Adding New Tank Mates - QT

[EBR]

Happy New Year!  

 

I've got a 9 year old 125g tank that, other than fighting a bit of algae issue right now, is pretty solid with good water parameters.  It's home to a couple of clowns and damsels, and is honestly looking a bit empty, or so I was told by several folks that visited over the holidays -- OK, so I can take a hint.  I haven't added any fish to this system in many years, and have long-since gotten rid of any extra equipment that could be used as a QT, and am now trying to figure out how to approach this.

 

So, what is the current thinking on QT?  Not so much whether to go through it, but HOW.  I'm still combing through the many posts here on this site, but I'm having a tough time determining what is really needed to get by while also not stressing the critters out.  I clearly don't rotate livestock very often, and whatever I put in place will be temporary.  

 

Any advice or good references to get me in the right direction?

Thanks.

Matt

 

[LCDRDATA]

I know that some of our LFSs will quarantine new purchases for you, although how much that costs will vary. 

[WheresTheReef]

First, only trust yourself to quarantine your livestock! Even if a vendor does this for you, a QT is good to monitor the health of new arrivals and you get to know each other. They also get acclimated to your feedings w/o competing and possibly getting picked on by other fish. 

 

You just need a simple setup... tank, basic lighting, heater, filter and some water movement. Nothing fancy.  I recommend taking some time to cycle the QT. Nothing sucks worse IMO then having to perform daily water changes to control ammonia. You've waited this long so do it "the right way."

 

You don't need any live rock, just some PVC fittings for hiding places.

[treesprite]

It helps to make a distinction between a quarantine tank which is simply that, and a treatment tank in which medication will be used.

 

For a QT only tank, I put a little liverock in QT tanks to help maintain parameters and to provide pods to fish that might benefit from them, then use a powerhead for circulation, and if it will be an extended QT, use an HOB skimmer. You don't need special light, just has to be good enough to observe the fish carefully.

 

For a treatment tank, instead of a powerhead and skimmer, I use an HOB filter with pieces of filter media that have been seasoned with bacteria (just need to keep the media in the sump of the main tank). Medication tends to kill the bacteria, so every day or two I throw out the media and put in another piece that has been in the main tank's sump waiting it's turn. The light and temp should be adjusted based on what the illness is, since it can affect the life cycles of parasites.

 

Most new fish I QT for a minimum of 2 weeks, without medication, and sometimes it ends up being more than a month. Scaleless fish don't often do well in QT and don't tend to get the parasites other fish do, so they are the exception; sometimes I watch them in QT a couple days, but at least half the time I just put them in the main tank right away.

Edited January 2, 2016 by treesprite

[tom39]

I agree 100% with keeping it simple and not making it complicated. My setup is a 40B, small powerhead, heater, HOB filter, net, test strips, egg-crate cover, meds and some black drain line fittings. I think that that the whole setup might have cost me $125.

 

I don't keep it running all the time so to be ready in an emergency; for my biological filtration I keep 1-2 Scotch-Brite pads in my sump. The bacterial will populate on the pads and once the tank is filled I either hang it in the tank on a nori clip or put it in my HOB filter.

 

For some other ideas or methods, here is a great thread on Reef Central that you may want to scan through.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2195588&highlight=setting+up+a+quarantine+tank

 

Good Luck and Happy Reefing

Tom

[EBR]

Thanks, Everyone -- That really helps wrap my brain around it all.  What would be a minimum size tank, though?  Tom, I see you have a 40g, would a 20L be too small?  Considering that I'd like to QT a few at a time (thinking about the Chromis or Banggais), would that be too small and stress them out even if for a couple of weeks?

Thanks.

Matt

[WheresTheReef]

20L fine for smaller fish. I would do min 1 month. Here's good read http://reef2reef.com/threads/how-to-quarantine.189815/

Edited January 5, 2016 by WheresTheReef

[tom39]

If that is what you have a 20L would work. I have a 40b because that's what I had. BTW, I believe that petco is running their $1 a gallon sale now, so if you wanted, now would be a good time to buy a tank if you don't already have one.

But IMO, even if you end up having to quarantine larger fish in a smaller tank, a small QT is better than no QT.

 

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