Small white Particles in the water! Help! White spot!
- Thread starter Dan 6192
- Start date
Ok thank you, sorry for being vague I'm relatively inexperienced. My concern was wether the floating bits were ich related but by the sounds of it, it's not which is good. I have treated them with white spot treatment which was one dose today and 1 dose in 4 days. Is there anything else I can do to help it? Iv put an airstone in which I read somewhere can help. Also once the treatment is in I assume you can't do a water change untill the final dose has been in and the ich has cleared? Can I feed them as normal aswell? As do I need to put the temp up? It's currently at 26 degrees
Looks like ick to me. And probably just a coincidence that other stuff is floating around.
You can check to see if its the anode tube of the water heater, by draining out a quart of water from the spigot, at the bottom of the water heater. It the water that comes out is slimy, and you see particulate....then it may be the tube deteriorating.
Its a good idea to drain some water regularly from the water heater anyway, simple slime from minerals can build up in the unit reducing efficiency, so regular draining until the water feels normal (not slimy) helps. Usually only takes a gallon or less, unless you haven't done it in 5 years.
Vacuuming the substrate helps reduce certain stages of ick, and treatment for ik normally lasts a few weeks.
You need to kill all the inactive cysts as they hatch, and that takes a while.
The reason you raise the temp, is to speed up the ick life cycle and the treatment gets them while they are vulnerable. When they are on the fish, they are immune. And each spot hatches up to 100 new ick.
You can check to see if its the anode tube of the water heater, by draining out a quart of water from the spigot, at the bottom of the water heater. It the water that comes out is slimy, and you see particulate....then it may be the tube deteriorating.
Its a good idea to drain some water regularly from the water heater anyway, simple slime from minerals can build up in the unit reducing efficiency, so regular draining until the water feels normal (not slimy) helps. Usually only takes a gallon or less, unless you haven't done it in 5 years.
Vacuuming the substrate helps reduce certain stages of ick, and treatment for ik normally lasts a few weeks.
You need to kill all the inactive cysts as they hatch, and that takes a while.
The reason you raise the temp, is to speed up the ick life cycle and the treatment gets them while they are vulnerable. When they are on the fish, they are immune. And each spot hatches up to 100 new ick.
Many people have trouble getting rid of ick and they often experience outbreaks later because the ick was never fully eradicated to begin with. Ick is actually easy to get rid of. You just have to stick with treatment so every last parasite is killed in its more vulnerable lifestage. It only takes missing one encysted tomont to have an outbreak of 100s infective theronts.
Forget about the treatment you're using which sounds like 'Ick Cure' or something similar. As
duanes
pointed out, treatment for ick lasts a few weeks. This is why many people have so much trouble getting rid of ick ... they don't treat for the full duration.
The easiest treatment is salt + increased temperature. You can use rock salt, canning salt, kosher salt, table salt ... just sodium chloride. Epsom salt is NOT sodium chloride.
Day 1: Add 1 tablespoon salt per 5 gallons of tank water. Gradually increase the temperature to 82ºF.
Day 2: Add another tablespoon of salt per 5 gallons of tank water. Gradually increase the temperature to 84-86ºF. Be sure there is plenty of surface agitation from a filter return and/or a powerful airstone/airpump. At higher temperatures there is less oxygen in the water so good aeration is important.
Day 3: Leave the salt level at 2 tablespoons per 5 gallons and the temperature at 84-86ºF.
Day 4 and beyond: Do nothing.
If temperature has been at 84º, wait at least 10 days after the last whitespot was visible on any of your fish. Then you can gradually reduce the salt level by performing water changes and gradually reduce the temperature to your normal setting.
If temperature has been at 86º, wait at least 7 days after the last whitespot was visible on any of your fish. Then you can gradually reduce the salt level by performing water changes and gradually reduce the temperature to your normal setting.
Be careful not to spread ick to other tanks. It only takes a drop.
Be sure to read the temperature using a thermometer .. not by the dial on the heater.
**This treatment is NOT for scaleless fish or planted tanks.**
Instead, Seachem Paraguard with increased temperature (82º) can be used but it must be dosed daily per the instructions and treatment must be continued for weeks. Wait at least 10 days until the last whitespot was visible on your fish before stopping treatment with Seachem Paraguard.
Forget about the treatment you're using which sounds like 'Ick Cure' or something similar. As
duanes
pointed out, treatment for ick lasts a few weeks. This is why many people have so much trouble getting rid of ick ... they don't treat for the full duration.The easiest treatment is salt + increased temperature. You can use rock salt, canning salt, kosher salt, table salt ... just sodium chloride. Epsom salt is NOT sodium chloride.
Day 1: Add 1 tablespoon salt per 5 gallons of tank water. Gradually increase the temperature to 82ºF.
Day 2: Add another tablespoon of salt per 5 gallons of tank water. Gradually increase the temperature to 84-86ºF. Be sure there is plenty of surface agitation from a filter return and/or a powerful airstone/airpump. At higher temperatures there is less oxygen in the water so good aeration is important.
Day 3: Leave the salt level at 2 tablespoons per 5 gallons and the temperature at 84-86ºF.
Day 4 and beyond: Do nothing.
If temperature has been at 84º, wait at least 10 days after the last whitespot was visible on any of your fish. Then you can gradually reduce the salt level by performing water changes and gradually reduce the temperature to your normal setting.
If temperature has been at 86º, wait at least 7 days after the last whitespot was visible on any of your fish. Then you can gradually reduce the salt level by performing water changes and gradually reduce the temperature to your normal setting.
Be careful not to spread ick to other tanks. It only takes a drop.
Be sure to read the temperature using a thermometer .. not by the dial on the heater.
**This treatment is NOT for scaleless fish or planted tanks.**
Instead, Seachem Paraguard with increased temperature (82º) can be used but it must be dosed daily per the instructions and treatment must be continued for weeks. Wait at least 10 days until the last whitespot was visible on your fish before stopping treatment with Seachem Paraguard.
That's a great help thank you. Should I leave my 120g zeo carb bags out the filter still? And can I start the process with the table salt even though Iv dosed once with treatment already? Also is it safe for my SA Cichlids to live in a temperature that high? Normally the tank is at 26 degrees. I have added an airstone and have good surface agitation.
I would place the zeo carb bags back in the filter to remove the medicine. The treatment probably was malachite green or methylene blue and formalin. The first two break down quickly but the formalin doesn't. The carbon in the zeo carb will remove the formalin but won't touch the salt.
You can go ahead and start day 1 of the treatment but also add the zeo carb or pure carbon if you have some.
SA cichlids can definitely withstand those temps. Just increase the heat gradually. You don't have to go all the way to 86ºF or 30ºC but at higher temps treatment doesn't need to last as long.
Also, it's better to mix the salt with water in a jug and pour that into the tank.
This is a standard treatment for ick so don't worry. With good surface agitation everything will be fine, especially with SA cichlids.
You can go ahead and start day 1 of the treatment but also add the zeo carb or pure carbon if you have some.
SA cichlids can definitely withstand those temps. Just increase the heat gradually. You don't have to go all the way to 86ºF or 30ºC but at higher temps treatment doesn't need to last as long.
Also, it's better to mix the salt with water in a jug and pour that into the tank.
This is a standard treatment for ick so don't worry. With good surface agitation everything will be fine, especially with SA cichlids.
Yeah sorry he was the odd one out he's the only other fish from a different region in there.
Thank you so much for all your help I'm clear now on what I have to do. And yes it was a blue in colour type of formula I think it was interpets anti white spot treatment I will start the salt process today
Thank you so much for all your help I'm clear now on what I have to do. And yes it was a blue in colour type of formula I think it was interpets anti white spot treatment I will start the salt process today
You can use salt along with the other treatment, but watch for stress, especially in the bush fish, they are more sensitive than cichlids.
I have used salt in tandem with the treatment Nox -Ick, which is a malachite based product.
And any salt is fine as long as it NaCl.
I like to use water softener salt, its rated for human consumption.
I just put it in hang on back filters and let it dissolve, or toss it in the sump by the handful throughout the day.
I usually figure 1.5lbs of salt per 50 gallons of water to achieve a 3ppt salinity.
And find anything under 3 ppt allows some ick protozoa to survive, and if even 1 survives, the disease cycle can start again.
I have used salt in tandem with the treatment Nox -Ick, which is a malachite based product.
And any salt is fine as long as it NaCl.
I like to use water softener salt, its rated for human consumption.
I just put it in hang on back filters and let it dissolve, or toss it in the sump by the handful throughout the day.
I usually figure 1.5lbs of salt per 50 gallons of water to achieve a 3ppt salinity.
And find anything under 3 ppt allows some ick protozoa to survive, and if even 1 survives, the disease cycle can start again.
Just and update.... I haven't yet put the table salt in as iv been out all day and iv just got back to cloudy and smelly water. Iv done some tests and everything seems ok :/ the fish are still eating ok at the moment. I'm worried I may lose some fish 
