Video - How to sterilize a Quarantine Tank

[biga1106]

You probably didn't.. but it could have been introduced another way. Did you add any corals or inverts without first QT'ing in a fishless tank for 76 days? Are you sure you never cross contaminated between QT and display... example: anything wet including your hands, arms, nets, spoon or turkey baster. If any of those went from one tank to another and had even one drop of water on it, it could have contaminated the display.

Another possibility is Flukes. Did you treat with prazipro while in QT? Two doses spaced 5-7 days apart?

Yes I did treat with prazipro as well, two rounds. Now that you mentioned It, my friend did give me a sea hare for the algae I was having and I didn't QT it.

 

[CarCrazy]

Great article. Very informative. Some great info on the comments.

 

[Bob Escher]

Thanks another great write up and great info

 

[biga1106]

I did !! I did one round in the beginning before Copper and one at the end of the copper treatment. Now that I think if it my friend did give me a sea hare for some algae issues I was having and I didn't QT it .... and the scratching started after I put it in. Melypr1985

 

[svogun]

Why not dry all the material with paper towel after disinfecting and then allow it to air dry? Seems like that would help things dry faster and for us here in the NE it isnt practical to clean outside all the time?

 

[melypr1985]

Why not dry all the material with paper towel after disinfecting and then allow it to air dry? Seems like that would help things dry faster and for us here in the NE it isnt practical to clean outside all the time?

You don't have to do it outside. A lot of people clean their QT at the sink or in a tub. It's easier for me to do it outside, but that's not the only way. The MOST important part of the process is the drying. If you want to be sure that no pathogens or bacteriums can survive, then using bleach or vinegar before drying is the best practice.

 

[melypr1985]

I did !! I did one round in the beginning before Copper and one at the end of the copper treatment. Now that I think if it my friend did give me a sea hare for some algae issues I was having and I didn't QT it .... and the scratching started after I put it in. Melypr1985

Either could be the problem. Prazi needs to be done 5-7 days apart with the doses. If you wait 30 days to do the second round, the eggs left by the flukes that were present have already hatched, laid, hatched and laid again. Prazi doesn't kill the eggs so the second round 5-7 days later is needed to kill the newly hatched babies before they can lay their own eggs.

the sea hare could be to blame but ick can't encyst on the soft body of the hare. A quick rinse in water that would be disposed of, would take care of any potential problems from parasites.

 

[Empress]

Why not dry all the material with paper towel after disinfecting and then allow it to air dry? Seems like that would help things dry faster and for us here in the NE it isnt practical to clean outside all the time?

You can use a fan to dry quicker.

 

[ltrace]

Thank for such informative article. 2 questions;
1. In a 10gal QT how many fish can you QT at one time?
2. If I am seeding my sponges in DT, because I'm on a canister, and one of the fish inhabitants develop ich, velvet, flukes or whatever. If I'm understanding the process right, I cannot use the sponge in my DT. Is that correct? If that is the case how do I get a seeded sponge in the QT to quarantine all the fish?

 

[melypr1985]

1. In a 10gal QT how many fish can you QT at one time?

This depends on the size and type of the fish in question. For example: a pair of clowns and a yellow watchman goby would be fine.

2. If I am seeding my sponges in DT, because I'm on a canister, and one of the fish inhabitants develop ich, velvet, flukes or whatever. If I'm understanding the process right, I cannot use the sponge in my DT. Is that correct? If that is the case how do I get a seeded sponge in the QT to quarantine all the fish?

You would only use seeded sponges from your display if you are sure that it is disease free. If you have QT'd everything and still have something pop up in the display, then no, you wouldn't want to use those sponges. You could soak a sponge in a bowl with a bacteria-in-a-bottle product like Seed or Dr. Tims for an hour before using it and all the liquid in the bowl in the QT's powerfilter.

 

[biga1106]

Either could be the problem. Prazi needs to be done 5-7 days apart with the doses. If you wait 30 days to do the second round, the eggs left by the flukes that were present have already hatched, laid, hatched and laid again. Prazi doesn't kill the eggs so the second round 5-7 days later is needed to kill the newly hatched babies before they can lay their own eggs.

the sea hare could be to blame but ick can't encyst on the soft body of the hare. A quick rinse in water that would be disposed of, would take care of any potential problems from parasites.

O ok i didn't know it had to be done back to back for the eggs !!! Thank you for now on I'll do both rounds before Copper. For what I've read if it is fluke they die quickly, they can't live long from that disease is that correct ?? Sorry for all the questions. Lol.

 

[biga1106]

Melypr1985

 

[melypr1985]

I wanted to quarantine a hippo tang, black-barred convict goby and lamarck or a spotted breast angel. 3 fish total
Is the product "Stability" by Seachem good seed a sponge for QT?

If all are very small, you might be able to get away with that. Yes, Stability is a good product. It takes some time for it to become "live" though, so it's something to keep in mind and be prepared to do frequent water changes for the first week or two.

O ok i didn't know it had to be done back to back for the eggs !!! Thank you for now on I'll do both rounds before Copper. For what I've read if it is fluke they die quickly, they can't live long from that disease is that correct ?? Sorry for all the questions. Lol.

A fish can die quickly from flukes, that doesn't mean they will. You can dose prazi in your display now, since it's fairly reef-safe. You may see a problem with your feather dusters or a die-off of bristleworms.. though I have yet to see anybody report such problems. The only issue I saw when I did it, was that my montis faded in color for a while before bouncing back.

 

[melypr1985]

Melypr1985

I'm watching this thread so I'll get an alert any time you respond to it. Though, if you need to tag me or anybody else on R2R you just place the @ in front of their name. Like so @melypr1985 and that person will get an alert.

 

[JP79]

That is true about the seeded sponges but your display tank shouldn't have anything. If it dose I wouldn't be adding any new fish. The other part of QT fish you should only do one at a time. What if one fish thatbis sick and 2 others are healthy. Now you'll have 3 sick fish. You'll also have to get them all heathy at the time. You also have to remember to do those water changes during the qt time. The other musts are never use the same net to scoop the fish from a treated tank to the display and make sure you do a really good drip acclamation from qt to display if you ever treat it with copper. As I always say. Reefing is about going slow and doing it right.

 

[Empress]

That is true about the seeded sponges but your display tank shouldn't have anything. If it dose I wouldn't be adding any new fish. The other part of QT fish you should only do one at a time. What if one fish thatbis sick and 2 others are healthy. Now you'll have 3 sick fish. You'll also have to get them all heathy at the time. You also have to remember to do those water changes during the qt time. The other musts are never use the same net to scoop the fish from a treated tank to the display and make sure you do a really good drip acclamation from qt to display if you ever treat it with copper. As I always say. Reefing is about going slow and doing it right.

If you match the salinity in QT to match the salinity in the DT, you won't need to drip acclimate. Ditto for the temperature.

 

[melypr1985]

If you match the salinity in QT to match the salinity in the DT, you won't need to drip acclimate. Ditto for the temperature.

+1

 

[ltrace]

Thank you for your response. I'm not sure if I mentioned that I started the QT process after having fish in my DT already. Going forward I want to QT all fish from here on. Your are right, my DT should be ok because right now none of the fish in there are not showing any signs of illness. I believe that I keep a healthy tank but with that being said should be concern with maybe any type of illness being suppress in any fish in the DT because of a fairly healthy tank and the fish in the DT were never QT? I just don't want to get new fish, get them QT'd, place in the DT and at some time in the future an illness rear its ugly head in the DT.

 

[melypr1985]

I just don't want to get new fish, get them QT'd, place in the DT and at some time in the future an illness rear its ugly head in the DT.

This is very possible. You just can't know what's in there unless you take the fish out or QT and leave the tank fallow for 76 days. That's the protocol for a reset and to be sure there's nothing in the tank lurking. This is especially important if you plan to get delicate species like Acanthurus

 

[ltrace]

Is it possible to get a freshwater Black Molly, QT it and then acclimated it to saltwater and the salinity of the DT? Then put is in the DT to see if there is anything ill disease lurking in the DT? Reason why the Molly because it can be acclimated to saltwater and it's cheap.