Royal Gramma Ich HELP!

[10g Reef]

My Royal Gramma recently came down with a case of marine ich . He was in my 10g along with his buddy nemo the Ocellaris Clown. I quickly made a QT and am treating with hyposalinity. Here is the setup....

 

4 gallon sterilite plastic storage bin with lid

old whisper 5-15 hob

tetra submersible heater

2 pots to hide in

 

Here are the parameters....

 

Temp: 77 F

S.G.: 1.011

Amm: 0 ppm

Nitrite: 0ppm

Nitrate: undetectible

 

I am wondering why I have no ammonia, nitrite or nitrate in a newly setup tank. I have a small piece of LR in the filter, but I read that in 1.011 s.g. the good bacteria would die. Also, the gramma ins't looking so good. He lays on his side all day, and only moves if I move his pot to check on him. Even then he seems to not be able to keep his balance, and just tips over on his side again. He would not even eat bloodworms today which are his favorite. The ich does seem to be gone from him though, as he no longer has the white spots. So, is it normal for fish to act like this in hyposalinity, or should I be worried? He was acclimated slowly, so that's not the issue. I just really want him to survive as this is my favorite fish. PLEASE HELP.

[Builder Anthony]

Whats the salt level in your tank with the fish.It should be between 21 -26

[paneubert]

The ich may be gone from the main body, but it likes to live in the gills where you cannot see it. So that might be why he looks pretty sick still. Just keep on trying to get him to eat a few times a day and then remove any food that you can suck up.

[GokesReef]

I'm not a super-fan of the salinity treatments, but, hey, if it works... I would use some medication, personally, and not stress the fish with salinity swings.

 

The lack of a cycle is probably from the rock you used. Shouldn't have been any die off.

[Renogaw]

the bacteria won't die at 1.011, just the micro organisms living in the rock (such as worms, etc).

 

problem is, ich won't die at 1.011 either.

 

you need to be down to 1.009 or 14ppt salinity and stay there for three weeks.

[10g Reef]

Ya I knew Ich wouldn't die at 1.011, so today I dropped it and it is now perfectly at 1.009. He does look better today, and is more active. He still won't eat though. Also, the clown needs to go to the QT along with the gramma to completely get the Ich out of my tank. Will this cause a cycle? So far I have been changing about 1/2 - 1 gallon of water per day. I change it with distilled water that is buffered to 8.3 pH and at salinity of 1.009. Will this be ok with both fish in it? Or do I need to do more water changes? Lastly, does an API saltwater liquid test kit work at this salinity, or will results be off?

[Builder Anthony]

Why would you put a healthy fish in with a sick fish.I mean somethings are simple and people make poor decisions.Dont put your fish in with the one that has ich.Get a bucket at least and seperate them.

[Renogaw]

Why would you put a healthy fish in with a sick fish.I mean somethings are simple and people make poor decisions.Dont put your fish in with the one that has ich.Get a bucket at least and seperate them.

 

 

if the two fish were already together there's a great chance the clown has ich as well. you should put a wad of bonded filter media that was in your tank into your QT to act like live rock. you're going to get ammonia in the tank, yes. keep some amquel around, and keep the pH up. ammonia's more deadly at lower levels. your pH is going to be tough to keep up.

 

if you don't have a refractometer, then you may or may not be down to 1.009. nothing is as accurate (and when you get your refractometer, don't worry about specific gravity anymore, start working with salinity levels)