So the question that's on folks' minds now is probably "okay vague, did it work?"
The short answer is:
It might have.
The fish all show no signs of ich and it hasn't spread to any other fish in the tank. It's been two days since the prescribed treatment period ended and the tank stays at 80 degrees, so the life cycle of the parasite should start over very soon. I'm going to let folks know if it returns. At that point we will begin exploring what was in this stuff, how it worked and if it worked at all. This has been an interesting experience.
Notes below:
Day 1: Fish display cysts about the size of a pin head. No loss of appetite, mild bouts of aggression. Dosed with 30 drops of treatment, 1 for each gallon of water in the tank. Removed carbon filters. Illness has been present for 15 days untreated and increase in severity has forced me to take measures. Water parameters normal.
Day 2: No visible change. No loss of appetite. Water parameters normal. No change in cyst size or numeration.
Day 3: All corals closed up for 12+ hours. Dosed with 30 drops of treatment, 1 for each gallon of water in the tank. Cysts appeared more numerous, but smaller. High aggression present. No change in appetite. Water parameters normal.
Day 4: Corals reopened, no change in water parameters. Cysts appear uneffected on body but appear to be disappearing on fins. No aggression present. The smallest test subject has been moderately stressed due to chareotype on chareotype aggression. No change in appetite. Anemone has decided to take to wandering.
Day 5: Small ammonia spike present. (1.0) To counter, I moved wave machine to opposite side of the tank to increase water circulation and force flow towards filtration unit. Dosed with 30 drops of treatment, 1 for each gallon of water in the tank. Amount of cysts reduced dramatically over the course of 10 hours. 2nd largest chromid shows no sign of cysts at all. Fish appear more sluggish than usual. No change in appetite. Anemone is closed up in shade. No signs of aggression.
Day 6: Cysts are no longer present. Small scarring patterns on some of the more severely affected spots remain. No change in appetite. Ammonia spike no longer present, water parameters normal. Anemone is open in new spot. No aggression present.
It is possible that the change in flow helped and it is possible that the life cycle is simply starting over. Will advise if illness returns.
No loss of fish, coral, shrimp or snails.
Footnote: Apparently it is doable to perform repeated treatments.
