Is Ich really present in every batch of saltwater?

[homersimpsonlikesfish]

I heard from a marine biologist that Ich is always in the water and that the fishes contract Ich if they are stressed or injured. Is this really true? And if Ich is present in all water then how do you prevent and eliminate that disease? Will a UV clarifier kill that disease?

 

[vetteguy53081]

I heard from a marine biologist that Ich is always in the water and that the fishes contract Ich if they are stressed or injured. Is this really true? And if Ich is present in all water then how do you prevent and eliminate that disease? Will a UV clarifier kill that disease?

Ich is present in many cases with livestock and quarantining is the best way to assure its Not introduced in a tank. UV sterilizers help but often address free floating protozoan that passes through unit and does not eliminate it off a fish. Stress is one reason it will overtake a fish as is poor water quality and diet

 

[homersimpsonlikesfish]

Ich is present in many cases with livestock and quarantining is the best way to assure its Not introduced in a tank. UV sterilizers help but often address free floating protozoan that passes through unit and does not eliminate it off a fish. Stress is one reason it will overtake a fish as is poor water quality and diet

If I want to use a UV filter what is the minimum wattage of a UV bulb that will work for a ten gallon tank?

 

[EricR]

If you start a new tank with your own, mixed saltwater, seems unlikely there'd be ich (or any) parasites,,, depending on where you source your rock and how you deal with it before adding fish.

It's then your job to control what gets into your tank. (Ideally, you'd follow the "Current Quarantine Protocol" sticky thread on this site's Fish Disease forum but each individual has to make their own decisions about risk vs effort).

 

[homersimpsonlikesfish]

Where can I find Ich guard for saltwater aquariums?

 

[Spare time]

That marine biologist doesn't know what he is talking about lol.

 

[homersimpsonlikesfish]

That marine biologist doesn't know what he is talking about lol.

This happened during my high school years when we had a field trip to the Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. The marine biologist said Ich is always present in the water.

 

[Uncle99]

Where can I find Ich guard for saltwater aquariums?

That’s fresh water…..but nothing other than copper, hyposalinty or TTM will work, and have been documented as a treatment.

Don’t waste your money.

Kick ick is for marine, but, again, your risk.

 

[Dbichler]

Where can I find Ich guard for saltwater aquariums?

You can’t

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

This happened during my high school years when we had a field trip to the Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. The marine biologist said Ich is always present in the water.

He probably meant in THOSE aquariums...

 

[EricR]

This happened during my high school years when we had a field trip to the Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. The marine biologist said Ich is always present in the water.

The context is obviously different here.

For sure ich exists in the ocean so any statement about being able to find the life form (Cryptocaryon, I guess) responsible for ich in a large enough sample of ocean water makes sense.

I do, personally, believe that it is possible to avoid introducing specific parasites into a reef tank with enough effort, however.

 

[Lavey29]

I'm one of those that believe ich is present in all reef tanks to some degree and in a dormant stage due to fish immune systems. When a stress event happens fish immune systems weaken and ich takes advantage. Uv does nothing to eliminate it as does over the counter medicinal remedies either. Fallow periods allow the ich enough time without a stressed host to go dormant again . Copper in QT works in conjunction with the fish compromised immune system to get past it

 

[EricR]

I'm one of those that believe ich is present in all reef tanks to some degree and in a dormant stage due to fish immune systems. When a stress event happens fish immune systems weaken and ich takes advantage. Uv does nothing to eliminate it as does over the counter medicinal remedies either. Fallow periods allow the ich enough time without a stressed host to go dormant again . Copper in QT works in conjunction with the fish compromised immune system to get past it

I'd be interested in knowing which (if any) companies test home/hobby water for specific parasites/pathogens and what data they've compiled.

I know NOTHING about this so basically just wondering aloud.
...sorry to the OP for the tangent

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Fallow periods allow the ich enough time without a stressed host to go dormant again .

By "dormant" you mean dead and gone, right?? Lol!!

 

[Spare time]

This happened during my high school years when we had a field trip to the Steinhart Aquarium at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. The marine biologist said Ich is always present in the water.

He may have been saying that ich is always present if there was never a QT, rather than ich is always present in all tanks.

 

[Spare time]

I'm one of those that believe ich is present in all reef tanks to some degree and in a dormant stage due to fish immune systems. When a stress event happens fish immune systems weaken and ich takes advantage. Uv does nothing to eliminate it as does over the counter medicinal remedies either. Fallow periods allow the ich enough time without a stressed host to go dormant again . Copper in QT works in conjunction with the fish compromised immune system to get past it

Where is your evidence that it can go dormant again? It has a known life cycle.

 

[Cell]

"Ich is in everyone's tank" is what someone says to make themselves feel better about having ich in their tank.

 

[The_Paradox]

"Ich is in everyone's tank" is what someone says to make themselves feel better about having ich in their tank.

Agreed. Pretty sure spontaneous generation was disproven sometime in the 19th century.

 

[KrisReef]

"Ich is in everyone's tank" is what someone says to make themselves feel better about having ich in their tank.

Can you explain how this works?
What do you say to the fish in this example?

 

[jda]

They probably meant for you to assume that ich was always in the water. Do not assume that anything is ever ich free unless you do it yourself.