Epistylis or Ich, and how do I treat it?

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

Buckle up this may take a minute. I recently moved 4 hours away and left several of my fish boarding at my LFS from where I used to live. Once moved, I setup a 40 breeder, cycled for a week, got 6 silver tips, then a week later went back for all my fish. In all I had 3 super red bristlenose plecos, 2 L397 plecos, a pair of apisto viejita, and 3 male halfbeaks all in a QT tank at my lfs to board. I also had a schoutedeni puffer at my friends house and got a yellow spiny eel. I drove 4 hours back with fish in buckets with air. I didn’t get a good look at the plecos before they went into the bucket at the store. After drip acclimating for over an hour I added the halfbeaks, apistos, and plecos to the tank and was about to add the eel when I noticed what I initially thought was ich on the big male bristlenose. Pulled him back out and into the bucket, and noticed similar spots on the other plecos and pulled who I could along with deco. One of the 397s was too crafty so he stayed in the tank. In the bucket I put salt to 1.003 and a heater which is currently at 83 degrees F. In the tank I didn’t salt bc I have live plants, but I did turn the heat up to 83 as well. The 397 that had stayed initially only had a few spots on his face and fins, but today is covered. Bucket has an airstone and heater, tank has 2 heaters, a coop sponge, an aqua clear 20 and an aqua clear 70. Yesterday I dosed 2.5 mL of IchX to the bucket but not the tank yet. After 3 days, no one else in the tank seems to have it but it’s gotten worse on the 397. Pictures are from night 1 and then today. Pics of water test from just now as well.

so, is this ich? Epistylis? Something else? And if so how do I treat it?

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

Meds i have access to: Ich X, kanaplex, erythromycin, maracyn, Prazi pro, para cleanse, and general cure. I do not have the space or capacity to setup a QT tank, just a QT bucket. Tank is planted. I can do salt in the bucket. I have non cycled sponge filter I can throw in the bucket. I do not have focus, but I do have repashy . It is only the plecos that seem affected.

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

Plan is turn heater back down to 78, make repashy with kana. Should I still dose IchX? Should I move the other llecos to the main tank? I threw a nano coop sponge in the main tank to establish so I can throw it in bucket 

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

Here’s a pic from the 397 in the tank just now. I turned the heater down to 80, I’m gonna dose with ich X and feed kana repashy. Gonna pull and check one of the bucket plecos as well. Any other advice or help would be greatly appreciated.

Edited August 18, 2022 by Steph’s Fish and Plants
It helps when you actually add the photos 🤦🏼‍♀️

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

Does anyone know if kanaplex is plant safe? Or should I dose tank with erythromycin? I made up some repashy with kana but it needs time to settle and stuff. The plecos in the bucket definitely look better than the one in the tank; not sure if it’s bc of the salt or the IchX. Should I dose main tank with ich x? 

[nabokovfan87]

That looks like Ich to me. 

Treatment typically being as follows:
 

 

On 8/17/2022 at 6:28 PM, Steph’s Fish and Plants said:

Does anyone know if kanaplex is plant safe? Or should I dose tank with erythromycin?

Either one.  I would typically use Erythromycin just because it's more common and easily available (if you need more) and it's typically going to work for this situation.
 

 

On 8/17/2022 at 6:28 PM, Steph’s Fish and Plants said:

Should I dose main tank with ich x? 

I would dose all three.  Salt, Ich-X, and Erythromycin.  If you want to use Salt+Ich-X and use the repashy, that works also.   There are plants in the tank, so that is a risk, but I have always done that with my tanks because treating the tank is pretty critical to rid it of the ich cysts.
 

Sidenote, your plecos are absolutely beautiful. I wish you and them the best of luck through this. 

On 8/17/2022 at 6:28 PM, Steph’s Fish and Plants said:

Does anyone know if kanaplex is plant safe?

I believe pretty much ever med by seachem is plant safe.

Given the temp. I wonder if the temperature is what caused it.  The plecos might be sensitive to that temp.  Keeping it near 80 will help fight the ich though. Temporarily it might be something to consider while treating this.

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

I will dose IchX and erythromycin in the morning. I imagine the temp got fairly cold for them in the bucket during transport, I didn’t have any heaters that would work (where’s that USB heater at…? Lol) I did make some kana repashy that I’ll feed off as well. I won’t be dosing salt per the plants unless I get real desperate.

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/18/2022 at 12:19 AM, Steph’s Fish and Plants said:

I did make some kana repashy that I’ll feed off as well. I won’t be dosing salt per the plants unless I get real desperate.

Sounds good. Either dose the tank with erythromycin or feed the food (not both).  You can also feed, run the ich-x+salt, and then follow up with the feedings for the time being and see how things improve.

The reason being is you don't want to double dose and have an issue where the fish is over medicated and suffers as a result. It will take 1-3 weeks to get through this so it's just a matter of time regarding how things progress.

With Ich you will see the spots on the fish, those hatch, then you have the cysts on the substrate. You'll see more on the fish, but less so than before. This continues until it's gone.

Just meaning, you'll have time to dose erythromycin after feeding without issue. The wounds from the spots open up, that's when the bacterial meds protect the fish from secondary infection issues.

Edited August 18, 2022 by nabokovfan87
autocorrect

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

Thanks for the help! I dosed the main tank with IchX today, I need to work on the repashy still (it never gelled 😢). Woke up to the schoutedeni having it too so I’m very stressed about that 😅 but I think the IchX will help.

[nabokovfan87]

On 8/18/2022 at 9:46 AM, Steph’s Fish and Plants said:

it never gelled 😢

You should be able to reheat it, pan or microwave or add some hot water + powder and get it to set. Just add some powder to it to get it to set a little thicker. Very very very hot water has been. The key for me and way more stirring than you think.

Because the repashy didn't set, it's likely the meds and stuff affected consistency, you'll likely want to soak clams or something in meds for the puffer too.  Once you see spots disappear, then we can talk about how to move forward with the other bacterial meds, but one step at a time. Ich-X+salt for now. Food+kanaplex.

On 8/18/2022 at 9:46 AM, Steph’s Fish and Plants said:

Thanks for the help! I dosed the main tank with IchX today, I need to work on the repashy still (it never gelled 😢). Woke up to the schoutedeni having it too so I’m very stressed about that 😅 but I think the IchX will help.

Yeah, salt will too! With the puffer in there I think level 2 might be the right amount (co-op salt blog article).  I do 1/2 cup per 10G, but that is with corydoras and not a puffer. Level 2 is ever so slightly less salt than that dosing. 

I wish you the best. Hopefully things settle out and everything is ok. Considering it's the most sensitive, I would set temp based on what the puffer can tolerate. Everything in the one tank, then just treat that tank. Amazing fish you have!!!!

Feel better fish!

@Coluhhave you had any issues or a specific ratio that works well with repashy and kanaplex? I assume the heat of the hot water would remove the meds viability?

Just meaning, add the meds right when it starts to set and the food is fully incorporated, not when you add the hot water at max temp at first? I'm not sure the specific method here, but that's what makes sense to me.

[Colu]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:53 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

You should be able to reheat it, pan or microwave or add some hot water + powder and get it to set. Just add some powder to it to get it to set a little thicker. Very very very hot water has been. The key for me and way more stirring than you think.

Because the repashy didn't set, it's likely the meds and stuff affected consistency, you'll likely want to soak clams or something in meds for the puffer too.  Once you see spots disappear, then we can talk about how to move forward with the other bacterial meds, but one step at a time. Ich-X+salt for now. Food+kanaplex.

Yeah, salt will too! With the puffer in there I think level 2 might be the right amount (co-op salt blog article).  I do 1/2 cup per 10G, but that is with corydoras and not a puffer. Level 2 is ever so slightly less salt than that dosing. 

I wish you the best. Hopefully things settle out and everything is ok. Considering it's the most sensitive, I would set temp based on what the puffer can tolerate. Everything in the one tank, then just treat that tank. Amazing fish you have!!!!

Feel better fish!

@Coluhhave you had any issues or a specific ratio that works well with repashy and kanaplex? I assume the heat of the hot water would remove the meds viability?

Just meaning, add the meds right when it starts to set and the food is fully incorporated, not when you add the hot water at max temp at first? I'm not sure the specific method here, but that's what makes sense to me.

Kanaplex isn't a  heat resistant medication you want to mix the medication into the repashy as it's starting to get a bit thicker that when it starts to rapidly cool usually when repashy doesn't set it's when you have used to much water in the mix

Edited August 18, 2022 by Colu

[Steph’s Fish and Plants]

I’ll fix the repashy tonight after work, thanks for the tips! I’m worried about the salt with my plants, I have ammania gracillis which was just in transit a week and is starting to come back, same with s Repens, I’ve got scarlet temple, a Crinum, lots of crypts, super red ludwigia, and a rotala (can’t remember which one). Oh and some val. I’ll move the other plecos back to the tank today as well bc they’re looking a bit better. They’re currently in salt and ichX in the bucket.