and temp?
Also, what size is your tank?

 

[cky]

ammonia-0
nitrite-0
nitrate- 0-5
ph- 7.8
temp- 81
salinity- 28
sg- 1.021
The tank is also a 55 gal. with 2 small percula clowns and about 50 lbs of live rock.

 

[beth]

pH is a tad low, however, stress does not create ich, nor does stress-less-ness make ich go away. Stress can only make a pre-existing condition of ich worse.
If you have any other fish in that tank, they are now contaminated as well. Do you have LR, inverts?

 

[cky]

yes as I said I have about 50 lbs of LR. I also have 2 brittle stars and some turbo snails, as well as some zooanthids that hitchiked on the LR. I heard that feeding the fish garlic can sometimes make the ick go away, is this true? Other than that I think the only choice I have is to use a medication that is free or copper or any other metals.

 

[lion_crazz]

Garlic will not make ich go away. Garlic helps to build a fish's immune system, but will not cure ich.
What fish, other than the tang, do you have in the tank? I, as would Beth, would recommend hyposalinity as the best way in treating fish with ich. You would need to do it in a hospital tank without live rock and inverts. You would leave your display tank fishless for 6 weeks, and this would kill the ich in your display tank because they would not have a host.

 

[cky]

I have 2 percula clownfish in with the tang. I think I'm going to try my luck with one of the medications. I can't afford another tank, and I don't really have any inverts so if there was a casualty I wouldn't care. I'd rather lose 2 brittle stars and 2 turbo snails than my fish.

 

[lion_crazz]

Well, if you are going to try any "medication", go with Stop Parasite. It has always worked far better than anything else I have ever tried. I, personally, have never had any complaints with Stop Parasite.
However, let me break down the costs for you.
Stop Parasite, or any other medication - $20-$25
10 gallon QT set-up - $50
tank $9
filter $20
heater $10
cheap decorations - $10
For an extra $30, you can set-up a hospital tank and know that all ich will be gone from your tank and your fish.
Also, now having a QT tank, you will have the peace and mind in knowing that you can quarantine all new fish to keep your tank ich free.
Nevertheless, you need an alk test kit to see why your pH is so low. If your alk is low, you will also need an alkalinity buffer. I strongly recommend Kent's Super dkH buffer.
In the end though, it is your choice. I have had sucess with both methods, but overall, a hospital tank is ALWAYS the better and more reliable way to go.