# Ich Question



## RobinA (Feb 17, 2009)

Ok, I have what appears to be ich on some of my fish. No biggie, it happens, they don't appear to be distressed, I can treat it. Except... I've had my 30 gallon and 10 gallon set up for decades with reasonable success. I've had ich maybe twice, no more recent than 10-15 years ago. The most recent I've had new fish is probably 3 years ago. 

Where'd the ich come from??? Nothing goes into the tank except water (well water), food, and new filters. I have no new equipment or decoration. No one handles my fish except me, my equipment is used for nothing except my fish, I have no contact with anybody else's aquarium. My only sin as a fishkeeper is maybe I could change water more often, but my ammonia is non-existent and the tanks are way under capacity at the moment. I have 3 Angels, a Molly and two Bleeding Heart Tetras My ph is ridiculously high, 8ish, but that's the water I've got, nothing lowers it without taking it way too far in the other direction, and the fish seem used to it. I use flake food only, and I didn't just start a new food container. Could it have come in on the food? Been dorment since I bought the Angels 3 years ago? They didn't seem to have it until now, and they are black so I would have noticed. I don't get it!

Oh, and I have no live plants, plastic. Also a bit of salt.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Some believe ich is present in any tank. Most fish can fend it off fairly well. Frequent water changes help.

You can just increase the temp up to about 88 degrees and that alone will take care of your ich problem. Salt will help also. Ich stops reproducing at 85 degrees and starts to die at about 87 degrees. Increase slowly over a day or two. Keep it that way until 3 days after you see the last signs on any of your fish.


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Interesting, could it have come form the well water?


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

According to a professor that I know, ich is present in most water sources. It don't usually attack a fish unless the fish gets stressed somewhat. They can be stressed even just slightly by a water change, a small temp change and you may not see it as stress but its there.


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