Please vet my TTM plan for Ich

[pokerdobe]

So I've introduced Ich into my DT - all my fish will have to be taken out and treated. Will this breakdown work for treatment without risking ammonia?

 

5 Gallon Bucket 1 with powerhead - Clown Pair and Mandarin Pair

5 Gallon Bucket 2 with powerhead- Kole Tang

10 Gallon Rubbermaid with powerhead- Anthias (small)

 

I will have a duplicate set up for each of those buckets and have Seachem Prime and Dr. Tim's one and only to help with ammonia.

 

After 14 days and at least 4 transfers, I will transfer the tang and anthias into a 40 gallon breeder I've been cycling. The clowns and mandarins will go into the Fusion 20 I've been cycling. They'll stay in their respective holding tanks until the DT passes the 72 day mark.

 

 

[Sunar357]

Below is what I was told. Prime should be the only thing you need 'just in case' I was informed.

Day 1 - fish in QT.
Day 4 - in AM, but before tank lights come on (8-9 AM EST), transfer fish to new tank, matching temp and salinity. Transfer as little water as possible net fish with hand if possible.
Day 7 - repeat.
Day 10 - repeat.

Day 13 - repeat and done.

[jack1978]

Those buckets have enough water volume IMO, but nowhere near enough footprint for those fish.

[East1]

You may be better off just combining them into a larger vessel, and using hyposalinity to treat it

[pokerdobe]

Those buckets have enough water volume IMO, but nowhere near enough footprint for those fish.

 

Even if the buckets are temporary and only during the treatment phase? And would this be more of a concern with the anthias and tang? I could switch it out to be 10 gallons for the anthias and 10 gallons for the tang.

 

You may be better off just combining them into a larger vessel, and using hyposalinity to treat it

 

I was told there are some strains of ich that are resistant to the hyposalinity method. Also, would this method kill off my nitrifying bacteria? I could do this and I could simply convert the 40 for hypo.

[East1]

 

I was told there are some strains of ich that are resistant to the hyposalinity method. Also, would this method kill off my nitrifying bacteria? I could do this and I could simply convert the 40 for hypo.

 

In my experience, it won't kill your bacteria off, no. I've only done it once on my reef-that-became a FOWLR when I was like 17, It did kill off a lot of inverts in the tank so you would want to re-seed the LR and sand when you're done, and be cautious of levels of nitrogenous waste. The advantage is that water changes are cheaper because you use like a third of the salt, and in my research no free-swimming parasites can withstand salinity of around 1.008-1.009, you'll want to leave the fish in the tank for a month or so and during this time run your reef at a higher temperature to accelerate the life cycle of any ich in your display.

[pokerdobe]

Hmm, that doesn't sound too bad. My display does have corals and clams, so I'd be treating the fish in the 40 and 20 - then raising salinity slowly right?

 

Which then, they'd still stay in the two tanks for 72 days for the display to clear?

[ajmckay]

People have had success with both methods. I don't see the buckets as being an issue for the short timeframe so honestly I would do whichever method you feel most comfortable with. Like you mentioned the timeframe is going to be about the same because you need to let the display tank sit for several weeks regardless - but one method is going to be more work than the other IMO.

[Tamberav]

I have used the tank transfer method several times now with 100% success. I think the buckets will be okay for a short period. The fish is going to be stressed either way. Hypo should also work, you just need to be very precise.

 

I haven't lost a fish doing tank transfer method but they do become stressed having to be captured and moved so it is still a possibility, I just try and be very quick about it. I only feed before I do the move to keep ammonia low and dose prime.

 

Good luck with either method you choose.