How many QT new or sick fish for ich?

[GreenSpottedPuffer]

Originally Posted by StirCrazy

hmmm so Erick bornman and Ron Schmek, don't know anything about Ich, man that makes me question there knowledge on corals and inveterate now just joking.. they are two of the articles I have read.

I am not saying there isn't a variation out there that doesn't live longer, there could be as I said before I hear some one mention one that stays in the cyst stage for up to 3 months, but they are the exception not the norm, or we would be able to find articles on the easy. I know a lot of marine biologist don't know anything about somethings, but generally if the publish a paper it is something they have researched as published papers are subject to peer reviews and they are mad up of peers in the field the paper is on.

heck for all we know people could be calling a fungal infection Ich.

but at any rate depending on the quarantine tank, one of the common recommendations I read last night was to skip it as it can cause more stress and weaken the fishes ability to fight it off themselves.

Also remember if you do quarantine, do one purchase, when you put the fish into the display empty and bleach the quarantine tank so there aren't any cysts left in there, there is a chance that if you just empty and wipe out the tank, put new water in it to age and 3 weeks later you put a new fish in for quarantine then the cysts could hatch and infect your new fish and so one and so one which could cause a reoccurring infection in the tank also.

Steve

LOL...you know what I mean about the marine biologists though. A majority do not ever come in contact with ich because a majority do not specialize in home aquaria and there is not an ich problem in the ocean. I asked my brother once who out of his colleagues and friends I can ask about marine ich because they are all biologists like him and he couldn't name one. Anyways thats not the point and the two names you dropped obviously know their stuff

I was careful to try to say ich "CAN" survive much longer than previously thought, not that it will. I have a pretty good feeling the ich I had/have is not the same as most strains I have been able to rid in the past. It was just something to bring up as a warning that while an ich free tank is indeed possible, there is not ever going to be a surefire way to obtain that. There are just too may variables. There are ways to give yourself a good chance of having an ich free tank though and if people believe thats the way to go, I think they should. I just do not. I know what article you read about QT being more stressful than good on many fish and the opinion was to skip it...I am starting to agree more and more with this. But I am certainly not the kind of person to tell people what to do, thats just not me...I think people need to do what they feel is best after doing enough research.

My idea of this thread was to get as many opinions/ideas for successfully keeping fish, QT or not. I didn't want to make this big debate or struggle to disprove peoples advice or opinions (not that you are doing that). I just thought that new ideas/views would be nice to hear. I am very, very open at this point to new ideas. I have changed my QT practices DRASTICALLY from years past and am having much better success without much QT now. I have learned that fish really can fight off ich well if they are in pristine water conditions and feed very well and often. I also have much better equipment now which has allowed me to feed heavily three times a day while keeping nitrates pegged at 0. I can't do that for a month in QT. I feed every two days in QT and nitrates are more like 20. I feel fish have a better chance without the stress. JMO though