ICK and planted tank

[DiiQue]

So Mr. Conductor has ick and he's in an Aqueon 8 planted tank. What's the best way to treat this without killing the plants (I just read the sticky on diseases) and looks like AQ salt is out of the question. I raised the temp to 84/85 degrees. Am I correct in assuming that I have to treat the whole tank to get rid of all the parasites vice putting him in a QT tank?

Thanks in advance - this is my first disease that I have to deal with so could use your guys' experience.

[prodrumernate]

put Mr. Conductor in a hospital tank.like a 1 gallon tank or bowl.. get something like API Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Liquid Super Ick Cure,u can go to ur local pet or fish store and find a few things for ICH.and follow the directions on the container..

raising the temp it good.85 or so is great.hopefully u removed Mr. Conductor..as that temp would be too high for him..

in the tank itself with him separated i would use aquarium salt to help treat the tank..or i think u can use the medication its self but dont think its a good idea to do that in the tank unless a huge water change is done before putting Mr. Conductor back into it.

ive always used a hospital tank as i read and know its not good to terat them in the actual tank.

my best answer would be to separate him and treat him in something small,and heat the tank up as high as u can and using aquarium salt.

any 1 else think differently please post as well.. :)

[Kenny G]

Here is a very useful article for treating ick.


The first thing you want to do once you spot Ich is get the fish out of the water he is currently in. This could mean setting up a "hospital tank" with clean water that has been treated with a water conditioner to ensure the best water conditions for your fish while he heals. If you don't have a hospital tank, then perform a complete water change, clean your tank thoroughly, and add water conditioner before returning your fish to it. Remember that Ich spend three days swimming in the tank water, so putting your betta in new water will get him away from any free swimming parasites. The water in this new tank should be slowly raised up to a maximum of 82 degrees Fahrenheit (27.7 degrees Celsius). Bettas are tropical fish, so they prefer warm water anyway, but Ich thrive in colder waters so by raising the temperature you give the pesky parasites a lower chance of survival.

The next thing you should do is select a medicine to put in the tank that will kill the remaining Ich. There are three basic types of medications for betta fish: antiparasitics, antifungals, and antibacterials. Ich is a parasite, so if you're browsing the pet store shelves, look for a medicine that's advertised as an antiparasitic. There are a lot of medications that claim to kill Ich, but what you're looking for is one with either malachite green or methylene blue as a main ingredient. Check the label for one of these two ingredients before you buy the medicine.

Follow the instructions on the bottle very carefully and completely. Usually you just need to measure out the liquid in a syringe and squirt it into the water, although smaller bottles may have a built-in dropper to make it easier. If you would prefer to use a dropper, QuICK Cure by Aquarium Products is a treatment with malachite green that I have had a lot of luck with. The medicine won't be able to kill the Ich while it's attached to your betta, so you must keep using the medicine even if you don't see Ich on your fish. When the Ich are free-swimming, the medicine will take its effect and kill them. This usually means giving the medicine every day for a week, and it is a good idea to continue using it for several days after that week just to be sure that all the Ich are killed. It is a good idea to perform 25% water changes every day while you are treating your betta. Malachite green and methylene blue won't harm your betta, but they could be harmful to any tankmates such as catfish or frogs. You should only treat your betta if he is isolated. In addition, if your betta tank has a carbon filter, you will need to remove the carbon before beginning treatment with the medicine.The instructions that come with the medication can tell you more about what it will effect.

[Aus]

+1 to hospital tank suggestions.

If your fish is out of his tank for a week, there's no need to raise the temp in there or add salt -- which your plants will hate -- as the parasite cannot survive for more than four days or so without a host. After a week - 8 days to be sure - in the hosp tank, he can be returned without risk of re-infection.

[DiiQue]

Thanks guys. I will go ahead and take him out when I get home tonight. Is there a possibility of saving the plants (just QTing them in another container for a couple of days), or would I have to toss them out? Normally I would just toss, but its just really difficult to purchase nice plants where I am at.

[prodrumernate]

you can keep the plants.i would quarantine for a few days.ich/ick cant live without a host.

you should be fine.did a little research online about it,didnt exactly find anything about plants but read about it with filters and other media.so im sure it applies to plants as well..

i had a tank with ich..i cleaned it out and set it back up.no problems since then.using all the same decor.only difference is i use a sponge as filter media instead of the actual filter cartridge..i still have the old cartridge though as backup and everything.

my tank has been setup nearly 2 months already.fish been in it since day 1 doing a fish-in cycle.they are all fine.and added other fish including betta in it.no harm.

[Aus]

^+1 re the plants being fine.

I'd probably do some major water changes on the home tank, and give the gravel a vac with each change to help clean out out dead parasites etc, though.

[DiiQue]

Cool. I'll pull out the plants and put them in one of the empty containers for a week or two and will go to the LFS to see about AQ salt. I ordered some last night from Amazon, but wont get here until Friday or Monday next week at the latest and dont want the little guy to have to suffer longer than he should. He's still very active and other than the white spots, I wouldn't even know he has a problem.

I'll clean out his regular tank today - just going to use boiling water and then run it under hot water in the shower for 5mins and just let it dry out.

[prodrumernate]

i dont know what country u r in but if ur in the states.walmart has cheap AQ salt.its where i got mine from...also Epsom salt will work as well..

dont boil the rocks..for the rocks its best to wrap them in aluminum foil and bake them like on 350 for about 10 minutes or so..the decor and plants can be boiled.the aquarium its bet to use either bleach or white vinegar.having like a 50/50 mix.but making sure u rinse out the tank very very well.

but u dont really have to completely tear the tank down.heating it up and using AQ salt will be fine doing it for about a week.

i redid mine because i wanted to start fresh and wanted time to think.plus i wanted to redo the cycle.though i say its better to start fresh just to be on the safe side.but read u can just heat up the tank with the heater and use salt.

doing it the way u said should work just as good.since its not something extremely major like TB..good thing its not TB though.everything would have to be thrown away unfortunately.

[DiiQue]

I bought him a little kritter keeper tank and put some of my spare cabomba in there so he has a place to hide. So far he's doing fine, actually started to have a flaring contest with Dr. Z for a bit before I placed a divider. I'm worried about the water getting too cold at night and put the hydor heater that was in his regular tank and thermometer in there. Havent turned it on yet as I'm having to watch the baby. Its a 25w unit and i figured if i have it set to 75degrees and see how hot it gets, and then adjust accordingly afterwards, hopefully things are fine. I think the kk holds about a gallon of water (rough guesstimate)... We'll see later on.

The substrate Thats in the regular tank is the ecoComplete stuff.. Do you guys recommend just tossing that out or just let it sit in a bucket for a couple of days so the ich all dies?