F me ...

[j_electric]

I have one cleaner now is there any problems in adding 1 or 2 more?

[Live Water Aquariums]

Cleaner shrimp will accept newcomers quite well, especially in bigger tanks. Try not to get tiny ones if yours is large. Contrary to other opinions, ich is quite serious. If in it's early stages, cleaners may do the trick, but in my opinion garlic by itself is more of a preventitive and will not cure ich! As stated temp. swings are the most common cause and what makes thing worse. Obviously the new fish brought it in, which is why proper QT. is so important. Personally I would go with the medicated coctail at least because make no mistake, Ich can be deadly, and can spread rather quickly.

[Clownaholic]

Garlic is a feel good solution. There is "ZERO" scientific evidence supporting any effectiveness on "ich." Since you cannot QT your display tank. Increase the feeding, IE: feed to saturation at least once a day. You'll need to increase your water changes during this time. Do a 10% change every two to three days. This will keep your D.O. from shooting through the roof. The cleaner shrimp will help some too. Even though the fish will start to look better, ich has a life cycle. The visible is actually the cysts dropping off into the LR or sand bed. They hatch back out in anywhere from a day to months later. I'd suggest heavy feeding/increased water changes for a month. Then cut back to normal. (RESEARCH Chryptocarion... get smart, don't do anything drastic... as Jessica already pointed out this is a stress related disease.)

What garlic does do is enhance a fishes ability to sense the food there-by enticing them to eat. It does not help the fish's immune system ward off ich by itself.

[ricenoodle]

I lost my whole tank a while back from ich in 2 weeks. Keep a close eye on it. It's serious, and hopefully the fishes are still eating for you. Mine didn't eat and went away 1 by 1 in 2 weeks.

[Trickman2]

Focus, Metronidozole, and Garlic extreme from Sea chem

ALways worked for me...use it

[estamm]

Its good to know that there are 2 ichs so to speak; Cryptocaryon and Oodinium. The later is to be feared its refered to as marine velvet and is the one that usually shows up in the gills. For the most part the treatment techniques are similar. Without repeating the good advice already given Ill just add --- I have used a fresh water bath with excellent results..if you can catch the fish early without stressing him too badly, like at night. The fish can easily withstand the osmotic pressure change but the parasites swell and burst in the fresh water. I usually dunk new fish too. The bath can eliminate nearly all of the cysts on the fish...Ridding the tank of Oodinium is another matter, I concentrate on the fish and help them fight it off and break the cycle rather than go directly after the Oodinium. I personally dont do massive water changes or anything else. As others have stated STRESS is the worst thing you can bring on and its one thing you DO have control over. I personally lower the temp slightly to slow down reproduction and lower the salinity, make life easier for fish and harder for the Oodinium. Good luck....Happy holidays---ES

[DiverDave]

I used the cocktail by mixing it in with the normal food I was feeding. Did this with about 6 weeks worth of food. Never came back. All the thoughts on stress and tank husbandry are also correct; keep it clean, keep it stable.
Dave

[OSIDEARNOLD]

has anyone used chem-marin "stop parasites"?

[Jessy]

has anyone used chem-marin "stop parasites"?

No treatment like that works. NONE. The only thing that will do well for ich is the cocktail, cleaner stable water, or the garlic food treatment I choose to use. You can't fix ich with a bottle.

[SDguy]

No treatment like that works. NONE. The only thing that will do well for ich is the cocktail, cleaner stable water, or the garlic food treatment I choose to use. You can't fix ich with a bottle.

Well, actually, copper in a hospital tank kills ich.

Cocktails, clean water, garlic etc etc. all may or may not help to varying degrees. Many will help enough so that the fish's healthy immune system will fight it off on its own.

[Yolo]

"Garlic is a feel good solution"

JJ...Garlic seems to help me out with my fish all the time?

All I do is add a little butter, salt, and pepper, saute the fish in a flat pan for a few minutes on each side...

[johnny_trombone]

$.02
Had ich spots on most of my fish (2 clowns, yellow-eyed tang, yellow tang) inour reef tank a month back.
was so worried I called in to work ich'sick! (luckily my boss has had a saltwater tank before and understood the emergency. I don't recomend most ppl telling their bosses "uh, I can't come in today because my fisies look sick" heh)
Just did a 10% water change and fed them garlic seaweed from AW all day. It was gone by the next day.

I also added 10 tablets airborne to the tank to increase their vitamin C input (BTW just kidding!!! don't do that and then blame me :P

-J

[mikeyfromsd]

I've tried several things to stop ich, and the best thing that i have found was garlic and time. Dont push the water changes, as this stresses the fish out more. Just keep your water changes the same. If one fish has ich, and you do more water changes, chances are you are going to stress the other fish out, and they will end up with Ich too.

Has anyone else tried Kick-Ich. The reef safe stuff. I tried it, never had any luck. Like I said, the only thing that's worked for me is garlic. I've had ich several times, due to changing tanks and stressing the fish out trying to catch them. But I haven't had one fish die on me yet from it.

[Jessy]

Well, actually, copper in a hospital tank kills ich.

Cocktails, clean water, garlic etc etc. all may or may not help to varying degrees. Many will help enough so that the fish's healthy immune system will fight it off on its own.

I stand corrected ... forgot copper comes in a bottle.

[barometer]

I stand corrected ... forgot copper comes in a bottle.

so does formalin/malachite green. Worked great for my QT'ed fish when they had ich and doesn't 'ruin' the tank for future reef use. Still not to be used in the main display though. FWIW, none of my fish will touch food that has touched garlic