Setting up QT tank for ich

Willbiker

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Hi all

I set up a 650l tank, cycled it, added CUC and 2 small clowns. All was great until I added live stock from a tank which was closing down. I also purchased a fish from my LFS the same day. I did not quarantine and now some fish are showing ich. Big mistake and I feel stupid

Anyway lesson learnt. I'm going to set up a qt tank, move all the fish into it, dose with copper with close monitoring and leave my DT to sit for 72 days to starve the parasite. But I have a few questions about setting up a QT tank.

1) I have some marine pure from my sump which I plan to put in the QT to help with bio filtration. Will this and a powerhead be sufficient or do I need to buy a HOB filter?

2) I have a yellow tang, an aggressive vampire tang, a red star, a large clown and a pink spotted goby. What size tank should I go for? Is a 10g ok? Should I partition the aggressive tang using egg crate to prevent any trouble?

3) How can I ensure the starfish has suitable food in a new/ clean tank. The fish will hoover up all food surely...

4) How do I keep the goby happy with no sand to sift? Just a hiding place using pvc bends? I do have some unused sand in a bag..should I add a small amount in a corner?

5) Should I add small amounts of food to my DT to sustain the CUC and to avoid losing nitrifying bactria? Do I leave my socks in and skimmer on?

6) Where do you have your QT set up? I'd like to put it in my living room with a light so I can still enjoy the fish but I dont want to cause extra stress in the smaller environment.

Thanks in advance for the advice.
 
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Willbiker

Willbiker

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I should probably add the fish sizes for the tank size question. All 4 fish are approx 3 to 3.5 inches. Star fish is approx 2.5 inches. What size tank should I go for?

Thanks
 

reefer333_

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Do not put star fish with copper, it will kill the starfish. Starfish is an invert, so you can keep it in display tank.

I would suggest at least a 29 gallon standard tank for QT, 10 g is too small for tangs and will stress out the fish further. I have kept gobys in QT without any sand, and they were ok without it temporarily. But if you want sand, you can put some sand into a plastic container and put it into QT. I would suggest whatever u use in QT with copper like marine pure block/sand, I wouldn't put it back to Display. Have plenty of surface agitation in QT. In my option, you can get away without HOB filter in QT, but others may think differently, besides, nice to have one HOB filter in hand for future use and they are cheap. I would suggest you keep feeding the display so that when you put back all the fishes afterward at the same time, it won't have an ammonia spike.
 
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Willbiker

Willbiker

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Great! Starfish stays in the dt. Yes I was not going to put the marine pure back in the DT. It would remain as media for my QT for all future use. Thanks for the tank recommendation. I assume you are referring to 29 US gallons. Us Brits decided to change the size of the gallon for some reason :D so a 120 litre should do the job.

Thanks
 

reefer333_

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yeah, US gal, (30inches long) :) :) that was minimum suggestion, but if you are buying a new tank for QT, you might want to think about future QT usage. Since you have 650 L display, you probably want more tang/bigger fish in the future, so if you can do bigger tank like 40 gal for QT (36 inches long), you might have a better usage in the future for QT. I use 40 gal for my QT and tangs seem much happier than 20 g (24inches long) which I also use for smaller fish QT.
 

AcroNem

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I agree. No Inverts In quarantine, you may have some biological media if you choose to but want to avoid porous items as much as possible or any places parasites may get trapped out of the water column and contact with medication. You may use a HOB if you'd like, but a good air stone or one on each side of the system will also work.
 
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Willbiker

Willbiker

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Great thanks, I will look for a 40g. So I should avoid using the marine pure? Surely the copper will kill any trapped parasites?
 

AcroNem

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Great thanks, I will look for a 40g. So I should avoid using the marine pure? Surely the copper will kill any trapped parasites?

You can use it, you will need some surface area for biological filtration. The issue that can arise with substrates or porous materials in quarantine is cysts/parasites not being in contact with aerobic areas and medication and taking longer to die, or not dying in the case of cysts. So something like sand can harbor cysts for some time and will become active once exposed. It's an unlikely scenario but something I try to make people aware of as they plan.
 

AbjectMaelstroM

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+1 for a 40g breeder equivalent, especially with the tangs.

You can add a small dish of sand for the goby, but not needed. I recently QTd a diamond goby for 6 weeks with no sand he was fine.

I wouldn't add any rock to the QT as it can absorb meds, especially copper. If you need media for bacteria, I would use foam pad and soak with biospira or Dr tims. Just a HOB with heater and maybe a small powerhead. You don't need a light but it would make it easier to see signs of nasties. I would also consider painting/covering 3 of 4 sides of the tank with dark blue or black color. Good for contrast and creates an "safer" environment for the fish (being in a cave). Add some pvc fittings to hide in.

If doing one tank then you'll need 30 days with copper, then maybe follow with 2 rounds of general cure or prazi+metro for things like flukes if you suspect the new fish to have then. Otherwise at least 2 weeks of observation post copper.

Also, get yourself a seachem ammonia badge as copper will foul up your test kits. Hanna Copper HR is also pretty much a must if using copper.
 

reefer333_

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In my opinion, marine pure block is fine, others may think differently.

But here is another option for you, this is what I do, instead of seeding from the display (that I can no longer use it back in DT), I just throw in a bottle of Biospira with HOB filter, and it seems to work well for me, I don't see any ammonia spike. You can use seachem ammonia alert to monitor if you are worried.

Great thanks, I will look for a 40g. So I should avoid using the marine pure? Surely the copper will kill any trapped parasites?
 
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Willbiker

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Thanks for all the info ! I shall find a 40g or larger and will research more thoroughly before I start the copper dosing.
 
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Willbiker

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There are so many 33g tanks for sale near me! Do you think this will be too small. I feel I need to act quickly as I believe the clown I have is about to drop off. He has ich bad :( 33g

I would only likely be quarentining a single fish at a time after this ich fest is over. 2 at most.
 

AbjectMaelstroM

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There are so many 33g tanks for sale near me! Do you think this will be too small. I feel I need to act quickly as I believe the clown I have is about to drop off. He has ich bad :( 33g

I would only likely be quarentining a single fish at a time after this ich fest is over. 2 at most.

How long is it?
 

AcroNem

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How long have you been seeing spots on them before the clown died? Crypto usually doesn't move that fast and has larger spots, velvet will spread very quickly and have much smaller spots, almost a dusted look.
 
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Willbiker

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I noticed about 2 days ago. It was covered but very fine...like a dust. The clown was being picked on by my vampire tang so this probably stressed it more.
 

AcroNem

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I noticed about 2 days ago. It was covered but very fine...like a dust. The clown was being picked on by my vampire tang so this probably stressed it more.

If you had several fish go from normal to covered and 1 death in 2 days I'm going to say that it isn't Crypto you're dealing with but velvet, do you have any pictures of the fish?
 
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Willbiker

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Even worse! I'm sorry but I dont have a pic. Either way I'm going to remove the remaining fish, treat with copper and leave the DT for 80 days. Can you recommend a copper treatment? Thanks
 
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Willbiker

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Hi again. I've managed to pick up an 60 gallon tank and will paint the sides and back black.

One thing I see mixed opinions on is whether to fill the tank with DT water or mix up some clean water? I'm also a bit confused about using sponges or media. If I choose to take some ceramic media or marine pure from my sump, I understand I shouldnt never put it back in the sump after copper treatment but am I safe to continue using it for quarantine purposes of fish? Or should media be disposed of after each QT session?
 
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