does ick have a factor to play with my ammonia lvls?

Question

well i was looking at my fish and i came to the conclusion that they have ick ( red scales, gasping, white spots and flickering) and i also have noticed that my ammonia lvls were not droping even after a water change (30gal tank)

so i added ick away

so my question is does ick have a factor with ammonia

Answer 1

Yes. All fish have ich living in and around them. Stress will allow the ich to multiply and become a problem. Just like people who are under a lot of stress are prone to getting sick. You should get a product like ammo lock or prime to detoxify the ammonia, and then cut way back on the food you are feeding. The high levels of ammonia are coming from all the rotting food and fish waste. By the way, all the ich medication in the world is not going to cure a fish dying from ammonia poisioning.

Answer 2

Not really, but kind of. How's that for a straight answer?

Ick is a parasite that can lay dormant in the fishes intestines as cyst like organism indefinitely. Generally, ick outbreaks occur more often when a fish is under duress such as with variations in temperature or water quality (Ammonia). So, ammonia can be an aggravating factor with the ick but it does not directly cause it.

Now, you also want to make sure you are in fact dealing with ick. Ick looks like the fish has been sprinkled with salt. The white spots are that small. If the fish has areas of white that lay on the fish like a film or slough off, this is something else. Also, if the white spots look like cotton balls attached to the fish, you have something else. The red scales, gasping and flickering you described could be entirely do the ammonia in the water. Take a very close look at the white spots to determine for sure if you should be medicating the tank for ick.

Answer 3

About the only relationship would be that in high ammonia levels the immune system of your fish wouldn't be functioning as well, so the fish would be more susceptible to the parasites.

By any chance, do you use a water conditioner that is supposed to bind or detoxify ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate in your tank? Even though these may make these compounds safe for your fish, their presence will usually still show up in your water tests. That may be why you aren't noticing a difference. I would only use these in a case of emergency, otherwise leave them out. At some point you may not distinguish between a false reading and an actual high reading until it's too late. You want the ammonia below 0.5 for the health of the fish, but need to have it present if the tank is cycling.
http://www.skepticalaquarist.com/docs/health/ich.shtml

Answer 4

No, not at all. They are completely separate problems in the tank.

If you saw no drop in the ammonia after a water change, that means the ammonia was extremely high and is still off the chart high. I would suggest another water change asap. Make this one about 50% and it will cut the ammonia in half and that should make it register a change on your kit. If you still see no change, the kit is most likely damaged and not giving you proper readings.

The high ammonia levels can actually cause some of the symptoms you are seeing and also can kill the fish faster than ich. I suggest you get the ammonia levels down to a safe level and then add your ich medication.

MM

Answer 5

No they dont, Ick is by stress and do bigger water changes 75% this time.