Blue Jaw, Ich and more . . . pics to help

[melypr1985]

Update: I have caught the 2 fire fish. They are in QT and doing great! The sailfin and the Foxface are doing well, only a spot or 2 here and there of ich, but they seem to be very healthy, and not showing signs of velvet at all.
Here is the problem: day 4: and I still can't catch them! We have cornered them, left the net in the tank for days then fed them right by the net. Tried the make your own fish trap. None of it works. They are SMART! Any other ideas before I have to deconstruct my entire reef??? I can't start my fallow period until they are out!

Thank you all!

Maybe try putting egg crate in there to block them into a smaller area. It might help you get them, though that depends on your rock work of course. I'll say that I had to take every single rock out of my tank to get my fish out for QT. It was a huge pain in my rear, but it was worth it in the end.

 

[Mini Coop]

Maybe try putting egg crate in there to block them into a smaller area. It might help you get them, though that depends on your rock work of course. I'll say that I had to take every single rock out of my tank to get my fish out for QT. It was a huge pain in my rear, but it was worth it in the end.

Ugh! I was afraid someone would say that! My rock work is slightly complicated!

 

[Eva Rose]

Also when you feed put food in fish trap so they equate it with food.

 

[Eva Rose]

Also - sure you know this but be careful when you catch/place foxface in QT. Remember it has venom in its spines on the fins. They are not aggressive but go easy catching & releasing him. Most people if they ever get stung hit the spines accidentally. I've heard it is like the worst wasp sting ever - only amped up.

 

[Leslie Tabor]

Jenna, you are in the right place! I am glad someone spoke up about people bashing you...this hobby is HARD and getting started is scary. I am new myself and believe me, there will be more issues and you will feel like an idiot...a lot. However...it is so rewarding getting it figured out! Humblefish and Mely are wonderful and always kind. Not one person with an aquarium can say they have NEVER made a mistake. Use the next 80 days to your advantage and read up and keep asking questions, someone will help you. Good luck catching those last few fish...they are buggars!

 

[Neptune 555]

Keep us posted on how you catch the fish.. I was going to do the same exact bottle method to catch a wrasse and move him from my 3 ft reef to my 4 ft reef. He has outgrown his home....

good luck!
Neptune

 

[Humblefish]

Also when you feed put food in fish trap so they equate it with food.

^^ This. Baiting the fish trap with nori (seaweed) might help you catch the tang & foxface.

 

[melypr1985]

Ugh! I was afraid someone would say that! My rock work is slightly complicated!

I once caught a flasher wrasse by feeding the tank and when they all raced up to eat the food I was ready with a net. I stood back a couple feet and then darted in with the net and scooped him out. I couldn't believe it worked, but it might be worth a shot. Gotta be really fast and get them on the first try.

 

[Humblefish]

^^It's also easier sometimes to catch fish at night.

 

[Mini Coop]

UPDATE and questions!

I finally broke down and bought an acrylic fish trap with a sliding door. It was $60 on amazon. I hated spending the money, but my husband was tired of our two weeks of chasing them around the tank! I also had read of the importance of a balanced diet for them, so also started feeding seaweed (easiest thing to bait the trap with too). They were in the trap within about 2 minutes!!! I wish I had done it 2 weeks ago! Totally worth every penny! Now I have it forever and didn't have to disassemble my reef!
I got them into a bucket and did drip acclimation. So far, so good!

Let the fallow/educating myself as much as possible period begin!

Questions: in the QT, I just did a 25% water change last Saturday (less than a week ago). I had the 2 fire fish in there already (caught a week ago). I have a sponge filter with an ammonia reducer bar in an over the back filter. The ammonia level was 1 ppm already. I do think I was feeding the fire fish a bit much, but didn't think it would increase the ammonia so fast. Should I go ahead and treat with the ammonia reducer? (Maybe a 1/2 dose as the directions are that 5ml per 10 gal would treat 2ppm.).

I have not treated with copper yet. The fire fish never showed signs, the sailfin has no signs right now, (at least on the outside) and the fox face has had a couple spots here and there. I bought a copper test to monitor. I also got copper-aid (kordon). But I can't find anything about what the copper level should be. I have 80 days, so I'm not in a huge rush to treat them tonight. Just want to make sure I do the right thing for them all!

Thank you all! Step 1 at least is done!

 

[melypr1985]

Questions: in the QT, I just did a 25% water change last Saturday (less than a week ago). I had the 2 fire fish in there already (caught a week ago). I have a sponge filter with an ammonia reducer bar in an over the back filter. The ammonia level was 1 ppm already. I do think I was feeding the fire fish a bit much, but didn't think it would increase the ammonia so fast. Should I go ahead and treat with the ammonia reducer? (Maybe a 1/2 dose as the directions are that 5ml per 10 gal would treat 2ppm.).

I have not treated with copper yet. The fire fish never showed signs, the sailfin has no signs right now, (at least on the outside) and the fox face has had a couple spots here and there. I bought a copper test to monitor. I also got copper-aid (kordon). But I can't find anything about what the copper level should be. I have 80 days, so I'm not in a huge rush to treat them tonight. Just want to make sure I do the right thing for them all!

Do another water change on the QT and make sure your adding a bacteria in a bottle product to the QT's filter. We want to keep the ammonia at 0 or as close to is as possible. Do you have an ammonia alert badge yet?

For the copper, it needs to be between 1.5 and 2ppm. Was the copper test kit you bought API?

 

[Mini Coop]

Do another water change on the QT and make sure your adding a bacteria in a bottle product to the QT's filter. We want to keep the ammonia at 0 or as close to is as possible. Do you have an ammonia alert badge yet?

For the copper, it needs to be between 1.5 and 2ppm. Was the copper test kit you bought API?

Yes. API.

 

[melypr1985]

Yes. API.

Then your set. Just bring the levels up slowly... take a couple days to get there - i like to go 5 days.

 

[Mini Coop]

Then your set. Just bring the levels up slowly... take a couple days to get there - i like to go 5 days.

Ok! Thank you!
Then I try to keep the levels at 1.5 - 2 for a month and re-treat as needed due to water changes?
What kind of bacteria product do you mean? Put it in daily? Directly on the sponge? Is my filtration for QT too simple?

 

[melypr1985]

Ok! Thank you!
Then I try to keep the levels at 1.5 - 2 for a month and re-treat as needed due to water changes?
What kind of bacteria product do you mean? Put it in daily? Directly on the sponge? Is my filtration for QT too simple?

Something like Seachem's Stability. There are many products out there that do the same thing. It's simply to help your bio filter be able to keep up with demand.

When you do water changes, be sure to add the copper to the new water before adding the water back to the QT

 

[Waterjockey]

Just want to throw 2 cents in.......if you are leaving your display tank fallow for 76 days or so, to ensure it is irradiated of ich (and an opportunity to ensure it is fully cycled), to me, it's a great opportunity to ensure your tank and fish remain ich free forever. Search for "tank transfer method" to eliminate Ich. You can do this with your fish while the display sits fallow, and you will have completely eliminated it from both your fish and your display tank.

 

[Humblefish]

And just to add, never use an ammonia reducer in the presence of copper.

 

[Mini Coop]

And just to add, never use an ammonia reducer in the presence of copper.

Just because I am trying to learn as much as possible and I'm an educator...I like to know the science behind things. Why can't you mix the ammonia reducer with the copper?

 

[Empress]

Toxic to fish and bacteria bloom will most likely show itself if you mix them together.

 

[melypr1985]

Just because I am trying to learn as much as possible and I'm an educator...I like to know the science behind things. Why can't you mix the ammonia reducer with the copper?

I"m not sure about the exact science behind it, but I do know that the ammonia reducer is known to turn the copper (which is a poison in it's own right) more toxic which can result in death for the fish.