So, I take it that you consider 85F and salt is more stressful than being in a barren tank alone for 3 weeks? Not that a fish tank is natural, but at least it is pseudonatural with plants and driftwood and other living creatures. I am concerned about the fish--QT is not inconvenient for me. The tank is sitting there ready to go!
Does anyone include ich tx as part of their QT?
- Thread starter mozart
- Start date
So, I take it that you consider 85F and salt is more stressful than being in a barren tank alone for 3 weeks? Not that a fish tank is natural, but at least it is pseudonatural with plants and driftwood and other living creatures. I am concerned about the fish--QT is not inconvenient for me. The tank is sitting there ready to go!
i couldn't agree more.
I run a UV on my qt tanks for at least three weeks in combination with my summer attic temperture, about 84ish, or throw a heater in there in the winter.
I haven't had a fish with ich that I needed to specifically treat for it in a long time. Bacterial infections and other critters, a few, yea, but ich and other parasites are pretty easy to protect your fishes against. if I don't feel very confident where the fish came from (any store that doesen't separate feeder tanks from the main system or just a crappy store in general) I start with 1 tsp per gallon in addition to the UV, and would up it to 2 if the fish started showing outward signs.
If the fish comes down with something else, then, I do a big water change and treat for the current illness, and ich takes a back seat, unless of course, the fish has the outward sigs of it.
My experience.
A little prevention during qt ought to save you a lot of headaches 1 or 2 weeks into the qt and the fish just started showing signs of ich.
Whenever I get a new fish, I always ASSUME it has ich. It has nothing to do with convenience or any other guilt trip your trying to put them on. As far as I'm concerned, all fish store tanks have ich floating around, and if not floating around, laying in the bottom for a few days waiting to explode into a million more parasites. That statement was a bit arrogant, and mozart obviously is asking the question because they do not want their fish to come down with an easily avoidable parasitic infection.
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I would suggest an increased temp. No need for 85F but 80F will definately speed up many parasites life cycles and may make them shown much earlier than normal. Then treat with a full treatment is needed. If the tank is not cycled then adding salt can be helpful in temporarily alleviating the effects fo nitrite poisoning. SO in that case I would add salt (NaCl).
My main tank has been running 80F since June. I did crank up the heater to get the temps to 85-86 slowly. The fish in my main tank (which is being treated for possible ich [with heat & salt] since I removed a sick fish with prob ich, in addition to something of unknown origin), are tolerating heat & salt without any evidence of stress. Most of them are hardy fish, though. I will be buying another pearl gourami which isn't always as hardy. Thanks for the Canadian advice!
Thanks for seeing where I am coming from. From what I hear, ich is prevelant and easy to treat naturally!
I personally don't treat for ich..tho there is a good chance many fish carry it.
I do keep my tanks around 82-84 I do keep mostly angels, discus and other warm water sa cichlids
ich will at that temp preset itself in the qt period..as I do qt for 4-6 weeks minimum.
I treat for internal parasites as they may not show up for weeks or months on a healthy fish.
I do keep my tanks around 82-84 I do keep mostly angels, discus and other warm water sa cichlids
ich will at that temp preset itself in the qt period..as I do qt for 4-6 weeks minimum.
I treat for internal parasites as they may not show up for weeks or months on a healthy fish.
Starrider. If your treating for parasites and ich, what are you expecting to creep up 4-6 weeks later? Does your QT have anything besides water & glass?
I know the question wasn't for me, but there are some parasites, like intestinal worms that take longer to show than typical stuff like ich, velvet, etc.
