# Velvet treatment



## cuznhottie (Apr 22, 2008)

Now my tank isn't planted yet, but I did get an outbreak of velvet. I'm currently treating it with copper, but I was wondering. When you have plants in the tank, how do you treat for velvet? Malachite green? Do you have to take the fish out of the tank and put them in a hospital tank?
Oh, and if anyone knows, is mardel coppersafe okay to use with otos?


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## ranchwest (Jul 17, 2005)

My guess is that velvet is very rare in an established planted tank.


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## ed seeley (Dec 1, 2006)

As you've treated the tank with copper do bear in mind that you won't be able to keep shrimp in there now, or even use decor, like wood, from that tank in a tank with inverts. I made this mistake myself in the past...

If Otos are in the tank they will probably be carrying the velvet too so will need treating somehow so, while I don't know that particular treatment, they would need treating with something.

Also velvet is an algae so one way to help is to black out the tank while you treat.


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## cuznhottie (Apr 22, 2008)

ed seeley said:


> As you've treated the tank with copper do bear in mind that you won't be able to keep shrimp in there now, or even use decor, like wood, from that tank in a tank with inverts. I made this mistake myself in the past...


I had been reading about that and I thought that after a few weeks of water changes plus adding carbon back to the filter will remove the copper completely. I was also looking into possibly purchasing this product, CupriSorb™. If anyone has any experience with it, please let me know! I'm wondering if it does what it says. Oh, and I'm planning on purchasing a copper testing kit as I was planning on keeping ghost shrimp, plants, and possibly freshwater clams.
Oh, and I have blacked out the tank as well. I read that velvet can use photosynthesis. Thanks for telling me though! It was hard to find that info.


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## ed seeley (Dec 1, 2006)

IME any trace of copper will kill off shrimp and snails rapidly so adding a bit of carbon won't cut it.

I treated a 180l (about 55USG I believe) tank with a copper based medication that had a small piece of bogwood with narrow leaved java fern growing on it. A year or so later I moved this plant and wood to a 25l, 12" cube tank with shrimp in and the shrimp were dead within days. There was some carbon in the filter. I only remembered about the copper treatment when I was trying to work out what on earth had happened to them as they had been doing great before.


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## apistomaster (May 24, 2008)

I prefer plain malachite green with no formalin containing preparations. Most plants will survive a full course of treatment although no treatment is completely harmless. Don't worry much about Oodinium's ability to photosythesize.
I would plan on trying some inexpensive ghost glass shrimp once the velvet is cured and after changing most of the water. They are able to tolerate a normal malachite green treatment but not all shrimp are so had to kill.


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