Proactively Eradicate Cryptocaryon, Transfer Method II

Alex Wilson

New Member
Also see Proactive Marine Quarantine - Transfer Method II and Hyposalinity

Proactively Eradicate Cryptocaryon, Transfer Method II


I would like to suggest an alternate version of the Transfer Method (Transfer Method II) to proactively eradicate Cryptocaryon irritans from new fish arrivals that I've had success with, in which sterilization and ammonia levels aren't a concern nor is there a large amount of water wasted. This method seems to work 100% of the time and most importantly is practical for the average hobbyist to use proactively to eliminate any infestation before it occurs on all new arrivals. (Please note this can be mildly stressful on fish yet much less so than a Cryptocaryon infection and then a post treatment of Hyposalinity or Copper.)

Anyone can verify the solid science this method is based upon by simply looking at the now well known life cycle of Cryptocaryon and the original Transfer Method http://atj.net.au/marineaquaria/3daytransfer.html. Instead of two buckets or aquariums, as in the Transfer Method I, you simply use 5 permanent small quarantine aquariums where you transfer every 3 days. You then start over and reuse them without contamination concerns after 2 and half months or 75 days (or optionally on Day 16 you can start over by draining all 5 aquariums and letting everything completely dry out for 1 to 2 days before again adding new water).

Start 5 small quarantine aquariums with a small amount of inert gravel, or optionally bare bottom, using cycled water from an established Cryptocaryon free system and then wait a week to cycle or simply add freshly mixed water and wait a month to cycle. One air pump can be used with valves to run all five. To avoid shock upon a transfer the five quarantine aquariums should be exactly the same setup and original source water to have the same water parameters.

- Day 1 - Place your fish in the first quarantine aquarium.
- Day 4 - After 72 hours transfer your fish from the first to the second quarantine aquarium with a net, a drain container or you can simply transfer them over in a small container with just enough water for them to be submersed under. At each transfer transmission become less likely and by the fifth transfer the fish should Cryptocaryon free. There is a very small chance of transfer of a Tomont or Protomont in this process (with the water and on the fish of course) yet not to worry that's why you have a series of transfers.
- Day 7 - Repeat transfer to the third quarantine aquarium.
- Day 10 - Repeat transfer to the fourth quarantine aquarium.
- Day 13 - Repeat transfer to the fifth quarantine aquarium.
- Day 16 - Transfer to larger quarantine system (for further observation and treatment of other diseases) or optionally transfer directly to your main display aquarium. Make sure you appropriately acclimate your fish when going from the last quarantine aquarium to your main display or to your main quarantine, where temperature and salinity might be different.
- Day 76 - After 75 days you can safely start over again with new fish using the same water. (Optionally on Day 16 you can start over by draining all 5 aquariums and letting everything completely dry out for 24 hours before again adding new water.)

- The aquarium size used depends on how big and how many fish you have. Place the aquariums side by side and you can go as big as required. I've traditionally used five 10 gallon aquariums for fish up to about 5". I've had 100 percent success with this over the last 10 years with about 30 new arrivals and 8 in an advanced Cryptocaryon infection stage.

Other quarantine options you can incorporate are:
- Treat the water with Seachem’s ParaGuard or similar to prevent external fungal, bacterial and viral lesions during the whole process of 15 days.
- Treat for 24 hours with Prazipro for worms on day 3 and for 24 hours on day 13. http://www.reef2reef.com/threads/tank-transfer-method.192655/

I invite everyone to try it as well to see for yourself and let us know.

See Transfer Method I
http://atj.net.au/marineaquaria/3daytransfer.html
http://www.reef2reef.com/threads/tank-transfer-method.192655/
 
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DaveK

Well-Known Member
I see this is your first post, so I'll state up front that I'm not trying to "beat up on you" or other wise discourage you from being an active member here.

Yes, I know people have recommended this method before. I'm glad you had success using it.

However, I can't recommend using it. First off you need 5 tanks. If you have a reasonably large tank, say 70 gal or larger and you need to treat all the fish, you are going to need 5 tanks a lot larger than 10 gallons. That's a lot of tanks to keep set up and cycle.

You also can only do one treatment cycle using this method, unless you add even more tanks, or wait the 75 days. Plus, you still need a quarantine tank, so you can let the main tank stay with no fish in it for the 75 days.

I'll stick to the more conventional methods hyposalinity or copper, which I know will work, and if needed I can treat the fish for a longer time.
 

Alex Wilson

New Member
Hello, how can you say one way or the other if you've never tried something for yourself? You're right this becomes especially practical to proactively treat all new arrivals as opposed to treating a large number at once. If you have gotten Cryptocaryon in your main display and have to treat all of your fish at once then this shows that your quarantine process has indeed failed you. If you had used this method from the beginning for all new arrivals then your main display would never have become infected.

The extra quarantine aquarium you are referring to is completely optional and is there for those who wish to further treat for other ailments. I usually go directly from the fifth quarantine to my main display.

Sure copper and hyposalinity will work, yet so does this, and it's much less work if done proactively right from the beginning. Regards
 

DaveK

Well-Known Member
Because I have tried variations of this method, and I don't feel the method works well. Granted this was many years ago, and it wasn't quite what your recommending. Still, it was close enough.

Also, because I have tried the other methods and found they work just about all the time.

We also have a series of post of by Lee Birch on this subject. First read his bio, so that you can see that we are not talking about just another typical SW hobbyist. See it here - http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/lees-bio-a-k-a-leebca.45723/

Now here are the threads dealing with the disease. There are quite a few and long, but it's not necessary to read the entire thread. Just read the sections by Lee and a few following posts.
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/curing-fish-of-marine-ich.52236/
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/marine-ich-myths-and-facts.23132/
This next thread is sort of optional, since we are talking about treatments.
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/fish-with-white-spots-that-went-away.57175/
These last two threads deal with copper and hyposalinity treatments.
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/copper-treatment-use-problems.23130/
http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forum/index.php?threads/a-hyposalinity-treatment-process.23131/

Personally, think the method you used is a lot harder to set up and actually do compared to copper or hyposalinity. I recommend everyone interested compare the methods and decide for themselves which method is more work and more of a problem to set up and do.

As such, I stand by my original post.
 

Alex Wilson

New Member
Well said, however, a good advantage to keep in mind here in that the Copper and Hyposalinity methods aren't the best to treat proactively.
 
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