Coral in a diseased tank? Should I still buy?

Aiden22!

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So I was super excited that my lfs was selling medium sized zoa colonies for a decent price but upon inspection before purchasing I noticed a fish in the same tank as the colony had marine ich. I showed the owner and they promptly removed all the fish in the tank to quarantine but I was still wondering if I purchased the colony would there be any dormant ich on the rock? How long would I have to quarantine the colony to ensure there would be nothing contaminating my display? Thanks!
 

EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal

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So I was super excited that my lfs was selling medium sized zoa colonies for a decent price but upon inspection before purchasing I noticed a fish in the same tank as the colony had marine ich. I showed the owner and they promptly removed all the fish in the tank to quarantine but I was still wondering if I purchased the colony would there be any dormant ich on the rock? How long would I have to quarantine the colony to ensure there would be nothing contaminating my display? Thanks!
To be sure, you'd need to quarantine in a fishless system for 76 days. I think some people run fallow tanks at higher temps for shorter time, but I don't know how well the coral would do under those conditions
 

lion king

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You would need to qt those corals for the time of recommended fallow for ick, can't exactly remember right now. Protazoan diseases can hitchhike on rocks, corals, macro, inverts. Proper methods there should be no fish that have not been properly qt'd in those systems. Sadly today most do not follow this protocol.
 

polyppal

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To be sure, you'd need to quarantine in a fishless system for 76 days. I think some people run fallow tanks at higher temps for shorter time, but I don't know how well the coral would do under those conditions
^+1.

FWIW I don’t QT coral, I just dip and have never had a fish disease introduction. That being said, I have never purchased coral from somewhere I saw disease with my own eyes either.

Unless it’s a fantastic deal for some rare zoa, I don’t see why it’d be worth the potential trouble if you identified disease in their system
 
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Aiden22!

Aiden22!

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You would need to qt those corals for the time of recommended fallow for ick, can't exactly remember right now. Protazoan diseases can hitchhike on rocks, corals, macro, inverts. Proper methods there should be no fish that have not been properly qt'd in those systems. Sadly today most do not follow this protocol.
Sounds like a lot of unnecessary trouble for a simple matter that could have been avoided. I appreciate your response. Thank you for the help.
 
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Aiden22!

Aiden22!

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^+1.

FWIW I don’t QT coral, I just dip and have never had a fish disease introduction. That being said, I have never purchased coral from somewhere I saw disease with my own eyes either.

Unless it’s a fantastic deal for some rare zoa, I don’t see why it’d be worth the potential trouble if you identified disease in their system
I completely agree and it was an assortment of unique zoas in a colony the size of my fist for $70 so nothing too special.
 

polyppal

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I completely agree and it was an assortment of unique zoas in a colony the size of my fist for $70 so nothing too special.
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damsels are not mean

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tbh if one system has ich at a store I think it's reasonable to consider all the systems risky. If you want to commit to being ich free you would want to either QT yourself or find a coral seller who does not have fish in their systems.
 
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