Quarantine tank HELPPPP!!!

[SteveNMegz]

Hey guys
we were just wondering how do you set up a quarantine tank?? We currently have a 10 gallon tank filled with water from our water change on our month old tank. IS this all we need
-water
-heat
-light
??????????????????????????????????

[orbit]

i think all u need is a heater, and hob filter

light is not needed

[got_rice76]

i used water from the main tank after water change (which you did)
I got a small heater and small hang on filter that I just run carbon in it. That is it. When i change water in my main tank, i use that water to replace the water in the quarantine tank.

no light, it gets some light from the morning sun or from the main tank =) you do need some light just to check the fish out and make sure it disease free in the quarantine period, don't need to turn it on everyday


don't you just hate the waiting.....suck to wait, but definitely needed.

[SteveNMegz]

We dont need any power heads??
dont the fish breathe through the powerheads????

[old salty]

I have a fish in QT at this very moment, so I'll run it down for you.

Light - nothing special, just a normal fluorescent bulb on a five dollar timer.

Heater - My house temp is 66 degrees, so a heater is necessary.

Thermometer - Make sure the heater is set properly; do not rely on the thermostat built into the heater.

PVC "T" fittings - I put two of these in the tank. The fish likes to swim inside if it feels threatened (like when I do water changes.)

HOB filter - these are usually used for fresh water tanks. I do not put any media in them; it's strictly used for water circulation. I should probably put a small powerhead in there for backup.

Bio Filter - I keep a small bag of Eheim bio-filter media in my sump. When the time comes to QT a fish, this serves as a bio-filter which keeps ammonia to a minimum.

pH test kit - As I put the fish into hypo, the pH has a tendency to drop. I keep an eye on it and adjust as necessary.

Refractometer - If you put fish into hypo, you need to accurately measure the salinity or SG of the water.

Nori clip - not necessary but it comes with the packages of nori I get at the LFS. This is good for leaving some nori for the fish to pick on between meals. Remove any uneaten food.

Patience - the most important aspect. I have a beautiful Tomini tang in QT. Sure I would love to add it to the display right now, but this fish must first be parasite free. Do not rush the QT procedure. I typically use 4 weeks at 1.009 then 10 days to bring the SG back up to the tank level of 1.026.

[SteveNMegz]

We didn't know fish could live at such low salinty (1.009)
So during the QT process, what should we be looking for?

[snorvich]

Careful with hyposalinity, some fish do not tolerate it well. In any case transitioning salinity must be done very slowly in either direction.

[stingythingy45]

If you don't have a refractor............don't do hypo.

[tmz]

Pretty much everything stated is going on in my 29g qt right now with a chevron tang,royal gramma and a foxface and a glodhead goby residing there. I use the hob filter and fill the cartiges with crushed coral kept in my sump I have also added some seeded lava rock for additional denitrification and rsting places along wiht some pvc.

I do not do hyposalinity prophylacticly. I do run this tank at low salinity of 1.017 to make it easier for the fish. This also makes acclaimation easier since the shipping water is often 1.015. I'll use the final week of a 4 week symptom free quarantine periond to raise the salinity to the level of the dispaly (1.025>) I keep copper sulfate, a copper test kit, prazi pro and formalin handy in case treatment is necessary. I also keep asmmo lock handy in case of an ammonia spike. I test ammonia every few days( no need to test for nitrite or nitrate since it is not harmful in a marine environment) and use an ammonia alert badge.

[old salty]

Originally posted by SteveNMegz
We didn't know fish could live at such low salinty (1.009)
So during the QT process, what should we be looking for?

Daily, I check pH, SG, and ammonia. The biggest thing you want to watch for is ammonia. This will kill your fish faster than anything else and is easily preventable. A magnifying glass may be handy to check for physical signs of disease. As stated, some fish and most corals and inverts do not tolerate hypo, so read up on this a bit if you are not comfortable with this procedure
.
As you can probably tell, QT is not a display and cannot be forgotten for days on end. There have been some excellent points made by everyone on this thread.