Melafix and pimafix harming my tank?

[immaman2011]

0 ammonia
0 nitrite
20-40 nitrate
8.0-8.2 ph
1.025 salinity
79.6-80.4f temp

I dosed just under 20ml of both melafix and pimafix to my tank earlier in the day. All of my trochus snails and most of my cerith and astraes snails started flipping out and falling off of where ever they were. Also my flameback started breathing heavy right after and yellow band wrasse looked as if she was going into sleep mode because of the medication. I don't think my citron goby liked it much either. Also all of my corals closed up almost immediately after added to tank. Does this usually happen? All other fish, shrimp, and hermits are okay. My royal gramma and sharknose goby have ick I believe and I thought this medication would help. Seems to have killed off my snails and stressed certain fish.

What should I do? I did a waterchange to remove some of the meds. Should I just add a more powerful uv sterilizer? The goby and gramma came from petco with little dots on em I don't know if I should just let it sail or not.

 

[vetteguy53081]

0 ammonia
0 nitrite
20-40 nitrate
8.0-8.2 ph
1.025 salinity
79.6-80.4f temp

I dosed just under 20ml of both melafix and pimafix to my tank earlier in the day. All of my trochus snails and most of my cerith and astraes snails started flipping out and falling off of where ever they were. Also my flameback started breathing heavy right after and yellow band wrasse looked as if she was going into sleep mode because of the medication. I don't think my citron goby liked it much either. Also all of my corals closed up almost immediately after added to tank. Does this usually happen? All other fish, shrimp, and hermits are okay. My royal gramma and sharknose goby have ick I believe and I thought this medication would help. Seems to have killed off my snails and stressed certain fish.

What should I do? I did a waterchange to remove some of the meds. Should I just add a more powerful uv sterilizer? The goby and gramma came from petco with little dots on em I don't know if I should just let it sail or not.

Possibly yes as they are teak tree oils and considered tonics and rendered useless for remedy
I see you have zero ammonia and nitrate
What test kits are you using?

do water change and add carbon

 

[LeftyReefer]

I only use melafix as a dip now. I've tried adding it to a QT tank a few times, but didn't have good outcomes any time I tried that. It also makes a mess of the water. It seems to really make the water feel slimy and seems to create some kind of scum/foam on top of the water.

I only use it as a coral dip in a bucket now, I wouldn't add it to a DT or QT tank again.

It does work good as a coral dip though. I'll keep using it for that.

I would not expect it to do anything for ICH though. I would treat your fish with copper if you suspect they have ICH.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

0 ammonia
0 nitrite
20-40 nitrate
8.0-8.2 ph
1.025 salinity
79.6-80.4f temp

I dosed just under 20ml of both melafix and pimafix to my tank earlier in the day. All of my trochus snails and most of my cerith and astraes snails started flipping out and falling off of where ever they were. Also my flameback started breathing heavy right after and yellow band wrasse looked as if she was going into sleep mode because of the medication. I don't think my citron goby liked it much either. Also all of my corals closed up almost immediately after added to tank. Does this usually happen? All other fish, shrimp, and hermits are okay. My royal gramma and sharknose goby have ick I believe and I thought this medication would help. Seems to have killed off my snails and stressed certain fish.

What should I do? I did a waterchange to remove some of the meds. Should I just add a more powerful uv sterilizer? The goby and gramma came from petco with little dots on em I don't know if I should just let it sail or not.

How large is the tank? That has a major bearing on the dose that was used. I don't recommend those two tonics to treat active ich. To do that properly, you will need a way to separate the invertebrates from the fish.
If you post a clear picture of the gramma or goby, we might be able to diagnose if it is ich or not.

Jay

 

[immaman2011]

Possibly yes as they are teak tree oils and considered tonics and rendered useless for remedy
I see you have zero ammonia and nitrate
What test kits are you using?

do water change and add carbon

I did a water change already. Carbon is in. I use API master saltwater kit, my LFS uses the same tests, but he has commercial versions of it. He's been in business since almost 20 years ago. He says that people have opinions about test kits and that people have a false opinion about API kits. I already know I'm going to get blown up for using API lol

 

[immaman2011]

I only use melafix as a dip now. I've tried adding it to a QT tank a few times, but didn't have good outcomes any time I tried that. It also makes a mess of the water. It seems to really make the water feel slimy and seems to create some kind of scum/foam on top of the water.

I only use it as a coral dip in a bucket now, I wouldn't add it to a DT or QT tank again.

It does work good as a coral dip though. I'll keep using it for that.

I would not expect it to do anything for ICH though. I would treat your fish with copper if you suspect they have ICH.

Noted. Will copper be good to use in DT? I don't have any kind of QT tank. I don't have money right now to set one up.

 

[immaman2011]

How large is the tank? That has a major bearing on the dose that was used. I don't recommend those two tonics to treat active ich. To do that properly, you will need a way to separate the invertebrates from the fish.
If you post a clear picture of the gramma or goby, we might be able to diagnose if it is ich or not.

Jay

36g, I planned on upgrading to 75g when they grow older in a year or 2. They are all juveniles right now. I have snails and shrimp and hermits in the tank it would be impossible to remove all of them without removing rockwork and ruining sandbed. I need something I can use in DT as QT is not in the cards right now. I don't have money for a whole new setup just for a QT. By time I do that it would be too late. Are there any other solutions for DT treatment? I have 10 blue hermits, 2 cleaner shrimp, 3 peppermint shrimp, and assorted snails that seem to hate all meds. But it's just the snails that we're affected seemingly by the meds. The others were just ticked off.

 

[LeftyReefer]

Noted. Will copper be good to use in DT? I don't have any kind of QT tank. I don't have money right now to set one up.

No, definitely not reef safe. corals and inverts cannot tolerate any copper. Copper treatments must be done in a separate QT tank, away from corals and inverts in your main tank....

Saying that. Your main tank will also need to remain fishless (fallow) for at least 45 days, otherwise the ICH will just come back as it reproduces and lays more eggs/cysts.

If you are going to treat and cure the ICH parasites, you will need a separate QT tank.

How many and what size fish do you have? I just use a 20G long tank for my QT tank. Can be bought for $20 during a $ per gallon tank sale... a small hob or a sponge filter and a heater is all you need to QT some fish. along with copper and some method of testing our copper levels. Even a bin/tub could be used in a pinch, but knowing the water volume for dosing is important, so nice rectangle tanks are great for figuring actual volumes.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I did a water change already. Carbon is in. I use API master saltwater kit, my LFS uses the same tests, but he has commercial versions of it. He's been in business since almost 20 years ago. He says that people have opinions about test kits and that people have a false opinion about API kits. I already know I'm going to get blown up for using API lol

No one should blow you up
Often I suggest to take a good water sample to a trusted LFS that does Not use API test kits and see what results they come up with and for comparison
I suspect higher numbers than you’re seeing

 

[immaman2011]

No one should blow you up
Often I suggest to take a good water sample to a trusted LFS that does Not use API test kits and see what results they come up with and for comparison
I suspect higher numbers than you’re seeing

I found a med called ruby reef kick ick pro and ruby reef rally pro. I'm going to try those before I am forced to disassemble my tank to catch fish or transfer to a QT, don't have a QT and can't wait to buy a whole system just for it. I'll let you guys know how it goes.

 

[LeftyReefer]

I found a med called ruby reef kick ick pro and ruby reef rally pro. I'm going to try those before I am forced to disassemble my tank to catch fish or transfer to a QT, don't have a QT and can't wait to buy a whole system just for it. I'll let you guys know how it goes.

Those never worked for me either, but I wish you luck with them.
I too tried those before I ultimately had to set up a QT system.

Anything REEF SAFE is also going to be ICH safe unfortunately.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I found a med called ruby reef kick ick pro and ruby reef rally pro. I'm going to try those before I am forced to disassemble my tank to catch fish or transfer to a QT, don't have a QT and can't wait to buy a whole system just for it. I'll let you guys know how it goes.

My preference- ruby rally pro but addresses velvet more than it does ich
Kick ich is good but strong and I recommend adding at 80% and increase aeration with air stone

 

[immaman2011]

My preference- ruby rally pro but addresses velvet more than it does ich
Kick ich is good but strong and I recommend adding at 80% and increase aeration with air stone

What about ruby reef hydroplex? Air stone I can do easily I have an extra pump and a whole packet of air stones.

 

[vetteguy53081]

What about ruby reef hydroplex? Air stone I can do easily I have an extra pump and a whole packet of air stones.

Hydroelectric as a dip, not bad. Ineffective as a total treatment
It claims to cure bacteria, ich etc but has a few ingredients in which none are ich specific and preserved by coconut oil which is a tonic

 

[immaman2011]

Hydroelectric as a dip, not bad. Ineffective as a total treatment
It claims to cure bacteria, ich etc but has a few ingredients in which none are ich specific and preserved by coconut oil which is a tonic

What's a good dip medication for when I drip acclimate new fish? Could I use that? Or should I use something else?

 

[LeftyReefer]

What's a good dip medication for when I drip acclimate new fish? Could I use that? Or should I use something else?

no dips are fully reliable.

I may sound like a broken record, but a proper QT tank with copper is the answer to all the above.

I know it sounds like a pain, but it really isn't that bad.

by the time you buy pimafix, melafix, ruby rally pro, kick ich pro and hydroplex, and new fish dips, only to find out none of them work... then what? out a lot of money and still have no answer if this doesn't work, or happens again in the future.

Buy a QT tank, treat your existing fish with copper for 30+ days and then a 2 week observation period. leave your tank fallow (fishless) for this 45+ days, which will allow the ICH to die off. Then return the treated fish to the tank and then use the QT tank to properly quarantine any new fish for 30 days in copper so that this doesn't happen again.

 

[vetteguy53081]

What's a good dip medication for when I drip acclimate new fish? Could I use that? Or should I use something else?

Ruby rally pro

 

[immaman2011]

no dips are fully reliable.

I may sound like a broken record, but a proper QT tank with copper is the answer to all the above.

I know it sounds like a pain, but it really isn't that bad.

by the time you buy pimafix, melafix, ruby rally pro, kick ich pro and hydroplex, and new fish dips, only to find out none of them work... then what? out a lot of money and still have no answer if this doesn't work, or happens again in the future.

Buy a QT tank, treat your existing fish with copper for 30+ days and then a 2 week observation period. leave your tank fallow (fishless) for this 45+ days, which will allow the ICH to die off. Then return the treated fish to the tank and then use the QT tank to properly quarantine any new fish for 30 days in copper so that this doesn't happen again.

I'm going to go with what vetteguy said and try this first before tearing down my system and spending big bucks on a QT system. They will be here between Sunday and Tuesday. I will have to take all carbon out and turn off my UVs. The ick spread to my angel so it's do or die I can't wait to buy a whole system.

 

[immaman2011]

Ruby rally pro

I just bought them they should be here between Sunday and Tuesday. Ick spread fast to my angel and little bits of my other fish. The melafix/pimafix killed my trochus snails and 2 of my peppermint shrimp. So the day I recieve the meds I will do another water change and remove carbon and UV. And then I will do what you said. Hopefully my wrasse and angel live until then it seems minor right now just spreading quickly. The only reason it's not as bad is because of the cleaner shrimp.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

I'm going to go with what vetteguy said and try this first before tearing down my system and spending big bucks on a QT system. They will be here between Sunday and Tuesday. I will have to take all carbon out and turn off my UVs. The ick spread to my angel so it's do or die I can't wait to buy a whole system.

Your quandary is the exact reason there are all these "reef safe" products on the market - but since there is no oversight to the aquarium tonic market, products are sold all the time that simply do not work. None of the ingredients in these products show up in veterinary or public aquarium treatment texts....that tells us something right there.

@LeftyReefer is giving you the solution. It isn't easy, and you may still lose fish, but hunting and pecking for reef safe treatments always fails when there is active disease.....

Jay