every fish i get seems to die from ich within a week

[blackthunda77]

every fish i get seems to die from ich within a week or two. this is really starting to bug me, and my wallet, im doing everything i possibly can like take someimtes more than an hour to acclimate, feeding anti parasitic foods, water params are perfect for fish, everything is at 0 even nitrates are below 1 ,my corals are doing great and growing. i try to keep temp to not fluctuate mor e than 1-2 deg, i dont know what else to do. the only thing i dont have is a quaratine tank. im guessing that is a must? the only thing im woried about is if it will make a diff, if my fish die so rapidly(my tomato clown was fine 2 days on the 3rd day when i turned on the lights he was FULLLLLLLL of ich like he was playing in the sand, 2 days later hes dead, my pink skunnk clown.....didnt even really show signs of ick till yesterday morn, and by night, he was dead also.)is a Q tank going to help?? if they die so rapidly, wont they just do the same in the Q tank? someone please help, gimme soe info on how to set a Q tank up and what med ication to add to it. thanks

[mogurnda]

Step 1: Don't add any fish to the tank for 6 weeks. The parasites won't survive without a host. Your tank will then be ich-free. Right now, there are probably plenty of parasites waiting for a new host to enter the tank, so you'll get a bad case whenever fish are added.

Step 2: Quarantine. Because you won't be able to treat properly in a reef tank, you will want to keep an eye on them in a separate tank. They may be carrying a few of the parasites in the LFS, which then bloom into a full-scale infection when they are stressed by the move. If they have ich in the quarantine tank, you can safely treat with copper, formalin, hyposalinity, or whatever, without worrying about your happy corals.

There is a very nice series of articles on cryptocaryon in Advanced Aquarist:
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/nov2003/mini1.htm
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/dec2003/mini2.htm
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/jan2004/mini3.htm

[tricksterpup]

Well every thing mogurnda had stated is a 100% true, you will need a QT tank, and that is always a must for this hobby. But I am not one to treat fish right away in a tank like this. I will usually wait for signs on a fish before dumping chemicals into the water.
But first lets to some other trouble shooting. Before I can go more indepth here, I need to ask a few questions.
How old is the tank or how long has it been running?
How many gallons/liters is the tank.
Are there any other fish in the tank?
Do you have any inverts in a tank like this?
The reason why I am asking this question is to see if you have any snails, shrimp or crabs in the tank. And if you do, have you had any recent die off in the tank. Ick does not normally attack healthy unstressed fish. A good healthy fish can blow off this parasite and be fine. Only when they are weakened by something or stressed do to something in the water may the fish be attacked. I would check your tester kit and see if they are new or not, or go to your LFS to have them check your water. Something else is wrong here for this to constantly happen.

jim

[FISH WHISPERER]

One other thing that bears consideration is where these fish are coming from... A lot of times, fish stores have a "turn and burn" policy. I have seen a fish store that was infected with ich, and the entire water supply was central... that meant that there were a lot of parasites present. Now, when scooping out a fish, (especially if he's a hard bugger to net!) ;) they can immediately start "shedding" or sliming due to the stress. Put this with the volatile combination of literally millions of little tomites swimming around.. and one, just one can easily attach quickly. In this way, you can see how a fish that might "appear" normal and healthy can quickly "pick up the bug" at the time of purchase. :eek: If you have a fish store with infested waters, that's not good. Some stores have individual tanks/water supply, but some do not. Some "claim" to quarantine, but most do not. I personally know of a store that "claims" to quarantine, but I've been there on "shipment" day when the store was "closed" and before they open... voila, there has been an "open and drop" of the new fish. :eek: Not quite fair, but who has to explain that running a store is a "business" for most LFS owners, and a successful business is a profitable business... and, well... You can fill in the blanks... ;)

So it might be worthwhile to know the source of all these fish. I would not buy from infested tanks. Sure, the parasite is most generally in all fish stores... and one bugger is as bad as a thousand... but there is something to be said for a massive occurence. :eek:

In your situation, I'd definitely starve your tank, and then quarantine for sure. Making a fish purchase should be a big deal. A fish is something you can easily plan on having for a number of years. It is worth it to go through a couple of weeks to ensure a healthy fish goes into a healthy tank. I've kept ich-free tanks, and I can guarantee it can be done... I'm not meaning to sound pompous, vulgar or arrogant, :eek: but I need to be forceful in saying it CAN be done. Is it a lot of work? Sure. But is it too much of a pain? I can't say it is... Reading some of the exploits/deaths/expenses incurred by some folks always made me glad I took the extra time. And that means NO fish store water goes into YOUR tank. It might mean a few more steps of acclimating, but again - well worth it, and I think you'd agree, especially after going through the hellacious experience you are enduring now! ;) Maybe someone can be so kind as to link that big "ich" thread in which I wrote a book. ;) There was a lot of good info from a lot of people, I think... a good read for where you're at right now. Good luck, may patience prevail - and diligence be rewarded! :)