newfish February 21, 2008 Share February 21, 2008 Ok, Well Unfortunatly Ich attaked all of my fish really hard and killed them all with the quickness. I didnt have time to get them in the proper QT before it was too late. I am going to go a while with no fish and was just wondering how long I should wait before getting some. How long will it take for the Ich to die out. Is a month long enough? With this I will be looking for a mated pair of clowns when the time comes if anyone will have any, please let me know. Thanks for the advice Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 February 21, 2008 Share February 21, 2008 Six weeks minimum, eight weeks is better. Don't rush things, you need to slow down! Even sensitive fish like Pacific Blues, aka ich magnets, can fight off ich if given the chance with good water quality. I'd be willing to hazard a guess that the downfall of your fish was due to the fact that you rushed your system... my first tank, I waited almost 2 months before adding a fish, and even then, I added only one fish at a time, never more than one fish per week. The only thing that happens reliably and quickly in this hobby is a tank crash... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gadgets February 21, 2008 Share February 21, 2008 SLOW DOWN!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bk_market February 21, 2008 Share February 21, 2008 yeah you probably need to slow down or at least have more experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lanman February 21, 2008 Share February 21, 2008 Six weeks minimum, eight weeks is better. Don't rush things, you need to slow down! Even sensitive fish like Pacific Blues, aka ich magnets, can fight off ich if given the chance with good water quality. I'd be willing to hazard a guess that the downfall of your fish was due to the fact that you rushed your system... my first tank, I waited almost 2 months before adding a fish, and even then, I added only one fish at a time, never more than one fish per week. The only thing that happens reliably and quickly in this hobby is a tank crash... Ah... the memories! I got only ONE good piece of advice when I started this hobby. "Nothing GOOD happens fast in a reef tank." And then I got lucky. It took 6 weeks to cycle my 24-gallon nano-tank. 4 weeks before I could even see from one end to the other. During that 4 weeks, I found BRK (actually - I'd purchased pond supplies there the year before). So... every week I went to BRK and told Johnny... "I have 5 Ammonia, 10 nitrites and 50 nitrates - can I get some coral yet?" And he would tell me no. Not yet. "Johnny - I have 0 ammonia, 5 nitrites and 30 nitrates - can I get some coral now?" No.... not yet. "Johnny - my water has 1.025 SG, 8.0 pH, 3.5 Alk, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 10 nitrates - can I get a coral yet?" ... Yes - here is a lovely little kenya tree coral for $5. See how it does. Of course - by that time I had decided he was my worst enemy. The man that was keeping me from having an incredible coral reef in my house!! I still have that kenya tree coral. In fact, I noticed it just dropped another baby. Thanks, Johnny!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treesprite February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Ah... the memories! I got only ONE good piece of advice when I started this hobby. "Nothing GOOD happens fast in a reef tank." And then I got lucky. It took 6 weeks to cycle my 24-gallon nano-tank. 4 weeks before I could even see from one end to the other. During that 4 weeks, I found BRK (actually - I'd purchased pond supplies there the year before). So... every week I went to BRK and told Johnny... "I have 5 Ammonia, 10 nitrites and 50 nitrates - can I get some coral yet?" And he would tell me no. Not yet. "Johnny - I have 0 ammonia, 5 nitrites and 30 nitrates - can I get some coral now?" No.... not yet. "Johnny - my water has 1.025 SG, 8.0 pH, 3.5 Alk, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 10 nitrates - can I get a coral yet?" ... Yes - here is a lovely little kenya tree coral for $5. See how it does. Of course - by that time I had decided he was my worst enemy. The man that was keeping me from having an incredible coral reef in my house!! I still have that kenya tree coral. In fact, I noticed it just dropped another baby. Thanks, Johnny!! If only there were more LFS owners as responsible as Johnny is! Josh, I know it's hard to not just jump in fast, as this can be an exciting hobby, but take others' advice and just slow down a bit. The creatures and your wallet will both thank you, and you'll be proud when you see all healthy creatures in your tank that are still healthy year after year after year. Don't feel bad, just use this time to learn and start doing research on what to possibly re-stock with - you've got over a month to make a viable plan now, and can get plenty of feedback on your plan before you actually re-stock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vaironman February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason the filter freak February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 don't take it too hard i went though this with my first tank actaully I'm betting that the majority of us did. You'll get a bit of razing here but it's either in good nature or just heart felt advice from the seniors of the hobby... probably both. Take it a bit slower chap you'll do fine you've got a good setup working for you and don't get dishartened wait about a month then add another pair then wait a fwe weeks before adding your next fish. I have a 50 gallon tank with high end equipment with only 3 fish in it at the moment and I've been waiting a month to add the next fish. It pays to be patient, and you'll learn a ton on the way. Some one once said. The only bad things happen quickly in a reef tank. GOOD LUCK! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamesbuf February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Well said Jason. Hopefully Josh won't take all the other comments to heart. Everyone really is just trying to help you from making the same mistakes that just about all of us made when getting into the hobby. I'll be honest and say that what you're exeriencing is the same thing I went through. I lost most of my the fish in my first tank to ich as well. I learned quickly to stay away from tangs until you get a UV sterilizer. Feel free to drop me a PM if you ever have any questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmubeach February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Least you didn't make a super crab! I got one thats about the size of a nickle hes about to get removed:) darn hermits I had a moment of weakness and put them back in my 24 they just out grow it so fast.. hes going to get removed probably to a better place... thankfully none of my hermits has killed anything yet, but I'm not taking the chance.. my first tank had a hermit that was as big as a half dollar... he ate my fishes :( anyway josh just got excited least he didn't loose too many fish.. did the yellow clown goby survive? he was really nice he would pick the ich off of the clownfish... anyway my first tank got nuked over the summer the tempurature hit 85 in the tank for about a month... I couldn't afford a chiller and didn't have a forum to ask for help... lost everything! anyway least it was just fish you lost... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfish February 22, 2008 Author Share February 22, 2008 Yeah Troy, The ich got the goby too. I appreciate all the help and I know to slow down now that its too late. I am just glad that I havent lost all my corals, inverts and my nem. This will give my tank a chance for the ich to cycle without killing anything else. It makes me feel a little better that I am not the only one that has done it but sometimes people have to learn from experience. I will wait a few weeks and let the Ich die out and wait for my $FUNDS$ to build back up since they all just visited the porcelin god. Thanks again everyone Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmubeach February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 darn thats terrible news I liked the little guy must have been eating all the ich off the clownfish that did him in! anyway you missed the adventure today I was catching hermits to trade to someone they are fiesty little critters.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbartco February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 My apologies for not getting over this week. I said I would, and bailed on you. I had a bunch of work, wife, and kid problems that have kept me from my fun and getting to Reston. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steveoutlaw February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 And then I got lucky. I hope the Johnny wasn't involved in THAT!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jamal February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 welcome to the club that no reefer wants to be in. im still recovering. its difficult to think of fish for the first week or two. ppl have given you good advice so be sure to take it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Origami February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Hey Josh. Sorry to hear of the loss of your livestock. I've been following your posts for a while now but haven't really had anything to add. I'm kind of new to this myself, you see. I did a lot of reading on the subject about six years ago when I first considered getting into this hobby, but put it off when I felt that I didn't have the time or resources to put into the hobby. Josh, I can see that this incident is weighing on you a bit, and that's good. You seem to have a high level of enthusiasm which has propelled you into rushing things. It's probably good now that you've got something to hold you back and reinforce that things sometimes need to slow down to make things right. Please remember, as you go forward, you own the responsibility of doing your best for the life in your tank. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newfish February 22, 2008 Author Share February 22, 2008 My apologies for not getting over this week. I said I would, and bailed on you. I had a bunch of work, wife, and kid problems that have kept me from my fun and getting to Reston. Doug, Don't worry too much about it. I dont think that we could have done much, They werent looking very good when I contacted you. I am just going to focus on getting my 10 QT tank setup and established. Thanks for the help everyone and I will be waiting. What do you recommend to do to "Test" to see if the ich is in there in a few weeks. Do I just wait my time and then risk with putting the fish I want in there. Or do I get a cheap "Test" fish and see how it does. Thanks again everyone Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishWife February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Doug, Don't worry too much about it. I dont think that we could have done much, They werent looking very good when I contacted you. I am just going to focus on getting my 10 QT tank setup and established. Thanks for the help everyone and I will be waiting. What do you recommend to do to "Test" to see if the ich is in there in a few weeks. Do I just wait my time and then risk with putting the fish I want in there. Or do I get a cheap "Test" fish and see how it does. Thanks again everyone Josh Josh: I, too, feel your pain. We were (luckily) between tanks when ich hit our fish on Christmas morning. Sigh. We left our display tank (with corals and inverts) fallow for 6 weeks. I think it's just a matter of pure science: there are no tests. The cycle of the parisites is regular: if they have NO fish hosts for six weeks, they all die. Period. At least, that's my understanding. It also helps to have a UV sterilizer. As my father says "belt and suspenders." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bprinehart February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Josh, IIRC The free-swimming stage can't live very long without a host. But I believe the buggers (cysts) can lie in the sandbed for quite a while. Check out WetWebMedia.com, consensus over there is 8 weeks is optimum for going fallow, like someone earlier stated I believe. Sorry for your losses, welcome to the not so fun side of the hobby....growing pains. As Forrest said, now would be an excellent time to do some research and plan your next stocking list. Take Care, Brian Doug, Don't worry too much about it. I dont think that we could have done much, They werent looking very good when I contacted you. I am just going to focus on getting my 10 QT tank setup and established. Thanks for the help everyone and I will be waiting. What do you recommend to do to "Test" to see if the ich is in there in a few weeks. Do I just wait my time and then risk with putting the fish I want in there. Or do I get a cheap "Test" fish and see how it does. Thanks again everyone Josh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmubeach February 22, 2008 Share February 22, 2008 Just take it slow and make sure the ich is out of the tank:) 8 weeks should do it! I would do water changes of 10 perecent above normal hope all is well Troy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 February 23, 2008 Share February 23, 2008 Don't add a test fish. By the time it shows ich, you'll have started the entire cycle again Just have to be patient. If you want to accelerate it a bit, go ahead and add some kick ich or some other reef safe medication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmubeach February 23, 2008 Share February 23, 2008 PLUS the test fish coming from a pet store would most likely have ich anyway my advice would be to do water changes and keep your corals alive until 8 weeks on the 8th week I would add the smallest of the fish that you want...and see how that does:) I would aslo look into a uv sterlizer:) Mine was under 40 dollars and since you have a smaller tank you don't need anything terribly fancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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