Fish with Ick...???

Question

I have fish dieing because of Ick. Is there anything I can use to save the rest and get rid of the disease? I have a 29 gallon tank with about 10 fish left. I have tried Quick Cure, which was recommended by the pet store, but it has not worked. What is the best treatment to use, that's fast and easy?

Yes, I removed all the carbon from the filter and I used the medication for 2 days, like it stated. I still see no change in the fish.

Should I wait a couple of days and try it again?

Answer 1

Ick is a parasite in your aquarium. To dispel some common myths it is not caused by poor water quality or low temperatures, or ammonia, or dirty filters or anything else like that. It does not lurk around in a tank waiting to attack fish, it does not only attack weakened fish, it is not airborne. None of that is true. It is caused by a specific parasite and must be introduced into the tank. This usually happens when you bring in new fish from an infected tank. The best treatment for ick in a tropical aquariums is:

Change a large portion of the water, about 50-60% while cleaning the gravel very well.

Clean the filter and change all the media but leave out the carbon.

Add 2 tablespoons of salt per 5 gallons of the tank.

Raise the temperature to 88-90 F. Raise it slowly, about 1 degree per hour. You may need to add an air stone or two depending on the type of fish and how heavily the tank is stocked.

Add a good ick medication as directed on the bottle. Try to find a medication that used Malachite Green as the active ingredient. (CAUTION: Malachite Green is a known carcinogen. Be careful not to get it on your skin!)

Change 25% or more of the water daily being sure to clean the gravel as you do so.

Continue the treatment for at least 7 days after you see the last white spots on any of the fish.

After the treatment, return the carbon to your filter and lower the temperature to normal.

This will work and will remove the ick from your tank.

MM

Answer 2

well when it comes to ick thats the best thing is thats about all use that or the rid ick some die durring this time its not your fault take out the carbon filter while your treating or it will take out all themedicine in the tank do your water changes between and if that quick cure dont work use rid ick it takes longer but works. how long have you had them on this sometimes it takes a while to clear up and even if it looks gone treat for a while longer you might think its gone but its not .take out your carbon!!!!! Durring ANY TREATMENT YOU DO WHILE YOUR TREATING WILL DEFEAT YOUR PURPOSE IF YOU DONT .

Answer 3

Unfortunately it seems the ick infection is too far advanced to be gotten under control, it seems your only option is to quarantine the fish left and treat them with Quick Cure again and break down and disinfect the aquarium and start over.
Good luck.

Answer 4

I have used Quick Cure successfully a couple of times so I am surprised to hear you say it didn't work.

Did you remove all your filtration that included carbon/charcoal? The medicine is cncelled out if you do not do that one important task. Also, depending on variety the dosage is different with tetras needing less than other fish.