[Melanie]

Update: I've chosen my first course of treatment.

There are many different options for treatment of Marine Ich and I'm going to start with the least dangerous first and proceed from there. Actually, I didn't see this option discussed on Ash's thread but it sounds completely harmless to not only the fish, but the LR and any inverts or future fish that may use the QT tank.

Every day for two weeks, the tank is completely cleaned and a 50% water change performed. During this time and thereafter, I am running my UV sterilizer (which I bought and never hooked up until now.)

To help reduce stress and boost the fish's immune system, I am adding the black background that wraps around 3 sides of the tank. I will not run the lights at all and will use the ambient room light (lots of it 10 ft. sliding glass doors in that room.) I am going to add garlic extreme (per the instructions) to his food. The garlic is unproven as a treatment, but shows anecdotal promise. I already use one drop of Vitachem on his food on weekdays and will continue.

This course of threatment will last 6+ weeks. Two weeks of daily water changes then one month of weekly water changes and observation.

This is yet another reason I love my QT. Daily 50 percent water changes of 5 gallons are MUCH easier than daily 50 percent water changes of 40 gallons.

I will, of course, keep you guys posted on how well this treatment works (or not!)