My luck finally ran out (ich)

[FishAddict74]

Started to raise the temperature. Have to watch to closely though as the heater is meant for bigger tanks (the store didn't have anything smaller beyond SUPER small ones for 4 gallon setups or less) so whatever temperature I want has to be set at a few degrees lower on the heater itself. Also added the medication. Directions say to add one spoon every two days.


There's no carbon filtration and no inverts so we're good there.


Going to have to vaccum a lot even if there wasn't ich because the farlowellas in the tank with them are apparently worse waste factories than even my bristlenoses. Poop. Everywhere.

And I did say these were the last fish to be added to the main tank, so after there's nothing else coming after them.

As long as you don’t have scaleless fish or inverts, most copper based medications will work for ich, but I like the high temp method better. I slowly raise my temp to 87 since most ich will die at 86. Keep that temp for two weeks and you should be good. I’ve used this method with salt and freshwater with a lot of success . If that doesn’t work, then I’d go with medication.

 

[FishAddict74]

That sure looks like ich. Since they're in a quarantine tank, add it directly to the tank. Definitely raise the temp to about 80. The parasite is only destroyed by the medication during the free swimming stage (called a tomite) when the parasite is looking for a host. Raising the temp doesn't kill off the parasites directly, but it speeds up the life cycle of the ich so that the vulnerable stage occurs more frequently and is exposed to the medication faster, reducing the treatment time.

I'm not familiar with MetroPlex. Check the label to see if there are any special directions. For example, I use Nox-Ich. I don't have a bottle on hand, I haven't needed it for years and I threw my last bottle away after it expired, but if I remember right it said remove carbon filtration, don't use with inverts, and to use a half dose with scale-less fish. Metroplex may have similar directions. Follow the directions and you shouldn't have any issues.

WYite

I’ve seen nox ich online but that’s it, I’m pretty sure it’s just copper though

 

[Snagrio]

As long as you don’t have scaleless fish or inverts, most copper based medications will work for ich, but I like the high temp method better. I slowly raise my temp to 87 since most ich will die at 86. Keep that temp for two weeks and you should be good. I’ve used this method with salt and freshwater with a lot of success . If that doesn’t work, then I’d go with medication.

Do armored fish count as "scaleless" fish such as my farlowellas? Haven't put any further medication in the tank, though I did add a tiny amount of aquarium salt. Don't think it'll do anything but it sounded nice at the time... And if not well, I'm doing frequent water changes anyway so the salinity won't factor into much anyway.

Also my temp has been sitting around 83 for the past couple days. I've just set the heater to gradually raise it further to 86-87 though. I just hope the fish can handle it (both species normally prefer 80 at the most).

 

[FishAddict74]

Do armored fish count as "scaleless" fish such as my farlowellas? Haven't put any further medication in the tank, though I did add a tiny amount of aquarium salt. Don't think it'll do anything but it sounded nice at the time... And if not well, I'm doing frequent water changes anyway so the salinity won't factor into much anyway.

Also my temp has been sitting around 83 for the past couple days. I've just set the heater to gradually raise it further to 86-87 though. I just hope the fish can handle it (both species normally prefer 80 at the most).

I’m not sure about farlos, I’m pretty sure plecos and most catfish are considered scaleless fish , so I would assume farlos are as well. They should be able to handle the higher temps. My garage tanks get up to 88-90 for the summer and any fish I have out there do just fine. Just do it gradually. Just make sure you have plenty of surface agitation since higher temps lowers oxygen levels and speeds up the fish’s metabolism. I had a case of ich about 6 months ago in a community tank with Tetras barbs and SA cichlids and I kept it at 88 for few weeks and that wiped it out. But 86 is the minimum for this to work, I’ve heard about people adding salt, but I’ve never tried it so can’t comment on that.

 

[Snagrio]

I’m not sure about farlos, I’m pretty sure plecos and most catfish are considered scaleless fish , so I would assume farlos are as well. They should be able to handle the higher temps. My garage tanks get up to 88-90 for the summer and any fish I have out there do just fine. Just do it gradually. Just make sure you have plenty of surface agitation since higher temps lowers oxygen levels and speeds up the fish’s metabolism. I had a case of ich about 6 months ago in a community tank with Tetras barbs and SA cichlids and I kept it at 88 for few weeks and that wiped it out. But 86 is the minimum for this to work, I’ve heard about people adding salt, but I’ve never tried it so can’t comment on that.

There is a large rectangular air stone in there pumping tons of bubbles, so the oxygenation should be good.

 

[Wyomingite]

I’ve seen nox ich online but that’s it, I’m pretty sure it’s just copper though

Active ingredient is malachite green, which contrary to popular belief does not have copper in it. It is totally organic. It gets it's name not because it's made of malachite, which has copper in it, but because the color of malachite green is close to the color of malachite and malachite green was often used as a cloth dye.

That said, malachite green is nasty to inverts even without copper in it.

Do armored fish count as "scaleless" fish such as my farlowellas? Haven't put any further medication in the tank, though I did add a tiny amount of aquarium salt. Don't think it'll do anything but it sounded nice at the time... And if not well, I'm doing frequent water changes anyway so the salinity won't factor into much anyway.

Also my temp has been sitting around 83 for the past couple days. I've just set the heater to gradually raise it further to 86-87 though. I just hope the fish can handle it (both species normally prefer 80 at the most).

That is something I've seen debated, with no clear winner, time and time again, and I've wrestled with that in my own mind ever since I started in the hobby when I was a kid. I always counted all catfish as scaleless just to be safe, as well as loaches and small tetras. With access to more and more customer support on websites these days, you could probably contact the manufacturer and they would probably give you their definition of "scaleless". You know, it's funny how sometimes you don't think of things like that when you're the one with the question, because I've never thought of contacting customer support before, lol.

WYite

 

[FishAddict74]

Active ingredient is malachite green, which contrary to popular belief does not have copper in it. It is totally organic. It gets it's name not because it's made of malachite, which has copper in it, but because the color of malachite green is close to the color of malachite and malachite green was often used as a cloth dye.

That said, malachite green is nasty to inverts even without copper in it.



That is something I've seen debated, with no clear winner, time and time again, and I've wrestled with that in my own mind ever since I started in the hobby when I was a kid. I always counted all catfish as scaleless just to be safe, as well as loaches and small tetras. With access to more and more customer support on websites these days, you could probably contact the manufacturer and they would probably give you their definition of "scaleless". You know, it's funny how sometimes you don't think of things like that when you're the one with the question, because I've never thought of contacting customer support before, lol.

WYite

That’s why I like these forums, I was told years ago by someone I trusted that nox ich is a copper based medication and never looked into it again. Lol learn something new every day. I can see it being used as a dye though, nothing like blue air lines to make a tank look nice ?

 

[FishAddict74]

There is a large rectangular air stone in there pumping tons of bubbles, so the oxygenation should be good.

You should be good , just watch for telltale signs like rapid breathing, and fish hanging near the surface with their heads angled towards the top

 

[Snagrio]

You should be good , just watch for telltale signs like rapid breathing, and fish hanging near the surface with their heads angled towards the top

Considering the latter is what hatchets do by default as natural behavior, I'm not sure how useful that kind of sign would be. ?

I get what you're saying though. I've been keeping a close eye on things.

 

[Snagrio]

Temperature has reached and plateaued at 87 degrees and everybody looks stable.

Seems like I caught it in time because there's very little spread, at the most one fish has a mere three dots and maybe one or two dots on a couple others. No losses thus far either. Will keep up the water changes but it's otherwise now but a waiting game.