Pmp

Hello, I beleive i have ick again the fish was alright in the morning then just tonight its on the bottom barely alive. I put the blue tank buddie ick tablets in teh water. This is the second time its happen. The last tiem it happen i lost all my fish almost but this was a long time ago and the fish i have in there now been alright for a few months. Is there anything i can do to prevent my fish dieing i keep having bad luck with them. Ty

MissMTS

If you raise the temperature of your tank (slowly) to 84 degrees and keep it at that temp for 14 days, the ICH will die off on its own with no medication. I have treated many ich outbreaks this way and I have never lost a fish to the ich parasite. Good luck!

isis

You can take a look at this:

http://www.fishlore.com/Disease.htm

sirdarksol

Isis and MissMTS offer some excellent advice for treating the outbreak. However, if you've had two outbreaks of ich in a few months, there's likely an underlying problem that is stressing the fish. The ich parasite is present in almost any water supply, and it normally only infests fish on a small scale. Only when a fish is stressed (which means the fish is unhealthy), does the ich normally become problematic.
Common sources of stress are:
High ammonia, nitrites, or nitrates. The first two happens in uncycled tanks, the last happens when an aquarium is overstocked, is overfed, or when water changes aren't done enough.
Too small of a tank. This happens mostly with fish like plecos and goldies put in 10g tanks or the like. The fish produce a hormone that stunts growth in high enough concentration, but, as with anything that stunts growth, it is not healthy for the fish in the long run. This almost always goes hand-in-hand with high nitrates, meaning a double whammy to the fish.
Wrong temperature. Temperate fish in tropical tanks or tropical fish in temperate tanks suffer from this.
Being bullied by another fish. Pretty obvious, neh?

I would suggest going through this list and figuring out what is the underlying cause here and then fixing it. The next time may be velvet, or fin rot, or multiple diseases at once.

MissMTS

After reading SDS's post I looked at your aquarium info and there is definetly an underlying reason for your ich problems.

First of all, since you do not know about the nitrogen cycle, your fish are probably in a tank with lots of Ammonia and Nitrites which are both poisonous to fish. You can read up on the nitrogen cycle here: http://www.fishlore.com/NitrogenCycle.htm

Also, your tank is WAY overstocked. Neither one of those fish can live in a 29 gallon tank. Pacus get up to 2 feet long and are schooling fish, so you need a tank of 300 gallons or more to keep them. Oscars get up to 14 inches long and need a 55 gallon tank minimum. You should really rehome your fish and get some smaller species that will fit nicely into you tank. Otherwise, these fish will become stunted, diseased and die. Right now the tank that you have them in is a torture chamber. Always research fish before you buy them. Make sure that they are compatible with the other fish in your tank (personality & water requirements), and make sure that they can still fit comfortably in your tank when they are full grown.

Pmp

well i just bought the wrdley ick medicine. I do not have a heater im in florida theres no reason to have one really. also i bought this tetra stuff called.. easy balance. it reduces frequent water changes.. keeps awauarium water biologically balanced for up to 6 months... stablizes pH and slkslinity kh levels vital for fish and plants... reduces nitrates and phosphate. hows this sound. Also do you know if aquarium salt works or does anything/ The pacu is the one that got sick is there any way to save fish once there sick or is it all luck? Ty

Pmp

also what does this stuff actually do and could it help my problem http://www.petsmart.com/product/inde...ductId=2754040

Shawnie

I cant imagine not flushing my toilet for up to 6 months..thats what easy balance reminds me of....id say return the meds, and buy a heater to up it like the others recommended...and maybe look for a much bigger tank on craigslist to rehome the big boys...

sirdarksol

What is the highest temp your tank gets to and what is the lowest it gets to?
If you're going to use a med, use Rid-Ich. Don't use salt. The only time you'd want to use salt is if you absolutely couldn't raise the temp and you absolutely had no access to meds. Since you have access to both, salt would be excessively harsh on the fish.

I wouldn't trust anything that claims to remove the need for water changes.

Pmp

im keepin the stuff it was cheap. does the aquarium salt work?

i bought the wardley brand ick remover smoeone told me its a good brand. The easy balance doesnt say dont change the water for 6 months it says it reduces nitrates and keeps lvls good n stuff.

Shawnie

cant answer for your pacu but your oscar wont deal with it at all...

MissMTS

Heaters are a must in tropical fish tanks. They stabilize the temperature and give you the ability to adjust the temp to treat diseases. I live in Southern CA where it is just as warm as Florida and I have heaters in all of my tanks. If it gets too hot in the summer time I'll turn them off, but it is so important to have one. Tetra Easy Balance is a gimic. No fishkeeper who knew what they were doing would go 6 months without a water change regardless of what chemicals are added to the tank. That is horrible for your fish and is probably one of the main reasons you are having issues with disease in your tank. Aquarium salt is an old wivestail and does effectively treat fish disease. I would spend the money on an inexpensive heater so that you can clear up the ich quickly.

Melafix is used to repair injuries such as damaged fins and to treat bacterial and fungal infections. It won't do anything for ich. Ich is a parasite. You are making this really difficult for yourself when we have all given you good advice fix your problem. For some reason you keep looking for other solutions other than the ones that we suggest. Sirdarksol, Shawnie, and myself all know what we are talking about. I realize that it is your decision whether or not you want to accept the advise, but you are keeping fish in poor conditions and it is unfair to your fish.

Shawnie

why would you want to use meds if just raising the temp will do it? and it is going to continue to come back cause your fish babies are sick and stressed in such a small space for extremely big fish..you cant medicate all the time and expect them to survive

Pmp

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=3635532

this is the water treatment stuff i got.

sirdarksol

One clarification: The use of aquarium salt as a med is not an old wive's tale. It does have medicinal properties (certain parasites and fungi are harmed by it).
However, the meds (or better, temp increase) will do a better job of treating the infestation, and will do less harm to the fish.

A couple of decades ago, there were a few differences in the basic way that fish were kept that made salt somewhat useful. We have just found much better ways of doing things. There are still some who go by the old methods of keeping fish, but their fish rarely last as long or are as active/colorful as fish kept by modern methods.

MissMTS

Woops sorry, my mistake. I should have worded that differently. Thanks for the clarification SDS

Pmp

alright i guess ill return that stuff but how often do you recommend changing the filter people tell me once a month. Also whats the benefits of having a heater in the tank all the time and what tempature should it be at?

should i return the ick stuff too i opened it but i can prolly return it still ill say it was like that its walmart they take anything lol. Also i did buy new filter cartridges.

MissMTS

You should not change the filter once a month. The media in the filter is what keep the tank cycled. When it gets a little clogged you can rinse it with some tank water, but usually people don't completely replace the filter media unless its falling apart. Having a heater in the tank keeps the temperature constant and at an appropriate level for the fish you are keeping. Drastic changes in temp can stress fish out and cause disease or even death. It is not good for them. Most tropical fish prefer a temp between 75 & 80 degrees, but you should research the required temperature for the specific fish you are keeping.

sirdarksol

Here's a breakdown of everything that's been said, and, once again, I'm done here:
Your aquarium needs a heater, or your fish will keep getting sick. No amount of chemicals, and no amount of wishing will change this.

A pacu and an oscar need, collectively, an aquarium that's 300g or more, or they will keep getting sick. No amount of chemicals and no amount of wishing will change this.

Your aquarium requires periodic water changes, even when not overstocked, or the fish will keep getting sick. No amount of chemicals and no amount of wishing will change this.

Aquarium temp raised to 82.5 degrees or above (no higher than 84 degrees) and kept there for several weeks will cure this bout of ich.

Rid-Ich, combined with raising the aquarium temp to 82.5 degrees, will speed your fishes' recovery. I don't know anything about this wrdly's brand. It might work or it might not.

Pmp

also what type of heater would be good and would i leave it on all the time ive never used a heater pleae explain im listening now. im in south florida also

MissMTS

Stealth heaters are widely used by members on the forum and everyone seems happy with them. Any heater that is rated to heat 29 gallons or more will work though.

Pmp

well the pacu died all i have left is the oscar

what do you think the fish water temp is at now room temp? Would i keep the heater on all the time. Also i plan on stickin with agressive fish for now.

sirdarksol

The water temp depends on evaporation, heat output of the light, and numerous other things. The best way to tell the temp is a thermometer. I get little sinking thermometers for a few bucks at Petsmart.
Since there has been a significant change, I'm going to post one more thing:

Don't buy any more fish.
Save your money up to get a bigger tank. You can build a pretty big setup for aggressive fish for fairly little money (especially with the help of sites like Craigslist), but if you're spending all of your time and money dealing with illnesses, you'll never be able to get a bigger tank.
Once that's done, research your fish. Ask us questions before buying new fish. We'll be able to help you figure out a stocking plan that will last for years, potentially decades, rather than the mere months that your fish have survived.

Shawnie

29 gallons for even just the oscar is too small..he needs at least 55...yes keep the heater on all the time and set it as MTS said..it will only turn on when the temps drop....getting a thermometer will also be helpful so you know exactly what the temp is..and they are cheap also

Pmp

well should i buy a heater im in south florida and you should know its hot down here and humid.

also what do you consider tropical fish

Shawnie

yes you should buy a heater....ONCE AGAIN set it to 79f and it wont turn on if the temp in the air is higher than that..and oscar''s are tropical

Pmp

what should i do now since i put those chemicals in the water just put the new filter in?. The filter i had in there was pretty dirty so it doesnt matter that i got a new one

Shawnie

this is what you should do pmp

1. get your heater
2. get a thermometer
3. get an API liquid test kit
4. daily water changes with some prime as by changing out the filter, you will now start your cycle over unless you saved the media from the old filter
5. temps up to 83f for two weeks

goodluck!

Fishies-for-me

Dirty filters are usualy good filters...all you have to do is take out some tank water ( usually during a water change) and swish the dirty filter around in the used water then dump out the water. This will remove the gunk out of the filter without killing the bacteria. Then you refill the tank with fresh water that is the same temp as the tank and has been dechlored.....good luck. ( ps never change the filter cartridge unless it is falling apart or you will kill your cycle)

Pmp

alright ill get the heater today

k i bought the thermomater, heater and the salt

i bought a penn plax heater fully submersable with adjustable thermas stat it was in my price range too. also got jungle aquarium salt added that in the water. Also my water has been cloudy im not sure why. The petsmart by me said my ph is 8.4. the guy in petsupermarket thinks thats impossible cuz all the fish would be dead. The guy in petsupermarket said 80 degrees would be good is this right?

my water is very cloudy what can i do about it? i added a new filter last night