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Shrimp Safe?

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15K views 6 replies 3 participants last post by  Lush  
#1 ·
Hello!

I have a 29 gal tank that has been through an ich/ick outbreak. I treated the tank with a solution containing; Formaldehyde & Malachite Green. Multiple treatments were required to remedy the disease, and I lost some fish along the way. The surviving fish has been moved into a new tank.

Fast forward a few months, and I have decided to start over again. I have cleaned the tank & filter with warm water, and rinsed the gravel 5 times. I have added the same in tank filter, gravel and heater I was using during the treatment period to the tank. I have also added new carbon into the filter to absorb remaining traces of medication within the tank. The tank has now fish-less cycled with seeded media from an established tank with test results: Amm 0, Ni 0, Na 5.0 (API)

I plan on stocking Red Cherry Shrimp and am wondering if carbon alone is enough to rid the tank of all traces of medication. Should I have washed the tank down with a diluted bleach solution? Is there any way to test if there are remaining traces of the medication? Are there any other steps or precautions I should be taking before stocking my tank?


Thank you!

Lush
 
#2 ·
Copper is the big one that sticks around and causes issues with shrimp. Check to be sure neither of the meds you used had copper in them. You can use a product like Cuprisorb if there was copper, though I'd still test after using it with a copper test to be sure it's all removed. I have shrimp in a micro fish tank that recently had an issue (not ich) and the shrimp survived through all meds used to resolve it including paraguard, Metroplex, focus and in the beginning waiting for meds to arrive (hurricanes delayed them several days) melafix and Pimafix. I also was having to use medicated foods which didn't phase them at ALL. I have RCS in the tank though so of your planning crystal shrimp I'd wait for someone to advise about those specifically and their sensitivity. In my case the shrimp in the tank are culls so I wasn't necessarily concerned about them at the time as much as the fish.

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#3 ·
Copper is the big one that sticks around and causes issues with shrimp. Check to be sure neither of the meds you used had copper in them. You can use a product like Cuprisorb if there was copper, though I'd still test after using it with a copper test to be sure it's all removed.
Thank you! I'll have to get some copper test strips today. Any idea on what the normal level of copper should be for an invert aquarium?
 
#5 ·
Will do! I have come across some comments in other forums online which suggest a minimum level is required for shrimp, but there doesn't seem to be actual numbers I can find. Although in hindsight it shouldn't matter too much if all the copper is removed, as there will be small amounts of copper being added back in via flourish comp.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Formaldehyde & Malachite Green, for not contain copper. Both are organic molecules made up of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and chlorine. Most of it is probably gone due to water changes and bacterial activity when the tank had fish. You should be fine with the carbon in the filter. You could also ad a UV sterilizer to the tank. It would kill bacteria and algae in floating in the water and also accelerate the break down of organic molecules such as Malachite Green (if any is still present).
 
#7 ·
Thank you! I did do some research and realised they don't actually contain copper. I guess it still wouldn't hurt to have some copper test strips laying around just in case though. Do you think I should be concerned about the stained silicone in the tanks corners? Would there be medication leeching from these stains at all? Would love to invest in a UV Steriliser sometime in the future when I can afford it :icon_lol: