Ruby Red Draonget QT Size?!?

[Dark_Knightt]

So I would like to add a small female ruby red dragonet to my 20g DT. I originally wanted a mandarin but we all know what people think of those in small tanks. SO I decided to try a ruby red dragonet. Same species, looks alike, swimming pattern is very similar, and sadly, feeding is the same XD. But no worries, I have a plan.
My friend at the LFS i shop at said he would personally ween a mandarin onto prepared and frozen foods.
1. I would visit the LFS and ask him to ween the fish onto prepared/frozen foods.
2. Buy lots of pods and phyto, as well as necessary equipement for a QT. (What size? Idk. Thats what this thread is for.)
3. Add pods and phyto to DT, and set up QT, in which I dose the same things.
4. Then, I play the waiting game....
Flash forward probably 5 months, and the ruby red dragonet is weened onto prepared frozen foods.
5. Bring ruby red home, add it to QT for about a month or two. (The pods now have had about 7 months or so to reproduce to a good pod population. Also, I would be using the time in QT to feed her mostly pellets and frozen mysis. )
6. Add ruby red to the DT.

So I need to know, what size quarantine tank do i need? Im planning on using a large clear storage container with some PVC pipe, sponge filter and a basic light (if needed)
#reefsquad what do you think about my sitch.?

 

[Fishurama]

I personally would not QT this type of fish. Having a pair in my tank, i would just seed your tank, let them establish for a few weeks to a month, then pick up your new friend and get it into your DT. Im sure this isn't what you want to hear, but these fish don't have a normal digestive tract(they don't have a way to store food) and need to constantly eat pods. While live food training helps, do to what i mentioned above they still need a stable pod population to snack on through out the day. They also have a very thick slime coat which is why many fish in the hobby wont eat/bug them(it's toxic) and because of the thick slime coat seem to have good immune systems.
Also if your LFS is training it for you, i assume its in it's own tank, think of that as it's QT. Fish like mandarins, leopards,copperbands,etc i wouldn't personally QT.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

I personally would not QT this type of fish. Having a pair in my tank, i would just seed your tank, let them establish for a few weeks to a month, then pick up your new friend and get it into your DT. Im sure this isn't what you want to hear, but these fish don't have a normal digestive tract(they don't have a way to store food) and need to constantly eat pods. While live food training helps, do to what i mentioned above they still need a stable pod population to snack on through out the day. They also have a very thick slime coat which is why many fish in the hobby wont eat/bug them(it's toxic) and because of the thick slime coat seem to have good immune systems.
Also if your LFS is training it for you, i assume its in it's own tank, think of that as it's QT. Fish like mandarins, leopards,copperbands,etc i wouldn't personally QT.

Oh ok. Are you sure a month will be all i need? Doesnt seem like enough. Ive also thought about spotted mandarins, but i think those are quite big for a 20g and would decimate my pod population witihn a week

 

[Fishurama]

Oh ok. Are you sure a month will be all i need? Doesnt seem like enough. Ive also thought about spotted mandarins, but i think those are quite big for a 20g and would decimate my pod population witihn a week

If you have no other pod eating fish, you will be fine. I recommend algae barn. Get two or three of the 5280 pods with phyoto and your tank in a month will be covered in them. I would do 3(buy more it works out cheaper), it's under 100 bucks and you'll get 15000+ pods and a lot of phyoto if you want to play around and try to cultivate them yourself. Otherwise just add them to the tank, add a small amount of phyoto to your tank daily and boom. But you will have to do this often if not cultivating your own as it will decimate them. So weekly batches of pods(once seeds the cheaper reef nutrition pods will work IMO) will be needed. So it's doable but expensive. They also sell mandarin feed kits. This is why i normally dont recommend doing it. It's 100 percent doable, but expensive.

https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/live-foods/copepods/5280-pods/
https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/kits-and-solutions/mandarin-feeder-kit/

I have 4 pod eating fish. My psychedelic mandarin, my scooter blenny, my ornate leopard wrasse, and my dusky wrasse. You can seed a tank in a month if you don't have other pod eating fish. Keeping it up is the expensive part in a small tank.

 

[Dark_Knightt]

If you have no other pod eating fish, you will be fine. I recommend algae barn. Get two or three of the 5280 pods with phyoto and your tank in a month will be covered in them. I would do 3(buy more it works out cheaper), it's under 100 bucks and you'll get 15000+ pods and a lot of phyoto if you want to play around and try to cultivate them yourself. Otherwise just add them to the tank, add a small amount of phyoto to your tank daily and boom. But you will have to do this often if not cultivating your own as it will decimate them. So weekly batches of pods(once seeds the cheaper reef nutrition pods will work IMO) will be needed. So it's doable but expensive. They also sell mandarin feed kits. This is why i normally dont recommend doing it. It's 100 percent doable, but expensive.

https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/live-foods/copepods/5280-pods/
https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/kits-and-solutions/mandarin-feeder-kit/

I have 4 pod eating fish. My psychedelic mandarin, my scooter blenny, my ornate leopard wrasse, and my dusky wrasse. You can seed a tank in a month if you don't have other pod eating fish. Keeping it up is the expensive part in a small tank.

Ok I think I got this covered. I‘ll definitely be cultivating some in a bucket, as well as phytoplankton. I may even go for a spotted mandarin if my pod population blows up too much

 

[Anak’s Reef]

Hi! I’m so sorry, I forgot about you asking about my mandarin in my emergency thread. Update : she’s doing fine, the white spot is completely gone and her fins are all connected again. She did decimate the pods just a bit so yeah. It’s okay, for that just add some pods and you will be good. Or I’m thinking of starting a culture.
Anyway, back to your thread. You seem prepared which is super good. Don’t be like me, and good choice with the ruby red. They are sooo pretty too :) I think ruby reds are easier to feed and accept prepared foods more. I think it’s smart to make a culture. I am researching on it too right now. for a pod culture, I don’t think you really need one. But I agree with the above response, seed your tank and then add the ruby red. And if you want a target mandarin too, I recommend a pod culture just because even though some people have success with prepared foods on their mandarin, I would just let them eat pods. Especially if you have a ruby red, and a mandarin, they will decimate your pod population so it would be good for the mandarin and ruby red to have a pod culture. Also, beware that even if the ruby red is eating prepared food, it could go back to pods as it’s main diet just because your tank has some pods. So I would seed it for that reason also. Good luck with the ruby red! Keep us posted!

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Hi! I’m so sorry, I forgot about you asking about my mandarin in my emergency thread. Update : she’s doing fine, the white spot is completely gone and her fins are all connected again. She did decimate the pods just a bit so yeah. It’s okay, for that just add some pods and you will be good. Or I’m thinking of starting a culture.
Anyway, back to your thread. You seem prepared which is super good. Don’t be like me, and good choice with the ruby red. They are sooo pretty too :) I think ruby reds are easier to feed and accept prepared foods more. I think it’s smart to make a culture. I am researching on it too right now. for a pod culture, I don’t think you really need one. But I agree with the above response, seed your tank and then add the ruby red. And if you want a target mandarin too, I recommend a pod culture just because even though some people have success with prepared foods on their mandarin, I would just let them eat pods. Especially if you have a ruby red, and a mandarin, they will decimate your pod population so it would be good for the mandarin and ruby red to have a pod culture. Also, beware that even if the ruby red is eating prepared food, it could go back to pods as it’s main diet just because your tank has some pods. So I would seed it for that reason also. Good luck with the ruby red! Keep us posted!

Great to hear that your Mando is healthy again! SO yeah ill prolly go with a ruby red just cause its simpler. If I can get a spotted mando, ill prolly go with that. If i get the ruby red, do you mean just buy the fish and pods at the same time and add them same time? Or seed, wait a month or so, and then add fish? Thx for responding btw it acc means a lot

 

[Anak’s Reef]

Great! You got it all planned out! Excellent! I meant you should seed the tank a month or so before you add the ruby red just in case it decides it doesn’t want to eat prepared or frozen anymore. Your welcome, I also appreciate your VERY Helpful replies on my emergency thread . It helped me calm down a bit as everyone was talking about a fuge and that mandarins are too hard for early tanks along with the “ammonia” problem. To this day, I still don’t know what caused it. Good luck !

 

[Dark_Knightt]

Great! You got it all planned out! Excellent! I meant you should seed the tank a month or so before you add the ruby red just in case it decides it doesn’t want to eat prepared or frozen anymore

Got it! Thanks a lot!! Good luck with your mando

 

[Anak’s Reef]

Thanks you too!