CichlidFish.com - Fish That Think.

i just spotted my common red oscar has white spots on his fins and forehead i have treated the tank with ick away is there anything else i should do or just wait??

Be sure water temp is at least 80 while medicating. Remove carbon from filter.

both of the oscars have it now what am i going to do?? will they die??!!:(

Originally posted by wemery12
both of the oscars have it now what am i going to do?? will they die??!!:(

No. If you follow(ed) the instructions on the Ick Away then your problem should be solved pretty quickly. The key with these meds is to follow the printed instructions and 99.9% of the time they work. Ick is a mean ol' disease, but it's very treatable. We get in trouble when we panic and then fail to follow the med's instructions --Mark:cool:

should i do a water change after the ick is gone? or leave it alone

Again, check the instructions on the medication. Some of them recommend a water change, others do not.

Originally posted by wemery12
should i do a water change after the ick is gone? or leave it alone

Yes. :thumbsup:
The reason why it's super important to follow the directions exactly on the medication is because Ick lives a cyclical life -- it lives on the fish, then separates from the fish and drifts down into the gravel. While in the gravel, it surrounds itself with a jelly-like covering, and then reproduces. Then all the babies break out of the jelly-like covering and go searching for a new host. During the time that Ick is on the fish and during the time that it is in the jelly-like covering it cannot be treated; it can only be treated when it is in transit between it's two "states". So, following the instructions on the medication ensures that you are treating the disease for enough time and in the correct dosage. DanRad suggests increasing the temperature to 80 and removing carbon from your filter. The reasons for this is that increased temperature speeds up the Ick's cycle, basically giving your medication more opportunities to kill the disease; and carbon in the filter soaks up the medication, which you don't want to happen. But, I'll bet you a buck cash money that removing the carbon is in the instructions on the Ick-Away box:thumbsup: Ick is a very common disease. I've heard experts say that it's always in an aquarium, but only becomes a problem when it has a "population explosion". I don't know that to be true, though. But enough of us have had battles with Ick that I can say to you "Welcome to the Club!":D But it's a very treatable disease, and your pets should come out fine.

--Mark:cool:

how do you think i should do my water changes with this 55 gallon tank?? i just got it and the nearest sink is up a flight of stairs and i dont know how i can do water changes with out it taking me ages to do... i have a hose right out the window but i cannot do water changes with that i dont think because it is to cold... can some one tell me how i could do this???

Best I can say is be creative -- there's more than one way to skin a cat. Couple of things to bear in mind:

Best if the replacement water is within a degree or 2 of the tank water.

Chlorine needs to be dealt with.

Back when I had only one tank to deal with I kept (still do, in fact) many gallon jugs of water stashed away for changes. Sitting around for a few days lets the chlorine evaporate, and brings the water to at least room temp, which in my apt is pretty close to tank temp most of the time. Then just used a bucket & siphon hose to remove the old water, replacing it from the jugs. There are of course many possible variations on this theme. Now that I have more tanks, a couple of them fairly large, the bucket & jug routine just doesn't cut it. I empty with siphon hoses to either a drain outside the door, or to the bathtub, then refill with hoses from the kitchen & bathroom sinks (you can get adaptors at your friendly hardware store). The hot & cold controls allow temp equalization, and a good water conditioner takes care of the chlorine. Only takes about an hour, and is much easier on the back. In cold weather you need to be sure and splatter the incoming water to release as much as possible of the gases it contains. This is just one way. Works in my situation. You may need or prefer to do something a little different.