Help with Ich PLEASE!

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Jordan82594

Black Skirt Tetra
MFK Member
Jan 14, 2019
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Hi guys, okay so this is my first ever bout with ich. My fish seemed to be very healthy. Everything seemed fine until I noticed some white spots on my fish. Of course I immediately knew it was ich and began treating. The temperature was raised to 86 degrees and I added a little salt as well. It got worse of course over the next few days. It is now around day 7-8ish and they still show no signs of improving. I have used medication as well as kept the tank at the same temperature. Do you guys have any advice for me as to how I can help them kick it? Initially it was only a few spots but now they are covered in them and have been the last couple days with no real improvement as of yet.

My mistake was that I didn’t quarantine 2 new fish that I got from my lfs. They are actually the only 2 who have visible ich. The others are obviously infected so I treated the whole tank but they have no visible spots at all. It is only the 2 new fish. I have been using a medicine I believe is called rid ich plus and I have 5 total fish in the tank of which 2 are infected. They they are all American cichlid juveniles and the infected fish are electric acara (between 2-3 inches I believe)

Any help would be great and thanks ahead of time! I attached a picture.

B5B014F7-14D1-444F-AE09-09E7E4171453.jpeg
 
Ich has 4 stages of its lifecycle. The white spots are just one and the only stage they are almost invulnerable. It usually attaches to fish's gills first so just because you don't see white spots doesn't mean they're not infected. They will stop attaching to fish at 85°F, stop reproducing at 86°F and will die off at 88.9°F. Most thermometers have a margin of error of 2°F so if you set your heater to 86° and the tank's actual temp is 84°F, you're just speeding up the life cycle of ich. That's why the recommended temp is 88°F for 2 weeks (14 days) with good circulation and aeration (add an air stone with heat treatment). You should also gravel vac every day to pick up the ich spores in the substrate.

You do NOT want to mix treatments. If you're using meds, lower the temp to normal (78-82°F?). Follow the directions exactly. Kordon Rid Ich Plus is good and should take care of the infestation as long as you follow the instructions. Most meds take 5-7 days.
 
DarkOne said:
Ich has 4 stages of its lifecycle. The white spots are just one and the only stage they are almost invulnerable. It usually attaches to fish's gills first so just because you don't see white spots doesn't mean they're not infected. They will stop attaching to fish at 85°F, stop reproducing at 86°F and will die off at 88.9°F. Most thermometers have a margin of error of 2°F so if you set your heater to 86° and the tank's actual temp is 84°F, you're just speeding up the life cycle of ich. That's why the recommended temp is 88°F for 2 weeks (14 days) with good circulation and aeration (add an air stone with heat treatment). You should also gravel vac every day to pick up the ich spores in the substrate.

You do NOT want to mix treatments. If you're using meds, lower the temp to normal (78-82°F?). Follow the directions exactly. Kordon Rid Ich Plus is good and should take care of the infestation as long as you follow the instructions. Most meds take 5-7 days.
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That’s my problem. I’ve followed the instruction and did my daily water changes sometimes even 2 and the ich is still there and strong. If I had to guess I would say the ich just hasn’t fallen off at all yet that’s why my other fish haven’t been infected yet (at least visibly, I understand they can still have ich in Their gills and other places I can’t see) but it’s taking a lot longer than I’ve heard and read about. It’s been at least a week with no visible signs of improvement for the 2 infected fish and I’ve done all the things the bottle says. Should I be worried or is this normal?


Thanks for the reply btw.
 
How big is the tank?
What is the current temp?
Do you have aeration?
When was the last treatment of Rid Ich Plus?
 
DarkOne said:
How big is the tank?
What is the current temp?
Do you have aeration?
When was the last treatment of Rid Ich Plus?
Click to expand...
29 gallon
I have a spectate thermometer in the tank and it reads exact 86.9 degrees
Yes I do. I have no air stone or anything so I didn’t quite fill it up as much as I usually do so that the Walter dropping from my filter can create moves waves at the top as well as aiming my circulation pump up so that more waves can form to provide more oxygen.
I last treated the tank around noonish.
 
Hope you have a bigger tank for them in a few months.

When did you start the meds? I would finish the treatment with the meds and keep a close eye on them for the next few days.
 
I skipped straight to meds. I started meds a day after I noticed the ich so about a week ago.

P.S. it is just a grow out tank for them. They will be in a 75 gallon I will set up once they are a little bigger. I currently have a 55 I was going to grow them out in with Africans but they’re too small to hold their own atm so I separated them.
 
Ich should fall off in 3-9 days. Heat usually speeds up this stage.

Do you have any carbon in your filter? Did you take it out?
 
DarkOne said:
Ich should fall off in 3-9 days. Heat usually speeds up this stage.

Do you have any carbon in your filter? Did you take it out?
Click to expand...
Yes I took it all out. Only filter floss is left. I guess i’ll Just stay patient a little while longer. Thanks for the help!
 
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