Outbreak of Ich! :( help

My whole tank is infected with ich. Looking closely I see every single fish with ich. I have the ich medication and I use it according to its proper dosage. And I also have the temperature at about 30*C and I also do daily water changes about 50% of the tank water. And gravel vacuum.
I'm so lost because its been almost 1 week since I started treatment.
My balloon molly that had the MOST ich on his body started to get better after about 4 days, there were less white spots and everything. But before everything could completely fall off, suddenly there are a new batch of white spots on his body, and there are many! He gets better then suddenly the whole thing comes back. And when I did treatment the other fish were also getting better with less spots on their body, but once again I see more white spots in different places on their fins and body. I really don't know what to do. It doesn't look like treatment is working at all! i've taken out my tetra's and barb's since they are sensitive to salt I heard. But I still can't add salt too much salt because I have real plants in my tank.

I'm really lost now. I thought they were getting better and now it just came back worse.

 

It is very important to maintain the heat or treatment fails. I do not recommend the use of salt with your tank as it will do more harm than good.

Further using meds and heat will greatly reduce the oxygen level which in turn adds to fish stress and opens the door to more disease.

As your current treatment plan is failing I recommend using just heat with water changes every other day and gravel vacs. The treatment plan is outlined in the article linked in my signature about curing ich naturally.

Good luck!

 

the normal water temperature in my country is 30~31*C so I don't have to do anything to maintain that temperature.
there was this article I read awhile back saying that doing water changes everyday will reduce the number of ich spores in the tank which is the main thing we should focus on
so what should I really do?

 

Taking out 50% of the water could also be taking out 50% of the medication.... :/

 

that's when we add medication to how much water we've put back in after changing it right??

 

Don't focus on the meds, just focus on a daily gravel vac with 50% water changes, you will see things turning around for the better in 5-6 days. Maintain this cycle for atleast a week, then continue 50% changes every other day.
If you follow that you will definitely rid of the ICH.

Considering you live in Malaysia, your water temperature should hover around 30-32C which is perfect for curing ICH. Lay off the air conditioner for a few days.

 

lol even with the air conditioner on the water temperature goes down from 32 or 31*C to 30*C =/ sadly. That's how hot it is here.

actually since last week. things were turning around for the better, but just yesterday everything came back =/

 

Good morning,

So sorry that you and your fish are dealing with ICH. My treatment method (similar to Catsma's) below:

My treatment for ICH without Medications w/100% survival rate:

Increase the tanks temperature to 86 degrees and leave it there for a full two week period. Even if the fish appear to be free of the parasite, leave the temperature increased for the full two weeks. Raise the temperature slowly throughout the day. 2 degrees per hour should be fine.

Warmer water requires more oxygen so adding an air stone/supply line may help.

Do two gravel vacuums each week to remove the spores that fall off the fish and into the substrate. Make sure the new water is the same (86) temperature as what is in the tank.

Adding Garlic Guard or garlic juice onto the fish food 2 or 3 times each week will help to boost the fishes immune system. (link below for garlic juice):
minced garlic in a jar..just an example for those needing it
Garlic Guard:

Making your own juice, recipe:
"Benefits of garlic:

Purifies blood; detoxifies; lowers cholesterol levels; lowers blood pressure; blood thinner; prevents blood clots; boost immune system; prevents heart disease and strokes; destroys cancer cells; muscle relaxant; antibiotic; antifungal; suppresses growth of tumors
Using a medium size bulb; peel cloves apart, snip off ends; microwave cloves for 5 to 10 seconds to pop hulls; remove hulls; cut the length of the cloves in thin slices; place in cup of hot (from tap) water; cover, and let sit at room temperature for 12 hrs; mash the cloves and strain for immediate use; refrigerate until needed. good for two to three weeks.
The longer the cloves soak, the stronger the solution."

The information above comes from the link below:


Vita Chem (for additional vitamins) added to the fish food and directly into the tank will help the fishes overall health. Follow the directions on the bottle.


It's been my experience that salt isn't necessary with the heat treatment.

ICH may appear to get worse, before it gets better.

I highly recommend Quarantine for all new fish:
Quick and dirty quarantine setup

Quarantine!

Best wishes for your fish!

Ken

 

I bumped the temp to 85 f and fed my fish crushed up garlic clove and it worked really well good variety in foods is a good way to keep your fish healthy as a general rule

 

i've tried the garlic soak thing. soaked some fish food in garlic and fed them. I did try feeding them some really small fine garlic bits but they just ate it then spat it back out =/.