PBT Ick but a running UV Sterilizer?

[phk36]

I have a 180 fowlr. I have used copper in my tank. I removed the copper with a polly pad and have kept shrimp,urchin,aneomome. I put small monti frag in and lost it in ten days. I also keep 1/2 of a polly pad in my sump at all times and run 45 watt uv. Ich will find a way to live, only way QT new fish at all times or its a good chance the new fish will bring ich in. Pete

 

[ellebelle]

I definitely do not think that freshwater dips are the answer to ich. The parasite needs a prolonged exposure to low salinities in order to die. A quick shock will likely hurt and stress the fish more than parasite. Better to do hypo in a QT if that is the way you are going to go.

I want to be clear that I am not advocating adding copper medication to your DT. I am simply saying that I'm not sure I believe the common reef-myth that copper will forever leach out of rock and sand and pollute your tank if they were ever used in copper. I would love to see someone take a piece of rock out of their tank that was medicated, put it in a separate bucket and test levels of copper with a sensitive test kit over a series of weeks. In fact, if someone had that kind of rock, I would buy the test kits because I am that curious.