I know this isn't a monster fish by no means but I just purchased two ottos and didn't realize until a couple days later that they had Ick. They have been in the tank with my betta. Based on the fish I have is it safe to do a heat and salt method for treatment and if so what would the safe limits be?
Treating Ick with heat and salt
- Thread starter Ariel_Saxon
- Start date
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- aquarium salt betta heat ick otto
Otocinclus don't like salt so it isn't recommended to use it (they have much smaller scales than most other fish so they are more sensitive to salt and medication), just heat up the tank, when you notice the ich is gone remove the fish to another tank and then add in salt, after 2-3 days (still heated) clean the substrate and do large (50% ideally) water changes and repeat for a few days and then the fish can go back, this is how I treated my tank when it had ich, this is usually what's recommended with fish (like otocinclus) that are more sensitive to salt
I hear a touch of garlic to the water can help also. not tried it myself yet though.
http://advancedaquariumconcepts.com/garlic-can-kill-parasites/
http://advancedaquariumconcepts.com/garlic-can-kill-parasites/
Dose Seachem Paraguard everyday for 3 weeks. No need to elevate the temperature. Treat the whole tank because the betta can no be infected.
Yeah I know a bit of garlic can help too, elevating the temperature is the most natural way to do it, I personally don't like (and wouldn't recommend) using medicines unless it is ABSOLUTELY required
paraquard works awesome. its how I always treat ich. at the store tanks too
To kill ich you need the tank temperature to be above 89.5F. If you know your medicines, then you know what brand to use and when.
Thank you all of the information! I've got the temperature at 82f so it's not too warm for the fish and I will do frequent water changes to hopefully help. If I don't notice a difference then I will try paraguard that a few of you suggested. I've heard from some that bettas are sensitive to medicine and should only be dosed with half of the amount. Is this true in case I do need to use it?
82f will not kill the ich. The lifecycle will speed up and how much will show up on a fish will be based on its immune system.
Seachem paraguard at full dosage is safe for betta. I've used it on scaleless fish like a lungfish at full dosage with no issues. I've also used on bichirs with no issues either. Just remember to change some of the water before each dose, and not to add paraguard within 1 hour of adding a water conditioner.
as an FYI to treat with water temp tank need to be above 86deg. 89-90 being the lucky number per say. it increases there life cycle to the point they burn out, adding salt does not effect the ICK but irritates scaled fish which increases their slime coat making it harder for the ick to attach it self to the fish.
