Just wondering if anyone has had success treating ich with hyposalinty? I have a 180 (FOWLR), well I had a few anenomes but I had to get rid of them due to this problem. I dropped my salinty down to 1.009 and kept it at that for about 5 weeks, the ich went away completely and really quick, about the second day I dropped it. I just started slowly bringing the salinty back up over the past few days it's now at 1.017 and the ich is back. Before I tried the hyposalinty I treated with kick-ich and it did nothing, let alone its pricey treating the amount of water I have. Any input on how to kill this off for good would be greatly appreciated.
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hyposalinity??
- Thread starter wetoyster
- Start date
Amazon
Non-member
I've done this, but had to use a separate QT because hypo would have killed the corals, inverts, etc.
What I did was drop it to 1.009 over a couple of days. Then 6 weeks at 1.009. Then increase by .001 per day until back to matching the DT. I then treated with prazipro (long story). Then when done moved them back to the DT which had now been fallow for 8 weeks (key!).
No ich since (knock wood).
I've put a new addition (scopas) through this too before adding to the QT. Not a spec once introduced after hypo.
So far I'm an advocate. Although I know some folks think the ich is always there.
We tried the No Ich and it didn't work. Waste of money I think.
What I did was drop it to 1.009 over a couple of days. Then 6 weeks at 1.009. Then increase by .001 per day until back to matching the DT. I then treated with prazipro (long story). Then when done moved them back to the DT which had now been fallow for 8 weeks (key!).
No ich since (knock wood).
I've put a new addition (scopas) through this too before adding to the QT. Not a spec once introduced after hypo.
So far I'm an advocate. Although I know some folks think the ich is always there.
We tried the No Ich and it didn't work. Waste of money I think.
LosingSleep
Non-member
I've been successful using hypo in the past.
How are you measuring specific gravity or salinity?
I use a refractometer to measure the salinity, think it measures the specific gravity as well but never looked at it. Should I be keeping that at a certain level as well? I'm thinking maybe 5 weeks wasn't long enough. How long did you keep you salinity down?
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^ +1 Here. I can't agree more.
I wish I could take all my fish out and qt them but it's not really an option for me right now. Do you think that by not keeping my tank empty the ich is just still able to use my fish as a host and keep coming back? Not really sure what else I can do. I'm going to bring the salinity back down and try it again, probably keep it like that for 6 weeks this time, any other advice would be great. BTW I like the bird I have a cockatoo and a quaker at home. Thanks
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IME 1.008 seems to be pretty safe. If there's any question at all about the accuracy of the refractometer your using, then that's an important consideration.
Otherwise, there are different strains of ick. Most say 6 wks should do the trick, but I have heard stories of ick hanging on longer than that.
Personally I've had good results doing the tretment for 7 weeks at 1.008. (it's been at least two + years since I've had any sign of ick in my system)
I'd guess that 5 wks wasn't quite long enough, and or, there could have been some measurement error with the SG. (keep in mind that if your topping off evaporation manually, that can alllow the SG to rise in between top offs. If this happens it could be enough to keep the ick alive)
Otherwise, there are different strains of ick. Most say 6 wks should do the trick, but I have heard stories of ick hanging on longer than that.
Personally I've had good results doing the tretment for 7 weeks at 1.008. (it's been at least two + years since I've had any sign of ick in my system)
I'd guess that 5 wks wasn't quite long enough, and or, there could have been some measurement error with the SG. (keep in mind that if your topping off evaporation manually, that can alllow the SG to rise in between top offs. If this happens it could be enough to keep the ick alive)
LosingSleep
Non-member
What do you have for livestock?
Well I guess I'm going to start all over again and probably just keep the salinity down for 8 weeks this time, and bring it down that extra .001. I'm pretty sure my refractometer is working properly but its worth looking into, any easy ways to test this? I top off frequently but don't have that much evaporation, usually a gallon every few days.
As far as live stock I currently have a porcupine puffer, lunar wrasse, redsea sailfin, bursar trigger, algae blennie, emperor angel, harlequin basslet, and a damsel. The problem occurred when I tried introducing a copperband butterfly, I was stupid and bought it on impulse without doing any research first. Put him in and a week later had the outbreak, I got rid of him a few days later. No more new fish for me.
As far as live stock I currently have a porcupine puffer, lunar wrasse, redsea sailfin, bursar trigger, algae blennie, emperor angel, harlequin basslet, and a damsel. The problem occurred when I tried introducing a copperband butterfly, I was stupid and bought it on impulse without doing any research first. Put him in and a week later had the outbreak, I got rid of him a few days later. No more new fish for me.
The refractometer should be calibrated using a stock/calibration solution of known SG. Also a lot of them come with instructions that say you can calibrate using distilled water, just set it to zero with that in/on the prizm. (But IIRC there is some question about if your average distilled water is actually going to consistently be 1.0000)
Either way, when you have a solution of known value, you put the solution on the glass just like any other time you use the refractometer, look through it, and use the adjustment screw (usually a little flat head screw, or a thumbscrew) to adjust it so the blue line matches up with the value of the test solution.
Also, IIRC Greg Hiller usually can supply a small amount of test solution at meetings if you ask for it in advance (I may be wrong on this but I'll try to check with him about it at the meeting tommorow)
Either way, when you have a solution of known value, you put the solution on the glass just like any other time you use the refractometer, look through it, and use the adjustment screw (usually a little flat head screw, or a thumbscrew) to adjust it so the blue line matches up with the value of the test solution.
Also, IIRC Greg Hiller usually can supply a small amount of test solution at meetings if you ask for it in advance (I may be wrong on this but I'll try to check with him about it at the meeting tommorow)
Amazon
Non-member
That's understandable. But keep in mind - your biological filtration in your live sand and rock (you have that in your tank, yes?) can not survive hypo and you'll have to keep a close eye on starting a cycle all over again. It will also kill any inverts.
Also, watch the salinity closely. Make sure you don't hit 1.007. I've read if you dip to 1.007 it is fatal to the fish. You may want to research this, it's just necessary to be aware that you can go too low.
The life cycle of ich involves a stage where they drop off your fish and live in the sand/rock. This is why people will leave the tank empty of fish (fallow) long enough for those buggers to die. They can not live and go through another cycle with out fish to host. But if you have to do all of this in your DT, a longer hypo period is necessary to cover this aspect. 6 weeks may be enough.
OT - be careful, my husband may ship the bird to you
'too's and quakers are awesome. Umbrella...goffins...triton...?^^^ Big yes on that.
I should have been more clear in my post, IME 1.008 has worked great, but that's also pushing the limits of how low you can go. I've never killed a fish with hypo SG, but I might just be lucky
If you wont' be able to check SG daily, and or, if there is any uncertainty in your SG measurement, don't go below 1.009.
I should have been more clear in my post, IME 1.008 has worked great, but that's also pushing the limits of how low you can go. I've never killed a fish with hypo SG, but I might just be lucky
If you wont' be able to check SG daily, and or, if there is any uncertainty in your SG measurement, don't go below 1.009.
jrmx635
Non-member
ick
invest in a u.v. and if you have fish that won't eat a cleaner wrasse or cleaner shrimp,get them.
A u.v. on a fish only tank in my opinion is a fortune saver.
I don't run them on reefs but a fish only with an ick outbreak can cost more in fish than a u.v.
Try to figure out what is causing the outbreak before you spend weeks of dropping and raising salinity.
There has to be a reason the fish are stressing.
invest in a u.v. and if you have fish that won't eat a cleaner wrasse or cleaner shrimp,get them.
A u.v. on a fish only tank in my opinion is a fortune saver.
I don't run them on reefs but a fish only with an ick outbreak can cost more in fish than a u.v.
Try to figure out what is causing the outbreak before you spend weeks of dropping and raising salinity.
There has to be a reason the fish are stressing.
Matt L.
Non-member
When I do hypo, I run with a UV system as well.
Some Ich are persistent down to a S.G. of 1.006. This is very much the danger zone for fish.
I experienced a very similar situation when I treated with hyposalinity for the first time. I only went to 1.009. The second time, I went to 1.007, and was successful.
Use a calibrated digital conductivity meter in conjunction with a refractometer. If you're at 1.010 instead of 1.008 due to a miscalibrated refractometer, you're not accomplishing anything.
Using UV and keeping the fish well-fed is merely assistance, and neither will accomplish the job alone.
Lastly, a fish may be infected with several strains of Ich simultaneously. Some are more persistent than others. In the end, I was never able to fully eliminate all Ich from super-sensitive fishes with just hypo. However, when Ich returned after hypo, it was much less pronounced, and eventually went away on its own in the display tank, never to return, even when the fish became stressed or conditions were no longer optimal.
Matt
Some Ich are persistent down to a S.G. of 1.006. This is very much the danger zone for fish.
I experienced a very similar situation when I treated with hyposalinity for the first time. I only went to 1.009. The second time, I went to 1.007, and was successful.
Use a calibrated digital conductivity meter in conjunction with a refractometer. If you're at 1.010 instead of 1.008 due to a miscalibrated refractometer, you're not accomplishing anything.
Using UV and keeping the fish well-fed is merely assistance, and neither will accomplish the job alone.
Lastly, a fish may be infected with several strains of Ich simultaneously. Some are more persistent than others. In the end, I was never able to fully eliminate all Ich from super-sensitive fishes with just hypo. However, when Ich returned after hypo, it was much less pronounced, and eventually went away on its own in the display tank, never to return, even when the fish became stressed or conditions were no longer optimal.
Matt
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