ICH, Salt and Plants

[Akysten]

I wanted to run thing against the plant gurus.
I've heard many people now say they have used Salt in the short term to cure ICH without killing the plants.
I've seen other people cry "blasphemy"
So which is it?

If Salt doesn't work, can I use Quick Cure? I'm presently using Quick Cure, but have been using half doses... I'll probably give this a few more days before resorting to Salt, but I want to have it ready as a standby.

At this point, the ICH has gotten worse, but it's only been two treatments, and I'm sure that much of the infestation was already present...

Thanks...

 

[mandimoron]

I've never tried using Quick Cure to fix an ich outbreak, so I can't really say whether or not it will work. What I can tell you, though is that salt does work, and it works fast.

I had an ich attack in my platy tank about a month ago. The tank is moderately planted, I suppose-- it's a ten gal with a couple of amazon swords, some ambulia, a crypt of some sort and an anubias nana. I used about 1.5 tsp/gal of regular table salt, and got rid of the visible ich spots in about two days. I did not increase the temperature of the water in the tank, and all of my plants, fish and snails survived unscathed. I almost half expected to see some sort of damage on my crypt, but it went on growing as though nothing had changed at all. Ditto for my betta tank: Mr. Betta and his java ferns endured their salt treatment for ich quite easily, and were completely unharmed.

I think the best solution for you will depend on what kinds of plants you have in your tank. My plants are all really bullet proof beginner plants, so maybe they did well because they're just tougher all-round than some of the more delicate plants that require more advanced care. But I do certainly recommend using salt instead of formal medications to treat ich wherever possible, since it works very quickly and didn't stress out anyone in my tank.

Hope that helps a little.

 

[IceH2O]

I used salt and high heat in my planted tank to fight ich.

I lost a few leaves on some plants and some of the others looked a little damaged but they all grew back with a vigour. You can see my tank by clicking the link in my sig.

I'm not sure if it was the salt, the 85/86 temps or the lack of fertilization while I was curing the outbreak or a combination of all. I'd trust the salt before I would the meds.

 

[cyborob]

Quit playing around and go with the salt treatment! http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=39759

Salt will kill the ich, heat will speed up the ich life cycle (and kill it but you have to go to high heat). With your planted tank I would not go with high heat, maybe 82 max.

All the fish in my sig did fine with this method and high heat 87, my plants didn't fair so well.