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Is it ich?!


zajla212

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Hello!

Today I saw a white spot on my blue tang above his eye and maybe someone could tell me if I should be freaking out :D (picture below). I've had him for about a month.

 

The tang is tiny, a little bigger than my clownfish. And since they were the first three fish introduced to the tank, they always hang out together. I know tangs are too big for a 55g, but he doesn't swim around a lot and always follows the clowns. He's breathing and eating normally, water parameters are stable (ph 8.3, temp 79-80 degrees, salinity 1.021, no ammonia or nitrites, doing 10% water change every week)

I have a 55 gallon tank with two clownfish, one spot foxface, cardinal fish, flame angel, bicolor blenny, cleaner wrasse, cleaner shrimp, banded coral shrimp and some snails.

I use Aqua Medic Turboflotor 1000 skimmer, a filter sock and run carbon in a 30 gallon sump.

 

Thanks!

(and sorry for my english)

post-87629-0-53308700-1437300945_thumb.jpg

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Murphs_Reef

Could well be, is it just one spot? Turn on just the blue lights n you'll see if he is peppered with spots or not. Did anything get added in the last few weeks?

 

Salinity is on the low side btw, has there been a sudden drop?

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I can't turn on just the blue light, they aren't that fancy XD Yes, three days ago I added a flame angel, foxface and a cleaner wrasse.

I keep salinity lower because I've heard it helps the fish breathe and reduces chances for disease. Also I use RedSea Coral Pro salt and on the bucket it says that 1.021 is recommended for fish and non-coral inverts. So there was no sudden drop.

Looks like just one spot.

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Yes, three days ago I added a flame angel, foxface and a cleaner wrasse.

 

 

Then you very well might have introduced something. Might want to start to get a QT ready. Are those more spots on the outer edges of the fins?

 

Also, the whole idea of lower salinity helps fish to breathe is a an old reefer's tale. http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-06/eb/index.htm

 

"Seawater of lower salinity can hold more oxygen than a similar seawater sample of higher salinity. This attribute is the longstanding rationale for keeping marine fish in water with a lower salinity than seawater (e.g., 29-30 ppt or 1.022 SG), the argument being that reduced salinity makes it "easier for the fish to breathe." This argument, while perhaps true in terms of oxygen, is preposterous. Marine fish, while some are tolerant of variable salinity, have evolved to exist in a marine environment where the salinity is usually between 34-36ppt. Long-term exposure to hyposalinity may have negative effects that outweigh the benefits afforded by increased oxygen solubility"

 

Oh, and don't apologize for your English--it is better than most 'Mericans.

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I was thinking about getting a qt tomorrow and set it up. How big should it be?

Those are some tiny tears in his fins. It doesn't show up well in the photo. I hope he's not getting bullied by any other new fish, will keep an eye on that.

Yes, I will raise salinity slowly by topping off with saltwater. Have wanted to do it before because I wanted to get some soft corals but I'll wait to see what happens with the fish first.

Thanks :D
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A 29g would be good, 40 breeder better (my favorite tank). If you do have ich, the DT needs to sit fallow for at least 72 days before reintroduction.

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Most likely is ich, pertaining to the recent fish additions. I know my petco is having its $1 per gallon sale right now, good time to set up a hospital tank.

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So I have to keep all fish and inverts in qt? isn't it going to be too crowded? would you recommend treating with copper or hyposalinity?

 

just thinking... could I put live rock and sand in a second tank with normal salinity to keep bacteria alive and do hypo in DT?

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Most likely is ich, pertaining to the recent fish additions. I know my petco is having its $1 per gallon sale right now, good time to set up a hospital tank.

 

Petco sucks. See if your LFS will match them on price. If you do go to Petco make sure you check the tanks carefully as they can be pretty sloppy. Check at the corners to see if they are square and the ends are plumb. The ones that I have seen the end glass all lined up at the bottom but were off by up to 1/4" at the top. All the ends were tilted in at the top on both ends of every 20H and 40B I looked at. They have cardboard on the edges too, makes it a PITA to run your hand over them to check. Be careful not to cut yourself on the sharp glass.

So I have to keep all fish and inverts in qt? isn't it going to be too crowded? would you recommend treating with copper or hyposalinity?

 

just thinking... could I put live rock and sand in a second tank with normal salinity to keep bacteria alive and do hypo in DT?

 

Inverts and corals can stay. Do not treat main DT with anything or do hypo in DT. That is what QT/HT is for.

 

Read: http://www.nano-reef.com/topic/298359-easy-quarantinehospital-tank-setup/

So I have to keep all fish and inverts in qt? isn't it going to be too crowded? would you recommend treating with copper or hyposalinity?

 

just thinking... could I put live rock and sand in a second tank with normal salinity to keep bacteria alive and do hypo in DT?

I would use the TTM method to treat for ich.

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oh, I didn't even know about the TTM. Sounds interesting from what I've read. Can I use water from DT in quarantine tanks for this method?

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oh, I didn't even know about the TTM. Sounds interesting from what I've read. Can I use water from DT in quarantine tanks for this method?

 

Absolutely not. Do not use DT water (or anything that touches DT water) in your QT system and vice versa. Unless they are cleaned and dry for at least 24 hours--that is 24 hours dry not taking 24 hours to dry. You must assume DT water is infected and treat it like the plague.

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Would you recommend going fallow with the main tank for 72 days or drying live rock and sand and then use bottled bacteria to cycle it again?

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