Acclimation for new shipment

[FAHADREEF]

hello
I am getting a shipment off over 100 fishes and eels and inverts crabs snails and even anemonnes from outside my contry in couple of days and tbh i dont know how to probably acclimate them i usally will dip aclimate a new fish but some people are telling me to only temp aclimate them while the light are off and put them in so idk and some people are telling me dip acclimation but like 10 fishs and 200 inverts are not easy to drip alimate tbh so idk what to i would truly appreciate it you could give me a advice or 2
thankyou

 

[nicksreefs]

Now thats a big shipment!

are you lucky shopper or opening a store!

What are they going into? - big rack system or are you filling up a massive tank?

Yes low lighting is helpful in reducing the stress on the fish drip acclimation and temp/salinity matching are key. Personally i turn it right down low rather than off and leave the light cycle running and then build up.

Generally i take the below steps:
1. fill bucket with tank water - add heater and bring to a matching temp
2. open shipping container and losely recover immediately to minimise light shock
3. clean then float the shipping bags with fish adding up to 50%+ tank water into shipping bag.
4. Transfer fish to bucket after 15 mins or so with as little of the bag water as possible
5. i then transfer to the tank from the bucket after a visual inspection check for immediate health concerns.

I tend to time adding fish not long before the normal lights out time in the tank. I'll also feed the current tank inhabitants a little treat food to make sure there all fat and lazy.

I'll also stock up on a range of different foods so they are on hand in case of picky eaters.

(this is my process and not by any means a how to! it covers some basics and my take on best practice)

Ive taken large deliveries of fish in before (freshwater) and absolutely hated it, will never do a big big shipment ever again and didnt have anywhere near 100!

Best advice i'd give you is to have it all planned out and ready with holding tanks etc etc before the fish arrive as theyll be stressed on arrival after long transit. (so have all transfer buckets and materials etc etc ready and at the same temp as the final tank.)

would need a little more info to make suggestions what you have and equipment/tanks etc - but happy to offer what help i can from my own experiences....

You're going to be busy when they arrive so stay calm and be organised and methodical and you'll be in the best possible given the circumstances!

Good luck

 

[FAHADREEF]

Now thats a big shipment!

are you lucky shopper or opening a store!

What are they going into? - big rack system or are you filling up a massive tank?

Yes low lighting is helpful in reducing the stress on the fish drip acclimation and temp/salinity matching are key. Personally i turn it right down low rather than off and leave the light cycle running and then build up.

Generally i take the below steps:
1. fill bucket with tank water - add heater and bring to a matching temp
2. open shipping container and losely recover immediately to minimise light shock
3. clean then float the shipping bags with fish adding up to 50%+ tank water into shipping bag.
4. Transfer fish to bucket after 15 mins or so with as little of the bag water as possible
5. i then transfer to the tank from the bucket after a visual inspection check for immediate health concerns.

I tend to time adding fish not long before the normal lights out time in the tank. I'll also feed the current tank inhabitants a little treat food to make sure there all fat and lazy.

I'll also stock up on a range of different foods so they are on hand in case of picky eaters.

(this is my process and not by any means a how to! it covers some basics and my take on best practice)

Ive taken large deliveries of fish in before (freshwater) and absolutely hated it, will never do a big big shipment ever again and didnt have anywhere near 100!

Best advice i'd give you is to have it all planned out and ready with holding tanks etc etc before the fish arrive as theyll be stressed on arrival after long transit. (so have all transfer buckets and materials etc etc ready and at the same temp as the final tank.)

would need a little more info to make suggestions what you have and equipment/tanks etc - but happy to offer what help i can from my own experiences....

You're going to be busy when they arrive so stay calm and be organised and methodical and you'll be in the best possible given the circumstances!

Good luck

thankyou so much for the advice i couldn't ask for more tbh.
most the fishes are small/ tiny and i have a 300 gallon tank and 2 70 gallons and 2 30 gallons to stock the tiny fish and they are all ready for the fish but i didnt quite understand the rules for it for example in step 2 and the step 3 tbh and when you say with a little of the bag water as possible if you would care to explain i would really appreciate
and yeah its like a mini business i am getting iam in to.
i know everything about saltwater and care for fishes and what to do when if i have to overstock on the first day and waters changes and a little does of copper in the tanks but not sure exactly on the aclimation cz so many people are telling me do drip and some are telling me close the lights and temp aclimate and put them stright in

 

[Billys_reef]

IMO I would just temp acclimate and if the salinity is close, then just put the fish in the tank. Drip acclimate will just cause more stress to the fish as the ammonia builds up from fish waste in the bag.

 

[FAHADREEF]

IMO I would just temp acclimate and if the salinity is close, then just put the fish in the tank. Drip acclimate will just cause more stress to the fish as the ammonia builds up from fish waste in the bag.

thankyou so much will do when they arrive and what about hermit crabs and snails do i really need aclimate or can i just throw them in

 

[Tamberav]

hello
I am getting a shipment off over 100 fishes and eels and inverts crabs snails and even anemonnes from outside my contry in couple of days and tbh i dont know how to probably acclimate them i usally will dip aclimate a new fish but some people are telling me to only temp aclimate them while the light are off and put them in so idk and some people are telling me dip acclimation but like 10 fishs and 200 inverts are not easy to drip alimate tbh so idk what to i would truly appreciate it you could give me a advice or 2
thankyou

Are they being transshipped? Because acclimating transshipped fish is a lot different.

By that I mean directly from the source like Philippines for example.

If they are from a wholesaler or regular retailer then test the bag water of the fish and match the tank or QT to the fish. Going lower is fine… it’s when you put a fish directly in higher salinity that you can have issues. Best bet is to have lots of RODI on hand to lower salinity of your QT tank to match the fish in the bags. You can then raise the salinity if needed over time depending what they arrive at.

No need to drip a fish if salinity they are going into matches or is lower (unless transshipped, then everything changes).

Inverts are trickier and should be dripped unless they are hardier snails and hermits. Drip things like starfish, shrimp, urchins, etc. I would drip them into the display with a reef salinity. Not a QT.

 

[FAHADREEF]

Are they being transshipped? Because acclimating transshipped fish is a lot different.

By that I mean directly from the source like Philippines for example.

If they are from a wholesaler or regular retailer then test the bag water of the fish and match the tank or QT to the fish. Going lower is fine… it’s when you put a fish directly in higher salinity that you can have issues. Best bet is to have lots of RODI on hand to lower salinity of your QT tank to match the fish in the bags. You can then raise the salinity if needed over time depending what they arrive at.

Inverts are trickier and should be dripped unless they are hardier snails and hermits. Drip things like starfish, shrimp, urchins, etc. I would drip them into the display with a reef salinity. Not a QT.

yes i am receiving them from a exporter outside my contry i have tanks where i will be adding the fishes to are at 1.020 salinity

 

[Tamberav]

yes i am receiving them from a exporter outside my contry i have tanks where i will be adding the fishes to are at 1.020 salinity

Will they have been in the bag over 24 hours?

 

[FAHADREEF]

Will they have been in the bag over 24 hours?

yes

 

[Tamberav]

yes

pH and ammonia can become a real concern when you start to hit 40+ hours.

There is an linked article here by sustainable aquatics and some discussion.

TSM seems to have good luck float and release but other companies reported huge loses.

One vender mentioned making the pH 7 since it’s neutral.

How To - Acclimate from transhippers/overseas

This is from Sustainable Aquatics. It explains how to acclimate livestock that has been in transit for 40-60 hours, especially with regards to pH adjustment. Attached as a PDF @Vendors - Fish

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