Heater, and how often can I raise temp?

[azfishgal]

My tank has ich , for the first time since I've had my tank, going on two years now. Come to find out the store (PetsMart) had ich in their tanks and not to my surprise they lost ALL their Cichlids in their 50 gallon tank. So, I know where I got it, now I'm trying to treat it. I did use Kordon Rid Ich for almost a week and it's not going away and I'm worried the chemicals will kill my fish, so I put the carbon back in my filter and now I'm going to try and raise the temp and add salt (freshwater salt that is). I have my heater in my tank and I set it for 80, and will gradually increase it to 86 (I've been told that's the temp you want to kill ich). On the box it says I can only increase the temp by one degree every eight hours, is that true?! At that rate my fish might be dead by the time I get to 86. I am adding salt gradually too, so hopefully doing both will help. But do I really need to weight 8 hours to raise the temp one degree? (Clown loaches and the Rubberlip pleco are the most effected at this point. Harlequins, Danios and Blue Gourami seem to be fine.)

OH, BIG believer in the QT!*thumbsups

 

[hyunelan2]

I personally think you can set the heater to 86 and let it raise itself. Unless you have a 400w heater in a 10g aquarium, it's not going to raise the temperature super-fast anyway.

 

[azfishgal]

It's a 50w, so not very big, but supposed to be for 5-15 gallon tank, mines a 12 gallon tank.

 

[tropicalfish]

okay, set it for 83, or something in between, wait one hour, then raise it to 86.

 

[azfishgal]

okay, set it for 83, or something in between, wait one hour, then raise it to 86.

That's what I was thinking, thanks, I just raised it. Is 86 a good temp for Ich? My poor loach is just covered in white spots. I feel so bad for him. I wish I could make it go away right now. About 5 days ago he had a good amount, but then they seemed to disappear, all the while I was still doing a 20% water change and treating with Rid Ich, but now he's just covered. I hope the salt and temp change works.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Raise the temp to over 86 degrees over a 2 day period. Doing it too fast will stress the fish. Also, raise it high enough so the minimum temp stays above 86 degrees. I prefer 89 degrees myself in ick treatment.

 

[azfishgal]

Raise the temp to over 86 degrees over a 2 day period. Doing it too fast will stress the fish. Also, raise it high enough so the minimum temp stays above 86 degrees. I prefer 89 degrees myself in ick treatment.

89 won't be to warm for my Zebra Danios? I read they usually like it between 64-75, so I feel I'm pushing it with 86. BUT, I also want to get rid of the Ich. Of course my loaches cost me a lot more, so I could always buy more Danios if they go south. (Please no flaming, just a reality that I may have to choose from.)

 

[Lonewolfblue]

As long as it's raised slowly, should have no problems. Also, add an airstone to add surface aggitation, to keep the O2 levels up. Once you seen the last spot disappear, leave the temp up for 2 weeks. Do a 14 day countdown, and on day 15, slowly start turning the temp down over a 2 day period.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

I also treated ick several times, since every time I buy fish from the lfs here, I end up with ick in the tank. I have a bunch of loaches, and they do just fine.

 

[azfishgal]

As long as it's raised slowly, should have no problems. Also, add an airstone to add surface aggitation, to keep the O2 levels up. Once you seen the last spot disappear, leave the temp up for 2 weeks. Do a 14 day countdown, and on day 15, slowly start turning the temp down over a 2 day period.

I lowered the water level so the water coming back in is splashing a bit more and making more bubbles. Will that work? Do you use salt to treat Ich, or just raise the temp? Oh, and should I still do daily water changes like I was doing when I was using the meds? Or do I just do my normal weekly change?

Thanks for your help, I appreciate it.

 

[azfishgal]

Oh, one more thing....my pleco seems to be in love with the heater and has been stuck to it since I put it in. It's not going to hurt him will it? Silly question I know, but thought I'd ask. He is covered in white spots to, so maybe he'll get heated up and they will go away faster?*twirlysmi

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Yes, lowering the water will be just fine. As for the pleco on the heater, I'm not sure if it would get too hot for him. I haven't had problems with fish getting burned.

 

[azfishgal]

OK, I will say a prayer that he doesn't get hurt and makes it through the ich. I've had him for almost two years now. He was an itty bitty little thing when I got him, maybe an inch if you stretched him. He stayed that small for some time and in the past 4 months or so he's taken off and is now a little over 2". He's my last original fish that I transfered over from my 10 gallon glass tank, so I hope he makes it.

 

[azfishgal]

Here is a picture of my RubberLip Pleco, in love with the new heater. And also a picture of my tank (sorry it's blury, not a great photographer).

Hope I did this right, as it's my first photo post.

Edit: OK, there has to be a better way to post these pics, and bigger.

 

[nycsicktank]

did you try rasing the temp to 82 degree and adding salt?

 

[rohnds]

Oh, one more thing....my pleco seems to be in love with the heater and has been stuck to it since I put it in. It's not going to hurt him will it?

Fishes, like any other living creature, have reflexes. When the heater gets too hot, it will move away from the it before getting burned. Just like when you touch a hot object.

Rohn

 

[azfishgal]

did you try rasing the temp to 82 degree and adding salt?

The water is up to 86 now *SUNSMILE* and I'm still adding the salt. I mixed 1.5 teaspoon of salt per gallon in a gallon of water and I'm slowly adding it. Started last night and still have half a gallon to go. So far everyone seems to be doing fine, no signs of stressing them out at this point.