Has anyone successfully had ich outbreak and managed it?

[Jay Hemdal]

Fish dying in QT is likely because they were introduced to the medicines too late, at too low of a level, or the keeper failed to manage some other aspect (stress, oxygen, ammonia, etc.). Your lfs likely tells you that qt kills because they are wanting to sell you fish and not have you wait 45 days between every purchase. LFS are not a good source of unbiased information. They are salesmen and people foolishly take their advice as honest information. If an LFS were to give people proper advice, their sales would drop across all of their livestock.

I agree - I have fish die in quarantine but they don’t die FROM quarantine. That is to say, the methods I employ don’t kill the fish, but the method doesn’t solve every issue - some, like microsporidians, can’t be treated. I’d rather have those fish die in quarantine than carry that scourge into my displays.

Jay

 

[OrionN]

Fish dying in QT is likely because they were introduced to the medicines too late, at too low of a level, or the keeper failed to manage some other aspect (stress, oxygen, ammonia, etc.). Your lfs likely tells you that qt kills because they are wanting to sell you fish and not have you wait 45 days between every purchase. LFS are not a good source of unbiased information. They are salesmen and people foolishly take their advice as honest information. If an LFS were to give people proper advice, their sales would drop across all of their livestock.

There are fishes that do not do well with bare QT system. Not eating well unless they are in natural setting.

 

[nereefpat]

It is not lazy to provide a premium diet of live and fresh foods, to maintain optimum water quality, and provide an appropriate house, not crowded, limited stress, and separation between healthy and sick fish. Lazy is to rely on chemicals as an exchange for those things I mentioned.

This chemical solution is the same solutions so many humans use for themselves.

You can QT while still providing a good diet, water quality, and limiting stress. Separating fish is part of QT. I don't think any of us that are in favor of QTing and using copper and prazi as prophylactic would disagree with following other best practices.

Chemicals (really, medicines in this case) are all a risk/reward thing. The medicines I recommend, Copper Power/Copper Safe and Prazi, seem to be harmless if administered correctly, and the reward is eliminating ich, velvet, and flukes.

 

[Neptune 555]

I would like to hear from reefers who have done both? Ich free tank and ich management and see your point of view?

* Ich Free tank w/ out meds 10 years was hard work doing TTM but no stress b/c so darn easy. Every 72 hours just move fish. My fish after going in reef live YEARS.

Ich Management: Easy to just QT in a small reef system but STRESS b/c fish show spots every now and again. Only 2 months in so I don't know what lies ahead?

In 10 years I can compare and contrast the effort, success, and health of my fish against each method.

Jay has an outline on the sick fish forum on how to treat fish in QT - thank you to all those who created this with photos of the illnesses this and treatments ideas are helpful. Their is no outline of how to do ich management on the same forum. It is hard to find the manual on ich management? When I first ffound I had ich I was overwhelmed and the only answers I could find were treatments.... in the end I did nothing and so far all my fish lived... but from reading the sticky notes I would have thought I was taking a huge gamble. Now after reading this thread and seeing the amazing tanks that have ich I actually feel more comfortable with my decision.

Ich management where I need more info?
* UV sterilizer vs diatom filter? The threads on how to ensure you uv sterilizer is at the right speed are super hard. The where to get a diatom filter and how to use is hard also. I was told that Paul B used UV Sterilizer... but then messaged him directly and he said UV sterilizer will give your fish a tan and not effect ich... but the diato filter is the answer?

 

[Lbrdsoxfan]

I use uv and run ALL return water to the display through it. Difference is that I have to oversize the uv a little bit to keep at least 3-4x turn over gph wise through the sump. I tried sump return with uv some years back and it didn't cut the mustard with disease control/eradication.

 

[Lowell Lemon]

If an aquarium, including a public one, uses natural seawater, it might as well not quarantine livestock? Is that what you're saying?

Kind of asking about the efficacy of that practice in the face of biosecurity measures like prophylactic treatments of fish. So I guess that is more a question than a statement.