Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

From the pic i would be surprised if it was ich,salting as everyone has suggested will help,also as mentioned. using Malachite Green, it should be noted it has been banned in aquaculture for years not sure why,but for eating fish i wouldn’t use it.

When I first sighted what I thought was a sign of Ich there were what appeared too be 6 or 8 fish rubbing themselves on the edge of on one of the tiles holding the air-stones and that was when I asked the question.

I haven't seen that behavior since and all looks to be fine.


Thanks too everyone for your help.

So I have a major infestation of Ich (I think) with my channel catfish.



Based on what I've read here and other threads, I took ALL my fish (20 cat fingerlings (4 - 6") and 10 goldfish) out of the system and put them in a 5ppt salt quarantine tank. Unfortunately its only 20 gallons so I'll need to keep a close eye on them, though if the goldfish die - oh well. So based on what I found 3 - 6% salt looks to be the best "natural" remedy and may take a couple of weeks or so (water temp about 77)? Though TCL has reason to believe that my fish are at risk in a bath of over 3% for an extended period. I guess we'll see.

Meanwhile my FT is empty so I will add pure ammonia to keep the plants going - handy because for some reason I'm having Nitrite issues so this should help re-establish the bacteria. Ammonia is converted rapidly, but Nitrite to -ate stopped for some reason.

From what I read if the Ich does not have a host to attach to, their life cycle will end. I understand at 85°F it takes about 48 hours, but my FT is only at 65 - 70. So if there are no fish for a week or more I should be okay. Meanwhile I have a large (12x 36watt) Turbotwist Pond UV sterilizer working overtime - bad for Ich (protozoa?) but also bat for nitrosamina's, etc. Well the good stuff should survive in the growbeds.

Back to the Ich - more and more fish were rubbing the tank, but I couldn't get a good look at them all the way at the back / bottom. I tried netting them but that was difficult and stressing the fish. I even tried a fish trap (though patience is not one of my virtues - cycling the system at startup was agonizing). Finally I built a frame that spanned the width of the tank and put a nylon screen over it. Then I was able to direct the fish into a smaller portion of the tank where they were more easily netted.

Once I had a look I could see most were covered from nose to tail with small raised spots - pretty much white or yellowish. No symptoms on the goldfish, just 80% of the cats. Well after a few hours in the salt they seem more relaxed and are hopefully getting better. I hope there are no bad surprises when I get home from work today.

Water quality and clarity has been good with the exception of Nitrite which is probably stressing the cats

pH 7.7, NH3 0, NO2 .5 - 1.0; NO3 5 - 10, hardness ~200, salt 0, temp 65 - 70 ish. 200 Gal FT, 100 gal sump, 30 gal RFF, 170 gal GB's.

+2 to that..

Were I using tap water then I would be seeking out a water purifier... activated charcoal. Etc...
The chlorine is said to degrade and off gas, but not the fluoride...
..
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