Ich Killed my Fish

bisbrandt · 10-05-2007, 09:31 AM

What looked to be a serious tank-wide outbreak of Ich, started the process of killing most of my fish in my 29G tank (5 Phantom Tetras, 1 Red Tip Shark, 2 Boseman Rainbows, and 2 Red Painted Swords). By the time I got back from vacation, all of them were dead or dying, and it was too late for me to do anything to save them.

That left me with 2 fish - another Shark and a Pleco.

I've adhered to some of the posts concerned tank-wide treatment of Ich (salt bath, water temp), and things appear to have balanced. The Pleco is a trooper, and never showed any signs of sickness. I think he'd survive a nuclear winter. The Shark stablized, if not even got a little better. I'm still monitoring him. I also removed all my tank decorations, to make sure they were cleaned/dried, before putting them back.

My question - with regards to a tank-wide Ich outbreak, how long should I wait before starting the process of re-stocking? It's been a couple days now. Being new to the hobby, I was already planning to buy a Q-tank, so I'm guessing my Shark should go in there either way until he's healthy.

andy53 · 10-05-2007, 11:55 AM

I would keep treating your tank for about a week or two after you see no more signs of the ich. After that I would gravel vac the tank really well, then you should be ok to start restocking.

bisbrandt · 10-05-2007, 12:51 PM

Thanks for the response. I'll give it some time, so that I'm sure the issue is gone.

Do you suggest keeping the tank as empty as possible (plants, decorations, rocks, etc)? I have to imagine that would make it easier to eliminate the Ich, but I'm uncertain whether that would impact the tank's readiness to host fish in another week or two (re-cycling being my main concern). Don't the "good bacteria" attach themselves to those items?

A couple follow-up questions to this post:

The LFS suggested QuickCure or Aquarisol. Any thoughts?

What impact does Ich have on freshwater plants, if any?

...KEP... · 10-05-2007, 02:47 PM

Hi
Just thought I'd mention the articles section has a really good article on ICH written/compiled by Jay. It is very thorough...I'm treating for an ICH outbreak myself at the moment and found the article very helpful. Here's a quick link to it, if you like
http://www.fishtankforums.com/fishta...shwaterichcure
Best of luck
Karen

Jay · 10-05-2007, 03:41 PM

Hey Bisbrandt..

Yes definitely no less than 10 days after the last visible blister on the fish.

With ICH, you need to treat the fish and the tank, moving the fish serves no purpose. Once you see ICH in the tank you have to assume all the fish are exposed and need to be treated.

If there are fish left in the tank after the treatment, adding a few at a time to restock should work out just fine. The beneficial colonies will grow slowly as fish are added.

Ich has no impact on plants. The salt should be water changed away after the treatment is finished as that will, over time, have a negative impact on plants.

IMO & IME...Chemical treatment for ICH

Let's see salt and heat are extremely effective vs. expensive, harsh, and sometimes harmful chemicals. Hmmm.. safe and effective or risky?

FYI The phrase "safe and effective" and "copper" CAN NOT be used in the same sentence.

Read the label.

Regards,
Jay

Tommy Gun · 10-05-2007, 10:14 PM

Quote:

keeping the tank as empty as possible (plants, decorations, rocks, etc)? I have to imagine that would make it easier to eliminate the Ich

While I agree that your thoughts here are very logical...I cannot recall reading/hearing anyone suggesting that removing decor is going to make a huge impact on your successfully treating for Ich...which isn't to say that this means it wouldn't help you out but rather, I don't think it would be worth the effort entirely. Anyone can feel free to correct me if I am wrong on that though.

Anyways, my reasoning for posting this reply even though you are already getting great advice is to point out that, as Jay eludes to, Ich is easily transmitted from one fish to another fish in the same tank but can also be transmitted from one tank to another to an extent - hence, if you do remove any decor or rocks (possibly even plants) from this tank, you would be best off keeping them out of any tank...that is, if you have more than one. Additionally, you may benefit greatly from not using the same equipment on more than one tank at a time since again, this could spread the problem even further. Or in more simple terms, you should quarantine your fish in the tank they are in right now, as well as quarantine any decor and equipment by only using them in your 29 gal.

Quote:

I'm uncertain whether that would impact the tank's readiness to host fish in another week or two (re-cycling being my main concern).

Please don't misunderstand me here...I could not agree more with Jay's comments regarding your re-stocking of the tank slowly in order to avoid enduring another cycle or a mini-cycle - but if you find yourself in a position in which all of your fish are dead, I would highly suggest continuing your treatment anyways, or at least keep the tank free of fish for two or more weeks before restocking since, if you do so too quickly, your new fish could wind up in the same boat. Granted, there is always the risk that your new fish would carry Ich anyways, but personally, I feel that it is always better to be safe than sorry. Anyways, if all of your fish have died off from the Ich, you can help ensure that your tank does not become completely uncycled by using pure ammonia to replace the fishes' wastes....just like one might use to fishless cycle a tank. For more information on that, check out Jay's article on cycling a freshwater aquarium, which includes info on fishless cycling and the use of pure ammonia by clicking HERE.