How long to fallow tank

[ldymcbeth6]

Hey, all.

As I've said--I have the dreaded ich. I have two fish left ::sigh::, one of who I'm pretty sure is going to die. The other I'm hoping is going to make it. If I remove him when treatment is finished, how long should I leave the tank empty to be REALLY, REALLY sure there's nothing waiting in there?

I've heard four days is long enough, but I'll just bet that's too easy...

 

[wataugachicken]

ich can survive without a host in the cyst form for up to two weeks if you just leave the tank alone. if i were you, i would probably remove the affected fish now to a temporary tank. if you have any real plants, put them in a separate bucket. in the main tank, dose with salt 1 tsp./gal and raise temp up to 90 or so. your tank should be clean after a week, but you'll more than likely have to cycle again. do a few large water changes at the end of the ich treatment to get most of the salt out.

 

[Rbishop]

Yep two weeks easy. Why not just keep treating the tank as your doing (provided the fish make it).

 

[ldymcbeth6]

weeellll...the one barb left is having trouble swimming--he keeps tipping over. I'm taking that as a bad sign of imminent death. My precious pleco that I've become attached to during this ordeal is not eating--but is hanging. He's very sunken in the belly and won't eat. He did some things today like hanging and flaring his fins that have been unusual the last few days. I'm hoping tonight he'll eat some peas or potato. ::sigh::

Anyway...I think I will take the pleco out, assuming the barb dies. And continue to treat him in a hospital tank. Then I can crank up the heat and salt. Will that kill other things besides ich, too? I don't think that's all these guys had. I could dismantle the tank and boil everything---