How to disinfect sand

[Richard203]

oky after i used bleach and then put water in and pour some prime ima wait a day and dran t out then let t dry for 1 month. do you think 1 month enough to kill off any parasite/bacteria and etc?

 

[phreeflow]

I’ve seen/heard people saying they cured Ick with heat only. I’m skeptical, personally have never cured ich with heat alone.
I’m not say they did or didn’t, but from my own experience and opinion while heat may be a part in the treatment (by speeding the lifecycle) I always use salt for fresh water ich along with heat. Or another anti parasitic medication.
I use to keep several saltwater systems and used hyposalinity to treat fish only tanks.

For reef tanks, because of the corals and invertebrates I’ve removed all fish and let the tank run fallow for no less than three weeks. With good result.
I’ve often wondered why planted tank keepers that find themselves with ich do not use the same methods.
I suppose that because the saltwater parasite is different than freshwater, running a freshwater system fallow may not work.
Could it be that the freshwater ich can actually last longer without a host?

I’ve never been concerned about ich as it was always easy to treat until I dealt with a particularly resistant and virulent strain. My usual regimen is heat, salt, and water changes and if that doesn’t work, I turn to meds.

I once added a chubby pleco into a large colony of zebra plecos and within days they got ich. I followed all the usual steps but it kept getting worse. Nothing worked...including multiple OTC medications. After losing one of the zebras, i got desperate and added several oversized heaters in the tank and cranked them up. When the tank got up to 96 degrees, I finally began to see improvement and eradication. I was amazed the fish survived the temps but they looked so much better and made a full recovery.

I’ve kept fish for decades and that experience shocked me. I never knew there were different strains of ich until then and don’t take it lightly anymore

 

[BIG-G]

I’ve never been concerned about ich as it was always easy to treat until I dealt with a particularly resistant and virulent strain. My usual regimen is heat, salt, and water changes and if that doesn’t work, I turn to meds.

I once added a chubby pleco into a large colony of zebra plecos and within days they got ich. I followed all the usual steps but it kept getting worse. Nothing worked...including multiple OTC medications. After losing one of the zebras, i got desperate and added several oversized heaters in the tank and cranked them up. When the tank got up to 96 degrees, I finally began to see improvement and eradication. I was amazed the fish survived the temps but they looked so much better and made a full recovery.

I’ve kept fish for decades and that experience shocked me. I never knew there were different strains of ich until then and don’t take it lightly anymore

Thanks for your input on the subject.
Have you ever had a spontaneous outbreak, without anything new being added?

This is were the the conversation tends to head into a gray area.

I’ve spoken to some people that believe it to be possible. They claim that ich is an ever present threat looking for an opportunity.

Some believe that once there’s been an outbreak and the tank is treated and successfully cured, if nothing new is never added there’s no ich present any longer.

 

[phreeflow]

Thanks for your input on the subject.
Have you ever had a spontaneous outbreak, without anything new being added?

This is were the the conversation tends to head into a gray area.

I’ve spoken to some people that believe it to be possible. They claim that ich is an ever present threat looking for an opportunity.

Some believe that once there’s been an outbreak and the tank is treated and successfully cured, if nothing new is never added there’s no ich present any longer.

I don’t remember getting any spontaneous outbreaks. It’s usually after adding something.That ich situation with the zebras was around 5 years ago and I still have the colony now and there has never been another case of ich.