If you are going to QT corals against fish diseases, then dig in for the long haul. 70 days is no joke in a small tank. Keep your parameters solid and you will likely be testing every day. My guess is that you do not do it for long... it is just so hard that most people do not. One of the hardest things is that you cannot add corals for 70 days either. If you are going to qt inverts, then it is easy to feed hermits, but snails will require some film algae for best results.
I have a coral QT, but it is 110-120 gallons and it takes care of it's self for the most part. However, I only use this for coral pests and not fish pests, so I do not have to wait 70-80 days. Most of the time, it just exists with the lights off and nothing in it. I add ammonium to the top off water to keep the bio cycle going.
If you end up not making it, order some live rock from the ocean. These will come with microfauna and microbes and stuff that will eat fish pathogens in your tank. There is little chance of an ich tomont making it in my substrate whereas people who set up with bare bottom, dry/dead rock and the like just make an ideal breeding ground for fish parasites. This is not eradication, but I have not seen a white spot on my fish in many, many years and I do not quarantine them - just isolate until they are eating well and not skittish anymore. This is what people mean when they say that fish do better in a mature tanks.
I have a coral QT, but it is 110-120 gallons and it takes care of it's self for the most part. However, I only use this for coral pests and not fish pests, so I do not have to wait 70-80 days. Most of the time, it just exists with the lights off and nothing in it. I add ammonium to the top off water to keep the bio cycle going.
If you end up not making it, order some live rock from the ocean. These will come with microfauna and microbes and stuff that will eat fish pathogens in your tank. There is little chance of an ich tomont making it in my substrate whereas people who set up with bare bottom, dry/dead rock and the like just make an ideal breeding ground for fish parasites. This is not eradication, but I have not seen a white spot on my fish in many, many years and I do not quarantine them - just isolate until they are eating well and not skittish anymore. This is what people mean when they say that fish do better in a mature tanks.