Me again...More questions

[ironman58]

Hey y'all-I'm still reading and researching-Questions for TODAY:

1). Should I have a seperate tank to house new fish before adding them to my tank?

2).Can I just stick 'em in my refugium? If so, wouldn't any diseases, etc be transferred to the main tank? Or am I better off buying a 10 gallon from petsmart and keeping 'em in that?

3). IF The water's zeroed out, (ammonia 0.0-nitrate/nitride 0.0)couldn't I just acclimate 'em like I did with my freshwater guys by adding water from the tank a little at a time then releasing them into the tank?

I'll probably have more tomorrow-Sorry but I REALLY want to learn all I can and give my little bit of the ocean the best chance I can...

Gary

 

[gwhiz]

Ironman58;119193 wrote: Hey y'all-I'm still reading and researching-Questions for TODAY:

1). Should I have a seperate tank to house new fish before adding them to my tank?

2).Can I just stick 'em in my refugium? If so, wouldn't any diseases, etc be transferred to the main tank? Or am I better off buying a 10 gallon from petsmart and keeping 'em in that?

3). IF The water's zeroed out, (ammonia 0.0-nitrate/nitride 0.0)couldn't I just acclimate 'em like I did with my freshwater guys by adding water from the tank a little at a time then releasing them into the tank?

I'll probably have more tomorrow-Sorry but I REALLY want to learn all I can and give my little bit of the ocean the best chance I can...

Gary

1. Yep. A lot of people don't, but....

2. Nope. Yep, and Yep!

3. Yep. You'll need to acclimate them to water params and temp--drip acclimation is best--before putting them in the QT tank.

 

[reeftankjunkie]

I would say that it is your best interest to always quarrantine your new fish. Just buy a 10 gallon or so from Wal Mart and use a hang on filter.

You are correct, if you put them into the fuge, you run the risk of transmitting any disease it may have to the rest of your tank.

I'm sure there are many different views on acclimation, but I always do a slow drip acclimation for at least a couple of hours, that way any changes are slow and wont stress out you fish/ coral.

 

[jade76]

Its in your best intrest to quarintine them...the time it takes and the toll on your tank and inhabitants is alot more than the price of that new fish.

and yes its best to acclimate..I use the drip method..I just use airline hose and tie a knot in the end thats downhill and adjust the tension on the knot till I get the flow rate I want. i usually acclimate my fish for about an hour and a half...but Im sure others may argue with a different time frame.

 

[xyzpdq0121]

As everyone else has said: YES, QT your fish... (And corals) I made a article a while back that outlines how to set up a QT tank (among the other text). You can find it http://www.atlantareefclub.org/wiki/Ich">here</a> and look about 6-7 paragraphs down where it starts talking about QT set ups. You need a HOB filter, a heater, a small pump, and a small tank (about 1/4 to 1/5 the size of your normal tank.). A light is optional (except for corals) and a few pieces of PVC is nice to throw in there. Quick tip, if you keep your filter pads for your HOB filter in your fuge, they will be colonized with bacteria and make QT a bit easier on you and the fish.

If you place in your fuge and the fish is sick, your tank WILL get it, it is all one system!

To acclimate, you do want to use the drip method. I have done it from time to time by adding some water every 15 min or so but drip is the best.. Just to be clear, NEVER put the water from the bag into your tank. Always net the fish and put him in your tank!

 

[ironman58]

Man, You guys are the best! I'll pick one up at Wal-mart-I have filters, hose and pump left over from my freshwater tank-This may be a dumb question but I should use water from the tank right???

IF I want to add fish in a few weeks or so, Should I get the fish soon??? I'm going to install the refugium this weekend and let it get settled for a week or so, then thought I'd drop by Optimum Aquarium and pick up a cleaning crew in a couple of weeks..let them go to work for a couple of weeks then adding a pair of clownfish...that'll be about 6-7 weeks after I first set the tank up-Surely it'll be cycled by then...What do y'all think???

 

[xyzpdq0121]

As long as you know the water from your tank is safe and the tank is established... then yes, use it.. It gives you an excuses to do a water change and use the waste water for something. Do not use water from the main tank that is cycling or high in ammonia, NO2 or NO3... Just to be clear. I would not siphon up all the crud if you are going to be using that water in your QT. You just want to take water from the column. If you use more then a 10 gal for QT (or have a display tank under 40 gal) then use half old water and half new water.

Ya you can get fish while you are waiting for your tank to be ready. I have kept fish in QT for a record 4 1/2 months with no problems. You want your fish in QT for about 4 weeks min. So do your time table accordingly.

One last tip, get all the fish you want in QT all at once (without overloading QT of course). The less you have to QT the happier you will be. IMHO, if you are going to loose a fish in QT, you would have lost him anyways in the display. You just have to start the min 4 week clock for all fish from when the last fish is added to QT.

 

[gwhiz]

Xyzpdq0121;119224 wrote: One last tip, get all the fish you want in QT all at once (without overloading QT of course). The less you have to QT the happier you will be. IMHO, if you are going to loose a fish in QT, you would have lost him anyways in the display. You just have to start the min 4 week clock for all fish from when the last fish is added to QT.

But--watch the water parameters in the QT tank! Feed lightly and check often. You'll be surprised how quickly ammonia, nitrites, etc. can climb in a small volume of water (ask me how I know!). You may want to get one of those ammonia buttons to hang in the QT tank as an early warning system of sorts.

 

[xyzpdq0121]

Ya... Feed very little in a QT tank. A small amount every two days or so and make sure none goes to waste. Less food waste = less ammonia. Less food eaten = less poop = less ammonia.

 

[cameron]

I buck the trend and don't QT... I buy cheap fish and don't sweat it. If you get attached to your fish or come to the point where replacing the entire fish contents is too expensive going QT is the right thing to do. However after running a cost analysis, QTing a few fish for me is more expensive counting time involved than my entire fish population. It is kinda cold to think of fish in those terms, but I think of fish as more ornamental and a hobby moreso than a pet. Some people enjoy QTing as part of the process though. I recommend at least trying it once though.