End of copper treatment question

[cmattdvc]

Well actually two questions.

1. I had a pretty bad ich outbreak due to my own stupidity and lack of patience. Took all coral out and placed into separate tank for holding. Left some rock in my tank and began treating with copper as per the directions and dosage range.

The question is after the 30 days are up, are the fish now good to go into my new system? I left rock in the tank that was there during the ich outbreak. So will there be ich left on the rock after the copper treatment?

2. I have two cleaner shrimp that went into the holding tank with the coral. No copper treatment there. They have both molted now and is it safe for them to go into the new system even though they have been with the coral from the ich out break tank?

Thanks in advance!!

 

[Wieloch89]

The rock that you left in your tank and treated with copper is going to be a problem. It’s going to leach out and harm your corals and inverts...

 

[cmattdvc]

The rock that you left in your tank and treated with copper is going to be a problem. It’s going to leach out and harm your corals and inverts...

Correct sir. But I’m moving the fish to a completely different system and taking that one completely down.

 

[Wieloch89]

Correct sir. But I’m moving the fish to a completely different system and taking that one completely down.

So you’re not re-using the rock?

 

[Maritimer]

If you move the fish _and_only_the_fish_ to the new system, and use that rock as a border for your favorite flowerbed, you should be OK. Inverts and corals should remain in a separate system for the full 76 day "fallow" period, to ensure that no encysted tomonts hiding on them get into your new system.

Two exceptions off the top of my head ... I'm given to understand that ich tomonts can't successfully settle on echinoderms such as sea-stars, urchins or cucumbers, and shrimp or crabs (not hermit crabs, but something like emerald crabs or sally lightfoots) can be moved to the new display after their first moult, as they'll cast off any tomonts with the old shell.

~Bruce

 

[cmattdvc]

So you’re not re-using the rock?

I am not re-using it. That’s correct

 

[cmattdvc]

If you move the fish _and_only_the_fish_ to the new system, and use that rock as a border for your favorite flowerbed, you should be OK. Inverts and corals should remain in a separate system for the full 76 day "fallow" period, to ensure that no encysted tomonts hiding on them get into your new system.

Two exceptions off the top of my head ... I'm given to understand that ich tomonts can't successfully settle on echinoderms such as sea-stars, urchins or cucumbers, and shrimp or crabs (not hermit crabs, but something like emerald crabs or sally lightfoots) can be moved to the new display after their first moult, as they'll cast off any tomonts with the old shell.

~Bruce

The rock will not be reused. It’s just gonna get tossed or maybe saved for a fish only system at some point.

Inverts, specifically I’m talking about a pair of cleaner shrimp. They have motled but they are in a back up tank with coral that came from the ich tanks, they need to wait the 76 days?

But the fish should be good to go is what I’m reading?

 

[Maritimer]

Sorry to take so long getting back to you - Once inverts moult in an invert-only tank, they're OK to return to a tank with fish. Ich and velvet can't encyst unless they've had a meal from a fish, so the only possibility of reintroducing them is if there happened to be a random theront in a droplet of water on the invert, and that same random theront was also in a droplet of water on the invert post temperature / drip acclimation. The theront would then have to locate a fish and feed before it could encyst and produce more free-swimmers. As you can imagine, the odds are pretty low . . .

~Bruce