Hello, I have started giving my medical tank copper and over the past couple days the ich has gotten worse on two of my fish. Is it normal for it to sometimes get much worse before it gets better? I have it between .50 and 1. For my API test kit doesn’t get more specific. I’m using cupramine. It’s worked the time I used it before.
Copper making ich worse?
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Crabs McJones
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Are you sure its not ich and not something like flukes? If you freshwater dip the fish do the spots fall off? Can you share a picture with us of the ill fish?
I’m almost positive it is. I was fighting it before and I got all the fish out except one and got them all treated and better. And when I finally got the other out I had taken the copper out of the med tank and when I added the fish that was still in the old tank the ich spread again. I’ll try to get pictures
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Could be HLLE mixed with brook. As hard as the pics are to take they are equally as hard to make out lol. @pathot984 what do you make of this?Here’s a couple I got, not the best due to lighting in tank.
It is definitely not brook.. he did have HLLE when first introduced to copper the first time and after removing it it was getting better but like I said I had to add the other fish and add the copper once again
LAReefer4Life
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Sorry for your troubles. The API copper test kit is not compatible with Cupramine. You need either Salifert, Seachem, or Hanna Checker which is best. You need this asap to ensure you're levels are at the proper therapeutic levels.
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Also what are your water parameters, have you checked ammonia. You need be careful with ammonia spikes in QT if this a new tank. I highly suggest an ammonia alert badge.
The photos are pretty bad to see. Most likely ich and it almost looks like lympho as secondary infection... would be helpful if you could post better pictures.
Also make sure cupramine doesn't exceed .60 ppm, best held steady at .50 ppm
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LAReefer4Life
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How are your fish doing?
They are doing good, they are completely normal besides the ich two of them have on them. I ordered a new Salifert testing kit that should be here tomorrow. Water parameters are good. I’m still going to do a 10 gallon water change to lower the copper some since I really don’t know why it is since the test kit I’ve been using doesn’t work with my copper I have like you stated.
4FordFamily
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That doesn't look like solely ich to me, not a standard presentation of brook but hippo tangs show odd symptoms for some reason. if it WERE brook, that would explain the issue, as metroplex would be my suggestion for treating it.
However, ich's life cycle can take 2-5 days or so--- so the spots should start to go away after that timeframe. If not, and it IS ich or velvet, then this means your copper concentration is not sufficient for eradication.
For cupramine and ionic copper (such as cuprion or cupramine) you're looking for .45 to .55 PPM. For chelated copper (such as copper power, copper safe) you should aim for 2.0 PPM. Treat for 30 days, or 14 days if (and only if) you have a second, completely sterile tank sharing nothing with the first.
However, ich's life cycle can take 2-5 days or so--- so the spots should start to go away after that timeframe. If not, and it IS ich or velvet, then this means your copper concentration is not sufficient for eradication.
For cupramine and ionic copper (such as cuprion or cupramine) you're looking for .45 to .55 PPM. For chelated copper (such as copper power, copper safe) you should aim for 2.0 PPM. Treat for 30 days, or 14 days if (and only if) you have a second, completely sterile tank sharing nothing with the first.
The spots have been going away and then reappearing in other places since I posted those pictures even. I figure it isn’t high enough but since my test kit is the wrong one I still need to wait for the new one to come in tomorrow. I looked at pictures of brook and it does not look like that. The blue light in the pictures may make it look different than it is. I am using cupramine. Thank you for all your help and guidance, I really appreciate it
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