Seachem ParaGuard provides daily treatment for aquarium fish that are suffering from Fin Rot, Flukes, Ich and/or Velvet.
If you are planning to do a water change with tap water while using treating your fish with ParaGuard, then you can check out this tutorial at Aquarium Blueprints to see how you can safely do so with Seachem Prime.
Can you use Seachem Prime and ParaGuard together
Using Seachem Prime and Seachem ParaGuard will cause the oxygen levels to be depleted in your fish tank.
If you follow directions and dose the appropriate amount, however, then the depleted oxygen effect should only last up to 30 minutes.
To be safe, Seachem recommends that you wait between 15 minutes to 30 minutes between adding ParaGuard after dosing adding Prime or vice versa. To be extra safe, you can wait up to 48 hours.
How to use Seachem Prime with ParaGuard during a water change
If you need to perform a water change while in the middle of treating your fish with daily ParaGuard dosages, then we recommend that you take the following steps:
1. Wait at least 24 hours after your previous ParaGuard dosage.
2. Remove water from your fish tank. We recommend removing no more than 20% at a time as major water changes will stress out your already sick fish.
3. Next, you can dose Seachem Prime directly in to your fish tank.
Add Prime based on the official directions, which should be 5 mL for every 20 gallons or 80 liters of the water volume for your aquarium.
4. You can then safely add tap water to the tank.
5. After adding tap water, we recommend waiting for 30 minutes.
6. After at least 30 minutes have passed, you can then add Seachem ParaGuard based on the official directions, which should be 5 mL for every 10 gallons or 40 liters of the water in your tank.
7. If you have a filter, then we recommend increasing the flow rate to promote surface agitation. This will add more oxygen in your tank.
8. Increasing the air flow rate of an air stone should also increase the oxygen levels in your aquarium.
9. After 24 hours have passed after dosing ParaGuard, you can safely do another water change and then add more ParaGuard. Alternatively, you can simply continue dosing ParaGuard as instructed.
10. After 48 hours have passed since you added Prime and then ParaGuard, then you should be able to lower the flow rate of your filter and/or air flow of air stone as the oxygen in your fish tank should be able to return to its normal level.
11. Continue adding ParaGaurd as instructed in order to treat Fin Rot, Flukes, Ich and/or Velvet sickness of your pet fish.
According to Seachem, you need to use the following daily dosage instructions:
- Fin Rot: 7 days or until infection clears up
- Flukes: 14 days or until infection clears up
- Ich: 14 days if you have a freshwater tank or 28 days if you have a saltwater tank
- Velvet: 14 days to 21 days
If you need to do another water change during the middle of treatment, then you can repeat the aforementioned steps.