QT and ich infections

shabreeson · 11/01/2006, 04:35 PM

i have recently heard that you should quarentine everything that goes into your tank including live rock and live sand... but if that is true then what exactly do you look for on the LR and live sand? or do you just leave it in there for 8 weeks and hope all the potential ich is gone? then i hear that in cases of an ich infection you should keep your tank fishless for 8 weeks, but does this include invertebrates or should you leave them in your display tank?

TekCat · 11/01/2006, 05:07 PM

ich needs host. and fish is the only host ich recognizes. Inverts are safe and they are never carriers.

ich goes though different life cycles. when you break cycle ich will die out. Removing fish from tank effectively breaks ich's stage where it needs host to feed upon in order to reproduce.

8 weeks is all the time ich needs to go through its broken live cycle and die out.

So, leave your tank fishless for 8 weeks, after that it is ich free, unless you bring sick fish.

Brenden · 11/01/2006, 05:17 PM

Agree. 8 weeks without a host and it will die out. Inverts do not host it.

greenbean36191 · 11/01/2006, 05:43 PM

The point of QTing everything though is that while ich only attacks fish, there is a stage in the life cycle where the protozoan falls off the fish, onto the substrate. You can bring this stage of ich into the tank on anything wet. There are no visible signs to look for.

TekCat · 11/01/2006, 05:47 PM

good point.

FishinAround · 11/01/2006, 10:52 PM

I've always heard 6 weeks is plenty long enough to go without fish to disrupt the ich cycle. Everything I've read indicates the total combined length of the three life stages of ich where it is not infecting the fish is 30-32 days. Is 8 weeks just added safety? I'm in the process of curing an ich outbreak and fast approaching the 6 week mark so I would like to know if I need to go another 2 weeks. Also another question, I know corals can't get ich but they could have the tomont stage attached to them thus the need to QT inverts. So now the question, what if my QT tank is just a simple 20g tank with the standard off the shelf fluorescent light, will the coral live for 4-5 weeks with limited light or do I need a special light for my QT tank for corals?

Freed · 11/01/2006, 10:57 PM

.

11/01/2006, 04:35 PM	#1
shabreeson Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Rockford, IL Posts: 761	QT and ich infections i have recently heard that you should quarentine everything that goes into your tank including live rock and live sand... but if that is true then what exactly do you look for on the LR and live sand? or do you just leave it in there for 8 weeks and hope all the potential ich is gone? then i hear that in cases of an ich infection you should keep your tank fishless for 8 weeks, but does this include invertebrates or should you leave them in your display tank?

11/01/2006, 05:43 PM	#4
greenbean36191 Premium Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Ft. Lauderdale Posts: 10,598	The point of QTing everything though is that while ich only attacks fish, there is a stage in the life cycle where the protozoan falls off the fish, onto the substrate. You can bring this stage of ich into the tank on anything wet. There are no visible signs to look for. __________________ Some say the sun rises in the East. Some say it rises in the West. The truth must be somewhere in the middle. Current Tank Info: tore them down to move and haven't had the time or money to set them back up

11/01/2006, 10:57 PM	#7
Freed It's what it's Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: 41° 2' 45" N 85° 8' 43" W Posts: 7,579	. __________________ Freed Current Tank Info: 180gal(1120 watts of MH/VHO light), 60gal "sump", Deltec 601 calcium reactor, Euro Reef CS8-3+ skimmer, 20 gallon QT

11/01/2006, 05:07 PM	#2
TekCat Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: MN Posts: 3,130	ich needs host. and fish is the only host ich recognizes. Inverts are safe and they are never carriers. ich goes though different life cycles. when you break cycle ich will die out. Removing fish from tank effectively breaks ich's stage where it needs host to feed upon in order to reproduce. 8 weeks is all the time ich needs to go through its broken live cycle and die out. So, leave your tank fishless for 8 weeks, after that it is ich free, unless you bring sick fish.

11/01/2006, 05:17 PM	#3
Brenden Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Piedmont, NC Posts: 224	Agree. 8 weeks without a host and it will die out. Inverts do not host it.

11/01/2006, 05:47 PM	#5
TekCat Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: MN Posts: 3,130	good point.

11/01/2006, 10:52 PM	#6
FishinAround Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 208	I've always heard 6 weeks is plenty long enough to go without fish to disrupt the ich cycle. Everything I've read indicates the total combined length of the three life stages of ich where it is not infecting the fish is 30-32 days. Is 8 weeks just added safety? I'm in the process of curing an ich outbreak and fast approaching the 6 week mark so I would like to know if I need to go another 2 weeks. Also another question, I know corals can't get ich but they could have the tomont stage attached to them thus the need to QT inverts. So now the question, what if my QT tank is just a simple 20g tank with the standard off the shelf fluorescent light, will the coral live for 4-5 weeks with limited light or do I need a special light for my QT tank for corals?