i want to treat my marine fish with copper in a hospital tank (they have whitespot), how do i do it? what should the copper be, for how long? then how do i get the copper out of my water when ive finnshed?
If you are treating your fish in a hospital tank, you don not need to get the copper out of water. You should treat your fish with copper around 0.24ppm over the course of 2 weeks. You should leave your main tank fishless for at least one month to get rid of the cyst.
If this is your first time treating with copper, then I would recommend a chelated copper like Seachem's Cupramine. Chelated copper is buffered, which makes it easier to maintain at a safe level, but it can be less deadly to the parasite. Non-chelated copper, like Red Sea Copper, must be administered and monitored very closely, to prevent overdosing, but it is the most effective form of copper treatment. Either way, you will need to buy a copper test kit, to ensure that the copper is maintained at therapeutic levels (0.15ppm-0.20ppm or 0.15-0.20 mg/l). I would dose the copper as recommended by the manufacturer, and maintain therapeutic levels for a minimum of 14 days. I would also raise the temperature to 80 degrees, to speed up the parasite's life cycle. I would also recommend testing your copper level at least once daily, but 2-3 times per day would be better. After 14 days, I would begin to remove the copper with some activated carbon, or even better, an adsorbent like CupriSorb, if there are no more visible spots. I would also keep the fish in quarantine for at least 14 more days after treatment, to ensure that the fish has been completely rid of the parasite. The entire quarantine should last at least one month. Please see the links below for more information. Regards
