What is your best Ich treatment or Ich medication?

[TLT]

I stumbled across this thread just as I'm in the middle of an ich crisis. Thanks everyone for their advice!

 

[Hurley]

I have never used anything other then heat and salt. I use table salt without iodine and I add 1-2 teaspoons per gallon. I pre mix the salt and water to be added to the tank then use a drip method to add the salted water to my tank very slowly. I then raise the heat up a couple degrees a day. I treat for a minimum of 2 weeks and for at least a week after I don't see white spots on the fish. I have only lost one fish (the original one with ich) and have never lost any other aquarium inhabitant or plant using this method and I have been ich free for 3 years. I have treated spiney eels, kuhli loaches, blue rams, shrimp, snails, and the tank was pretty well planted. I also quarantine all my fish before they get added to the big tank. Its so much easier to treat a smaller tank.

Here is a picture of my drip method for the salt water (I used an airline regulator to adjust the speed of the drips):

and a close up:

 

[terror]

I have never used anything other then heat and salt. I use table salt without iodine and I add 1-2 teaspoons per gallon. I pre mix the salt and water to be added to the tank then use a drip method to add the salted water to my tank very slowly. I then raise the heat up a couple degrees a day. I treat for a minimum of 2 weeks and for at least a week after I don't see white spots on the fish. I have only lost one fish (the original one with ich) and have never lost any other aquarium inhabitant or plant using this method and I have been ich free for 3 years. I have treated spiney eels, kuhli loaches, blue rams, shrimp, snails, and the tank was pretty well planted. I also quarantine all my fish before they get added to the big tank. Its so much easier to treat a smaller tank.

Here is a picture of my drip method for the salt water (I used an airline regulator to adjust the speed of the drips):

and a close up:

thanks for sharing your setup it looks like the a dextrose bottle used in hospitals

 

[Lynsay]

Hi, just a quick question about ich treatments...I'm fairly new to keeping fish and have never had ich problems before.

I have 1 pictus catfish, 4 clown loaches, 2 bettas (male and female) 2 yo yo loaches, 2 peppermint bristlenose catfish, 1 chinese algae eater. I noticed a lot of white spots on my pictus catfish this morning. Later in the day i noticed that all my clown loaches are affected to varying degrees as are my pakistani loaches. My female betta, the bristlenoses and the algae eater are all fine. The fish I am really worried about is my male betta, he has quite a lot of white spots on him (though not as much as the catfish), has barely moved from the bottom of the tank, and is having difficulty breathing.

The first thing I did this morning was pick up some salt straight away. My tank is 165L and I added 9 tablespoons of salt. I increased the temperature to 28 degrees, and this afternoon used a half dose of Aquamaster Rapid White Spot Remedy (Formaldehyde and Malachite Green). I have noticed that most of you use either the salt/heat method or the medication - should I pick one or the other, or should I stick with what I am doing? Will this be harmful to my fish? The reason I decided to use both treatments is that the fish seem pretty badly affected - unfortunately I was unable to spot this earlier as they all tend to hide inside large ornaments inside my tank...will definitely be keeping a closer eye on them in the future!

Also, is there anything in particular that will help my betta, as I've never seen him look so unwell

Thanks for any help you might be able to give!

 

[Lynsay]

Hi, just a quick update: My betta didn't make it through the night I didn't think he would, but I was still shocked to find him on the bottom of the tank.

If anyone might be able to let me know if the heat/salt/ich med combination is ok for my other fish, that would be much appreciated.

Thanks again.

 

[FISHSHROD]

I used to use liquid garlic with my salt water fish back in the day.

 

[doninhoustontx]

There may be a problem that table salt creates in that it often contains talc powder to prevent clumping. This could compromise fish breathing and the fish may already be stressed. I recommend using pickling salt, which is pure and dissolves easier that the crystalline aquarium salt. I also find treating ick most effective by raising the temp to 83˚, adding 1 tsp salt per gallon, and the recommended protocol for the original Maracide (not the concentrate - I haven't tried it yet). The elevated temp and low salt concentration seem to help the Maracide do its thing.