Is this true. My LFS told me the reason you can never fully get rid of Ich is that it is in the water supply. Everytime you do a water change...there it is. If your fish are weak or stressed - Ich.
ICH is in the city water supply!?
- Thread starter JosephMCorbett
- Start date
That is a myth. The chemicals the water company treats your water with kill Ich.JosephMCorbett said:
I would be tempted to generally agree with Harlock, most likely it isn't possible. Could it be a water temp thing? Fluctuations in water temps are a really common cause of an ich outbreak.
I did however grow up in a rural town with a really slack muni water system. While there was never ich to my knowledge, there was a giardia outbreak caused by the system.
I did however grow up in a rural town with a really slack muni water system. While there was never ich to my knowledge, there was a giardia outbreak caused by the system.
No, temp fluctuations don't cause an outbreak any more than sitting in a tub of freezing cold water will give you the flu. Severe temp swings can stress fish, making them more susceptible to any ailment--but parasites must be introduced into the tank via infected fish. Not only are the chemical treatments adequate to kill the parasite, it's life cycle is such that it can not complete in the absence of fish.
If that new-to-me myth were fact, I would have Ich in all my tanks. To the contrary, I have not had Ich other than in QT in decades.
Horsefeathers!
Horsefeathers!
OrionGirl said:
Right, that's why I said that temp fluctuations are a common cause of an ich outbreak, not a common cause of ich. It is the stress and related susceptability which increases the likelihood of it taking hold. Can we possibly split hairs anymore?
Obviously, the LFS mentioned above has it living in both the fish they get in and in the non parasitic stage in the tanks. That is status quo for a lot of shops.
As far as the life cycle goes, its speed is entirely dependent on temp. So, there exists the possiblity that yes, the non parasitic form could come in through a poorly maintained, virtually untreated municipal water system. Especially given the fact that most public water isn't kept at high temps. Granted, this is very, very improbable, and literally the odds of it being the case are a billion to one, but it is not impossible.
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While in theory the long shot may exist, and in some countries in the world, water supplies are not as good as we have here, it would be impossible in the U.S., canada and I imagine Great britain for sure. Quite simply, municiple water suppliers that get their water from above ground lakes inhabited with fish treat carefully, parasites abound in nature, but regulations do not allow them to abound in our drinking water. and Chlorine/ chloramine is deadly even to ich. Municipalities that get away with skimping on treatment are generally using water from deep aquifers that would be free of parasites, and for the larger part free of bacteria. There is virtually nowhere on this continent north of the mexican barder that supplies surface water without extensive treatment and testing. As you said the LFs is obviously confused, I have to agree with RTR's statement regarding even the remotest possibility of it coming through the pipes.
Clarification is very often needed, and information is commonly mis-read by people, no one is trying to split hairs here, we are trying to make sure that every single person who reads these posts knows exactly what the facts are.
For instance you make the statement that the LFS in question obviously has ich living in the parasitic and non parasitic stage in their tanks, there is a common myth that ich has a dormant stage in an aquarum, and it simply isnt true.
it does technically have a non parasitic stage for a few days, while it reproduces in the tank, so your satatement is not false at all, but for someone reading it who thinks there is a dormant stage, your comments can be taken as reinforcemnet to the myth. Clarification is never a bad thing in this hobby.
dave
no, that isnt true but ich is always in your tank.
your fish only get it when their immune system icant fihgt it off anymore
your fish only get it when their immune system icant fihgt it off anymore
victimizati0n said:
No, it's not. Once Ich is killed, it stays dead. You see, nothing killed is able to reproduce. Therefore Ich cannot always be present in your tank. Give the article on Ich in the articls forum a read. It's good stuff and explains it all in detail.