Duration of Ich

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elevatethis

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Sep 14, 2005
868
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Richmond, VA
Two of my clown loaches recently came down with ich, and i noticed a few white spots on the lower fins of one of my blood parrots as well...

Been treating it with 84 degree water, salts, and QuICKcure. Woke up this morning and the clowns look a lot better, although not totally clear.

Generally speaking (since each tank is probably a little different) how long does it take to get rid of ich? How long should I continue treating the tank after the ich disappears?
 
The life cycle of Ich is dependant on the temprature of the water, as it will either prolong or shorten the life span of the parasite. Usually 3-5 days is the time it takes for the tomite to reproduce and release an free-floating offspring into the water column..

I would treat for another 7-14 days afterwards just to be cautious, but not with Quick Cure.. just salinity, heat, and extra water changes..
 
I treat with salt/heat for at least 10 days which is about 5 days after the last visible spot disappears, minimum oof 20 days in cool water tanks.
 
It seems that you all stay away from commercial meds, and treat this stuff with the salt/heat method...I did this for 2-3 days before I used any meds and the clowns didn't seem to get any better. Does it take longer than that to run its course?


**Just checked on them...one clown only seems to be using the gills on one side, while the gills on the other side is not moving at all. Not looking good for that one....
 
You might need a higher amount of salt.. It usually 'stops' the parasite from duplicating itself. I am unsure if the mixture of Formulin/Malachite Green found in most Ich remedies actually has the ability to make the Ich parasite fall off the body, as I heard that is near impossible without killing the fish.

I have also read elevated heat to 88+ degrees will cause the Ich parasite to die..

I have also heard that there are over 2000 types of Ich parasites, and some can be considered 'Super-Ich' and remedies such as salt may not work.

I do salt and heat on almost everything, if for some reason it dosn't get better after 4-5 days I will use a small amount of malachite green, but nothing in combination.

The clown loach is a scaleless fish and are very susceptable to Ich.. Ich also infects the gill area before other areas as well, as it is easy to 'lodge' itself inside the gills. I am unsure of permenant gill damage?
 
Have you heard of the hypersalinity method? Depending on what lives in your tank, or if you have a QT tank, you can lower the salinity and kill the Ich. Most marine fish can survive a 0.018 salinity for some time..
 
Marine ich and freshwater ich are different organisms. Heat makes both go thru their life cycle faster. The white spots dont fall off, they rupture releasing the vulnerable motile phase. In fresh water being treated with salt and heat it takes 3-4 days to see fewer spots and longer with loaches, I think due to the slime coat. Clowns can take salt at 2 teaspoons per gallon but need half doses of commercial meds, Corys don't tolerate salt well at all though.
 
Good news...the clowns seems to be getting better. Still noticeable white spots but seemed to be acting normally, relative to the last few days.

Overall they look better, and the spots that started to show up on a few other fish are gone now.

Would there be any use to products like stress coat and the like that would help resistence to ich?
 
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