I'm thinking I'm about to get my first $200 lesson

[AtlCpa]

New tank been cycling for a month or so. Water parameters good, LFS confirmed water good. 65 gallon.

Added two clowns a couple weeks ago. Added a flame angel and a hawk fish last week. Today I added a a yellow tang and within about 6 hours or so, I'm seeing white spots. The angel was chasing the YT when I first put him, so I'm guessing he's stressed. The YT looked great at the LFS, but not so much now.

No I didn't QT. I may set up a QT now, but for a noob like myself, one tank was enough to handle.

I can't get the YT out of the tank. Impossible with all the rock, etc. it's eating great, but has a lot of bumps now.

I guess I'm getting $200 in stupid tax when he contaminates my take and kills my fish.

[snorvich]

A good way to learn. Not quarantining is like playing Russian roulette; no one wins, some just get to play longer. Also, slooooowwww down. Nothing good happens quickly in this hobby. A yellow tang is inappropriate for your tank size and maturity.

[aaronwitt]

The LFS may have a trap you can borrow to catch the yellow tang. Put some seaweed in there and yank em out and hopefully the others don't catch it!

[snorvich]

Originally Posted by aaronwitt

The LFS may have a trap you can borrow to catch the yellow tang. Put some seaweed in there and yank em out and hopefully the others don't catch it!

The tank has it. All fish must be treated.

[ReefEco]

Yes, a lesson indeed - and also that tank is too small for a tang, any tang, which I'm sure didn't help diffuse aggression between the fish by being in such close proximity and contributed to stress. You need at a minimum 6ft tank for any tang. Some small ones you can get away with 4ft for a little while, but not for long as they grow.

[joeybemate]

Perhaps you have already, but read through this solid post by snorvich. http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1985626
There is still a chance you may save your fish if you have the time and patience.

[jem454]

Look up the tank transfer method and start doing that. As said, you're tank now has ich in it. You can treat the tank if you're not planning any coral. If so, your kind of out of luck.

I was lucky with my first few fish, as we speak I have a foxface, and hippo tang in buckets doing ttm. Not worth taking the chance anymore.

[OldReefGuy]

Tanks been cycling for a month and you added fish a couple of weeks ago?......
Anyway, back toy your Ich, yes, the whole tank is infected. See if the LFS will take the fish a treat them in their QT tanks...also...not to be teh Tang police, but that is a small tank for a tang

[ssick92]

As others have said, you will need to treat ALL your fish now, not just the tang (that shouldn't be in the tank to start with). Yes, QT could have prevented this, but you are also going too fast, not letting the tank mature as you add livestock.

However, also to be candid, I have never QT'd, and either have gotten lucky to keep ich out of the tank, or gotten lucky to not let ich rear it's ugly head, but I have yet to lose a fish from ich. Either way, I am extremely lucky and probably in the minority...

[Dkuhlmann]

John, I'm in the same boat as I do not quarantine either. I did learn my lesson about 10 years ago by adding a fish that I now believe to have been velvet and lost all of my fish with one exception, the damsel that I added to the tank. I lost thousands of dollars in fish. Under my current living conditions it's not possible to have a quarantine tank, we'll just leave it at that.

My current tank is a 40b with a 20gal sump and I've not quarantined anything and I have a happy healthy tank without disease. I do however do a Formalin dip as well as two rounds of Prazi while doing the TTM with two rounds of PraziPro before adding them in my DT. I'm at my limit now so I'll not be adding anything new as far as fish go. My tank has been up and running since Feb 2015 all fish are fat and healthy.

I'm not by any means saying to do as I do, just that it can be done if necessary, you just have to take precautions. And as we all always say nothing good happens fast in this hobby. With adding new fish to a new tank, which is a tank that has fully cycled and has had an algae bloom to add one or two small fish at a time, then add one or two more in 3-4 weeks. This gives your bacteria that consumes ammonia and nitrites time to multiply in numbers in order to be able to take care of your current fish load. You can't rush this process as your tank will spike ammonia and nitrites if you haven't given time for the bacteria time to catch up to be able to handle a higher fish load, thus killing your new fish.

[snorvich]

And one more thing . . . cryptocaryon irritans (ich) is the least problematic parasite so be glad you learned the QT lesson early.

[kmbyrnes]

Most of the hard core QT believers also learned that lesson the hard way. Be glad it was only $200.

[AtlCpa]

I'm holding out hope that it's just stressed and doesn't have ich, but I think that's a pipe dream. I order a fish trap to try to catch him. Unreal how hard it is to get fish out.

[lg2725]

I fit's advice you're looking for then it's an overwhelming majority to return the tang (too small for your size tank) and start qt'ing ALL of your fish and put them through TTM. Allow the DT go fallow for 72 days to kill off any ich.
If it's just sympathy you are looking for for the possible future losses of fish/livestock, you have that from all of us. Good luck!! None of us likes to lose anything in this hobby.

[That New Guy]

What is TTM exactly? That's been referenced multiple times and I don't see an actual definition. I've kept reef tanks for around 7 years and never heard of "TTM".

[Shaummy]

Originally Posted by That New Guy

What is TTM exactly? That's been referenced multiple times and I don't see an actual definition. I've kept reef tanks for around 7 years and never heard of "TTM".

TTM = Tank Transfer Method for Ich.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2507836

[tmnigat]

Going through this currently with my tank, new to the hobby as well. QT the fish right away, if you wait the ich comes back harder and deadlier.

[Scottedontknow]

Poor tang. I don't get why people don't/can't read. Also adding that much to your bio load was alone setting you up to fail.


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[AtlCpa]

The fish looks totally normal today. Is it the original stress that caused the ich to visibly show itself and will return later? Or is it possible he lost some color from the stress and it wasn't ich?

I bought a trap on Amazon so I can catch the dang thing and return it.

[AtlCpa]

One more question. Is live aquaria the gospel on tank size? Their min requirements are significantly different than other places. For example, it sales 125 gallon min for a powder blue tang, yet my lfs and places like saltwater fish.com say 55 gallon is adequate.

I know people get ****ed about tanks sizes, but there's at least some differences of opinion on that.

[snorvich]

Originally Posted by AtlCpa

One more question. Is live aquaria the gospel on tank size? Their min requirements are significantly different than other places. For example, it sales 125 gallon min for a powder blue tang, yet my lfs and places like saltwater fish.com say 55 gallon is adequate.

I know people get ****ed about tanks sizes, but there's at least some differences of opinion on that.

The LFS's job is to sell fish. I personally would not put a powder blue in a 125 gallon tank. Reef Central's recommendation on tank size for tangs can be found here. It all depends on whether you wish to be successful longer term.

[Scottedontknow]

Sadly most not all LFS don't care where the fish is going they just need/want to make the sale. I'm lucky to have an absolutely amazing LFS, example I was in to but two tomato clowns the other week he got them out of the tank and was about to put them in the bag when we began to give them a second look. I noticed something on the tail fin (I would have never in a million years noticed) and told me right away. He then put them in the QT and told me in a few months after they are healthy and happy he would have happily sell them to me. He also always give me great advice even though he knows he won't make a sale from it. I've noticed this is a dying breed and most don't care anymore. I'd say always ask in here FIRST, there are so many solid reefers so willing to help you and give real advice!


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[roberthu526]

Hypo worked well on my blue tang and it really is easier than you think. If you don't have corals in the tank yet then treat the entire tank. Takes about three days but the outcome is promising.


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[JohnnyHildo]

Originally Posted by OldReefGuy

Tanks been cycling for a month and you added fish a couple of weeks ago?......

this left me scratching my head too. i understand op is trying to use liveaquaria and other online sources for information but introducing a living bio-load in the middle of a cycle isn't advised anywhere.
starting a new tank is like dating a new girl, if you make erratic choices and rush things at the beginning chances are she won't be around for very long.

[ScienceRulez]

Originally Posted by kmbyrnes

Most of the hard core QT believers also learned that lesson the hard way. Be glad it was only $200.

Indeed. We had a case about a year ago where someone dropped some live clams in the tank at work. The clams had Brooklynella Hostilis and within 72 hours every fish in the tank was dead. We lost over $10k in wildlife over that incident, and are still recovering.

When they say nothing good happens fast, they mean it! I've never seen fish go down so fast, yet the recovery is now a year and still counting.