ich salt/heat treatment safe for snails/shrimp

Question
hi,
i had a case of ich a while ago on my clown loach and used Ridich... the ich seems to be gone from the loach for now ... but I'm not sure if it'll come back again. I heard of the salt/heat treatment also. I was wondering if i should add aquarium salt to my tank just to be sure the ich won't come back. Will the salt be safe for the snails/shrimp i have? if so, how much should i add per gallon?

Answer
Hi Jonathan;

I know that snails don't like salt. The shrimp might be okay but it really depends on the type. Some shrimp appreciate salt in their water.

Going further, the salt may not prevent another case of ich, but water changes to give your fish strong immune systems will. Fish with clean water get sick very rarely. Replace 25% of the water every week, avoid overfeeding, and don't overcrowd. Vacuum the gravel too, once a week. Since your clown loach has not eaten your snail yet, I have a feeling you are providing an abundance of food so he isn't hungry enough, or your loach is just a little guy right now. Clown loaches are phenomenal snail-eaters and are actually added to tanks just for this purpose. Overfeeding may be what caused him to develop ich too because the water quality may not be what it should be. We all overfeed from time to time. We just have to be prepared to clean up after ourselves when we do. If he's just a little guy right now, he will eat the snail as soon as he can! ;-) It's what they do!

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins