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Treating "Ich" - Aquamaniacs is proud to present the definitive ich treatment article. This is all you need to know about the ich parasite, including its lifecycle, prevention and treatment. Don't let your aquarium fish suffer from an ich outbreak ever again!


This article will focus on the specifics of the lifecycle, prevention and treatment of "ich" in tropical freshwater aquariums.

Ichthyophthirius multifiliis commonly referred to, as "white spot disease" or "Ich" (pronounced "ICK") by aquarists, is a single-celled protozoan that attaches itself to fish. Once Ich has attached, your fish will typically look like it has been sprinkled with grains of salt. Prevention is the key to holding back the opportunistic nature of infectious fish diseases. A healthy fish will have a healthy protective slime coat, which is capable of warding off intruding Ich parasites and other maladies. Fish are known to live with Ich parasites and other infectious organisms as low-level pathogens, that is, not causing disease. However, a stressed fish is susceptible to a myriad of infections, including Ich. Potential stressors such as water quality problems, pH or temperature swings and low oxygen levels must be addressed. Anything that may disrupt the slime coat barrier such as mishandling, rough netting practices or injury may leave your fish vulnerable. Make sure that you are meeting the requirements of your fish with regard to proper and/or varied diet, temperature and compatible tankmates. Visual confirmation that new fish are free of Ich and healthy when purchased is critical as is a two week minimum quarantine period before introduction into the community tank. Make sure new arrivals are colorful and look "smooth" rather than rough or dull due to recent infection.

The Ich parasite’s lifecycle explained:
The Ich parasite has a three-phased lifecycle that will typically run a duration of seven days in an aquarium maintained at 75-80*F (24-27*C). See the charts below for details:





Your fish have ich, now what?
At the first sign of white spots (the fish may also scrape and "flash" against ornaments for relief), it is recommended that you do the following:

1. Check your water quality. See Maintaining Water Quality and Stability for details regarding water changes and overall water quality.

2. You will be performing a number of water changes over the next week, so plan ahead! You will need to set aside time for water changes and for carefully observing your fish for signs of stress.

3. Make sure your mechanical filtration media such as floss or sponges are thoroughly clean or replaced with new media. Remove chemical filtration media including zeolite, carbon, or phosphate absorbing beads. Some filters contain cartridges with carbon in a sealed unit (such as Eclipse systems). You may consider making a small slice in the cartridge, where you can pour the carbon out and continue using the cartridge.

4. Next you’ll want to perform a water change of at least 25% but no more than 50%. Maintain a stable water temperature that is preferred by the type of fish you are keeping.

5. Remove invertebrates and/or sensitive plants that you do not wish to lose, as their tolerance levels to this treatment may be low.

6. Begin treatment with an Ich medication such as RidIch+ by Kordon that contains malachite green and formalin in combination. RidIch+ contains a less toxic form of malachite green that works synergistically with formalin to safely and effectively eradicate the Ich parasite. The full RidIch+ dosage is 1 teaspoon (5ml) per 10 gallons of water and we recommend that you administer the full dose and observe for signs of distress. It is very unlikely that you will experience any problems at the full dosage, even when treating “scaleless” fish like loaches or sensitive tetras. Very sensitive fish such as baby whales, elephant noses and small fry as well as fish with gill disease should not be treated with RidIch+ (their treatment is outside the scope of this article). The malachite green and formalin levels in RidIch+ are already at about half the strength of other malachite green/formalin Ich products, which lessens the toxicity of both medications. If your fish are showing signs of distress after dosing such as gasping, abnormal or erratic behavior, you can quickly give your tank a couple of good squirts of Amquel to neutralize the malachite green, add the carbon back into your filter and perform a series of partial water changes to normalize the situation.

7. RidIch+ is unlikely to harm the biological filter but check your ammonia and nitrite levels while your tank is under treatment (see Cycling Safely for details).

8. Continue the treatments daily by performing water changes of 25-50% prior to re-dosing with RidIch+. Lightly siphon the surface of the gravel during each water change to remove any tomonts. In most cases, the treatment period will run about seven days in keeping with the parasite’s lifecycle. Treatment should continue however for 3 days after the last Ich spot has fallen off your fish, even if this means that the treatment period is extended beyond 7 days. After the treatment course is completed, a 40% water change is recommended as is the addition of new filter carbon. You can remove the Ich parasites from your equipment (gravel vacuum and net) by running them under very hot water for several minutes (Ich dies at temperatures greater than 86*F/26.5*C).

9. The following table graphically depicts the typical day by day treatment cycle:



What not to do:
There are a number of interesting approaches that aquarists employ to battle Ich. Here is a short list of things NOT to do:

• Do not add salt. Salt at levels commonly used in freshwater aquariums will not help to cure your fish of Ich. Salt is for saltwater or brackish water tanks. Treating Ich in saltwater, brackish and pond environments is outside the scope of this article.
  
• Do not increase the temperature (keep the temperature under 80*F/26.5*C). Ich cannot survive at temperatures greater than 86*F/26.5*C, but your fish may not do well at these high temperatures. A higher temperature will make oxygen harder to come by and will increase your fish's need for it. Low oxygen and high temperature levels are stressful to fish. It is especially dangerous to raise the temperature without using an Ich medication. The higher temperatures will accelerate the Ich lifecycle and if you do not have an anti-Ich medication well on board, this may lead to an overwhelming Ich infection and death.
  
• Do not discontinue using AmQuel to treat tap water that contains chloramines. According to Kordon, AmQuel will neutralize RidIch+ if added directly to the tank under treatment (not if added to untreated water containing chloramines before a water change).
  
• Do not treat Ich with RidIch+ at half dose as some articles claim. The product is safe and effective at the full dosage and is of little value at half strength. Remember that RidIch+ is already at ½ the standard dose of other malachite green/formalin products.

Ich Slideshow

As is always the case, heed the warnings on all labels. Your mileage may vary and we assume no liability whatsoever. This article is not an advertisement for Kordon RidIch+ or any other product.