# I got ICH!!!



## blakeoe (Apr 27, 2005)

I just descovered small white salt looking dots on some of my fish. ERR!! After doing research i found that i have ich. I found several ways to treat it but the one i chose is salt and temperature. I added 3tbs per gallon of aquarium salt and raised my temperature to 87 Degrees. I Plan on leaving it like this for atleast a week. Has anyone had any experience with this before or have any advice for me?


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

did you slowly raise the temp or did you just turn it up? what fish are in the tank? i reccomend you treat until all signs of ich are gone (spots, scratching yada yada)and for another 3-4 days after that. also i would do a small water change twice a week. raising the temp will also speed up the life cycle of ich, so be very cautious.


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## Guest (Jun 21, 2005)

Quick Cure medications works great for ich. i used it on my figure eight pufferfish and the ich was gone within a couple weeks.


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## blakeoe (Apr 27, 2005)

it took me about 2 1/2 days to raise the temp i did it very slowly. I have 2 angel fish,2 clown loaches, 2 yoyo botias, 1 angeli? botia, 1 upsidedown catfish, 2 red claw crabs, 1 rainbow fish, and 3 sharks. Also what i read said that it would speed up the life cycle and that they cannot breed at that temp so it should take about a week for everything to be gone. but i won't stop anything until im certain everything is fine. Also they said not to use the quick cure type of meds b/c they can harm the bacteria and make my tank start cycling again. Keep in mind i am new to this disease so anything posted will be considered helpful.


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## fishfreaks (Jan 19, 2005)

wells clowns are very sensitive to meds as they have no scales. I have had no problem with salt or any other meds mixing with my clown loaches, so I wish you luck with yours as well. i cant say it enough how important it is for you to do those water changes, youll be sucking up all the eggs that are dividing, and all the stuff that fell off your fish. good luck


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## shev (Jan 18, 2005)

and slowly add the salt. like a teaspoon every 12 hours.

scaleless fish are sensitive to ich treatments because they usually contain some form of copper or malachite green. the copper in the treatments will also kill any crustaceans, such as the red claw crabs you have. so the natural way is the best solution to this situation. 

since ich is pretty well immune when its in a cyst in the substrate, or on the fish burrowed in, the increased temperature will speed up its life cycle getting it to the free swimming stage faster killing off the ich. I also read keeping the tank dark will help keep the free swimming ich from finding their host. 87 degrees is quite a bit, the salt is whats supposed to kill the ich, not the temp. I could be wrong. dont stop trying to kill the ich once there aent any visible signs of it, like on the fish since there still are cysts int he gravel ready to hatch and restart the infestation.


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## blakeoe (Apr 27, 2005)

Kool thanks for the help guys!!!


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## Osiris (Jan 18, 2005)

You are indeed on the right track. Raising the temperature over a day be cool, 85-87 is what to aim for give it up to a week if you don't see anymore signs of ich then lower it back down to 84 and keep it there to help keep ich at bay sounds like you buy from LFS. If ich is still there after a week, then begin the salt treatment slowly like they said over 12hrs.


HTH


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