Treating ich in a diverse tank

[lymitliss]

Hey guys, I have yet another question. As of today I started seeing what appears to be ich on a couple of my lemon tetras. They are usually very transparent, and are starting to look a little more hazy and have some real small white spots on them.

My tank includes one Black Ghost Knife, one Pea Puffer, an African Dwarf Frog, two algae eaters and several tetras of various types.
My question is, what is the best way to treat this seemingly mild case of ich? Last time I had it I used "Rid-Ich" which worked basically over night, but if I recall correctly my Ghost Knife did not appreciate those chemicals much. Is it safe to use with scaleless fish? Should I be trying an alternative method of treatment?

My fish seem to be very healthy other than this, any help is appreciated!

 

[Cory]

Are their live plants in the tank? If not I would use salt. If live plants I'd use meds.

 

[lymitliss]

I have a couple basic live plants, yes. So am I clear to use the Rid-Ich in the suggested dose?

 

[bronzefighter]

Slowly raise the tank temp, add minced garlic. Boom, no more ich.

 

[Anonymous]

Slowly raise the tank temp, add minced garlic. Boom, no more ich.

How come I've never heard of this!?!

 

[bronzefighter]

Slowly raise the tank temp, add minced garlic. Boom, no more ich.

How come I've never heard of this!?!

Ich reproduces extremely quick at 78F-80F, which coincidently is the temp range most freshwater aquariums are kept at. Raising the temp beyond that will slowly kill off ich. That, combined with garlic, which is a natural immune and appetite booster in fish, will kill of any remaining spores. Throw in a bit of aquarium salt too. This process takes about 2 weeks start to finish.

 

[star_rider]

never really found solid evidence or agree with the garlic as being the fix. however salt added in the correct amount will cause an imbalance in the cells (interferes with osmoregulation) on the free swimming ich(the stage where they are treated)
I do know that high heat will kill the spores and is also very effective against Hexamita( temps at 88-90f)

 

[bronzefighter]

never really found solid evidence  or agree with the  garlic as being the fix. however salt added in the correct amount will  cause  an imbalance in the cells (interferes with osmoregulation) on the free swimming  ich(the stage where they are treated)
I do know  that high heat will kill the spores and is also very  effective  against Hexamita( temps  at 88-90f)

The active ingredient in garlic is allicin a.k.a. diallyl thiosulfiniate or diallyl disulphide-oxide. This is a known appetite and immune booster.

Also, a study performed by the North American Journal of Aquaculture in 2003 found that diallyl disulphide-oxide will kill both the free-swimming larvae and the cysts in sufficient concentrations. I forgot the exact numbers off the top of my head, but it was something like 15x the amount of Malachite Green for 10x the amount of time. So like I said, Malachite Green is an quick-acting option. But I don't really like the idea of dumping a known carcinogenic made out of Formaldehyde into my aquariums  :vomit: 

Now, I'm not chemist or biologist, so take what I say with a grain of (aquarium) salt. I've just looked at a lot of research and have my own experiences to work with   

Also, I might add that I'm only talking about Freshwater Ich 'Ichthyophthirius multifiliis.'

 

[DMD123]

Slowly raise the tank temp, add minced garlic. Boom, no more ich.

Wait that was a soup recipe...  :joker: 

Ive never heard of this with garlic, usually salt.

 

[star_rider]

never really found solid evidence  or agree with the  garlic as being the fix. however salt added in the correct amount will  cause  an imbalance in the cells (interferes with osmoregulation) on the free swimming  ich(the stage where they are treated)
I do know  that high heat will kill the spores and is also very  effective  against Hexamita( temps  at 88-90f)

The active ingredient in garlic is allicin a.k.a. diallyl thiosulfiniate or diallyl disulphide-oxide. This is a known appetite and immune booster.

Also, a study performed by the North American Journal of Aquaculture in 2003 found that diallyl disulphide-oxide will kill both the free-swimming larvae and the cysts in sufficient concentrations. I forgot the exact numbers off the top of my head, but it was something like 15x the amount of Malachite Green for 10x the amount of time. So like I said, Malachite Green is an quick-acting option. But I don't really like the idea of dumping a known carcinogenic made out of Formaldehyde into my aquariums  :vomit: 

Now, I'm not chemist or biologist, so take what I say with a grain of (aquarium) salt. I've just looked at a lot of research and have my own experiences to work with   

Also, I might add that I'm only talking about Freshwater Ich 'Ichthyophthirius multifiliis.'

you've kind of proved my point.

there is plenty of reading for the use of garlic but it can be argued that it is most effective when consumed by the fish(still debatable ) for enough time for the immune system to benefit. vs how much garlic extract is used compared to other remedies.
in essence you mentioned the concentrations to be much higher when using the garlic extract (570mg/l compared to .15mg/l malachite green to kill 100% of the cysts)

my concern is what the impact of the garlic extract for the period of time to kill the parasite would do to the fish at that concentration.

salt is very well documented as a fix to the pathogen as well as bumping heat.

I think I'll stick to salt and heat