perpetual white spot problem

[Toadfish]

Ever since I set up my tank 2 years ago I have been battling a perpetual white spot problem with my fish. I am reluctant to call it ich b/c it may not be c. irritans(I have gone as far as to remove the fish for 1 month). Every morning I wake up, my fish have white spots on their fins primairily. Then 3 hours later the spots are gone. I run a 9w UV sterlizer in my sump. Water parameters are perfect. I don't understand why I cannot fix this problem. Should my UV be in the main system rather than the sump? Even if I take the fish out and medicate them it will return when I place them back into the tank. Plus taking them out would mean disturbing my entire system. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Geoff]

is this a reef tank? do you plan on making it a reef tank in the future? if the answer is no then you could dose the tank with copper. it does sound like ich to me though. it takes a long time to kill off the entire life cycle of the little buggers. i actually thought it was closer to 2 months, 60days, needed to kill the entire life cycle of the parasite.

<a href="http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=18506&highlight=ich">he re</a> is a great thread on the subject.

G~

[Toadfish]

It's a full blown reef system. 3-8 spots per fish daily. Only a few fish get it, my7 Sargassum, Atlantic Blue, and 1 or 2 spots on my hippo's. The Atlantic blue seems to be perpetuating it because he always has the most number of spots. It seems as though it has leveled off meaning that it isn't increasing in numbers. Should I place my UV in the main system rather than the sump?

[Geoff]

if at all possible, i would place the UV on the main tank. it would get more of the little buggers. it would also have a better chance of getting the free swimmers before they get to the fish.

G~

[Toadfish]

That was my gut feeling. Thanks for helping solidify my decision.