how vital is a QT tank

[Jetman357]

I run a small kessil or chinese led on my coral quarantine to keep them happy, fish treatment tank just uses natural lighting in the room it is in

QT fish for 2 weeks and treat with preventative meds of my choice and if ich is present then 6-8 weeks with 2 weeks of copper treatment to begin

hang on back biowheel is what I use in both quarantines, in the fish quarantine remove carbon and media and just run a sponge you will need to rely on water changes during this period. leaving it in sump would be ideal if breaking down and setting up quarantine

I got tired of monitoring a quarantine 24/7 when not in use and just break down, put in garage and set up as needed (10g quarantine tank)

I also quarantine inverts and crabs and shrimp in coral tank which is my general observation tank, fish tank used for treating with meds and corals are dipped outside of the tank (coral quarantine tank is assumed sterile, but nothing goes into display tank from it. Fish go into their own quarantine and then the display, and corals are dipped again before going into display from quarantine tank)

Thanks for the advice.

I only have one QT tank. It sounds like you are running two. Could you not just run one QT tank for fish and corals or inverts? I guess if you wanted to QT them at the same time you would need two.

 

[Texco]

Thanks for the advice.

I only have one QT tank. It sounds like you are running two. Could you not just run one QT tank for fish and corals or inverts? I guess if you wanted to QT them at the same time you would need two.

Yes I run two tanks. My fish QT is 5 gallons and only has an airstone and HOB filter, no light- just gets light from the room and coral quarantine light next to it. I believe one opinion I believe in is that low light reduces stress, and quarantine is stressful enough for them.

If you only want one QT tank, I recommend a simple fish QT. All coral I would thoroughly dip, I personally use a combination of different products to ensure I am wiping out as many hitchhikers as possible during a dip. The pods and bugs and critters in my display are then the ones I choose and deliberately introduce to my ecosystem. (most fish medications that are effective are NOT reef safe so you would NOT want to QT them together is my opinion)

When dipping coral and QT'ing fish I got from reef stock this weekend my girlfriend asks "why didn't we always do this its so easy and look at all the stuff coming off them" to which I replied "because I was a lazy idiot and never imagined things could get that bad"

I love my fish and I have killed too many from not using a proper QT and allowing my display to become ridden with parasites and disease. What I was doing I now realize was being unfair to the environment and these beautiful animals.

 

[szavoda]

I am not sure if there would be interest in this, but I would be happy to write a concise but informative article on QT. We always have questions on here (good questions) about QT practices, and I would like to share what I think are some of the best practices. I think this could be a collaborative effort from others that have more experience in different area than I may have.

This would include:

1. Implementing the TTM (Tank Transfer Method)
2. Using prophylactics in QT (PraziPro, Cloroqhine Phosphate, etc)
3. ICH - What it is and is not.
4. Marine Velvet overview
5. SPS QT
6. Invert QT
7. "Live" rock QT
8. Infected Display Tank - tips and procedures

Can we "sticky" posts?

 

[FishTV]

I am not sure if there would be interest in this, but I would be happy to write a concise but informative article on QT. We always have questions on here (good questions) about QT practices, and I would like to share what I think are some of the best practices. I think this could be a collaborative effort from others that have more experience in different area than I may have.

This would include:

1. Implementing the TTM (Tank Transfer Method)
2. Using prophylactics in QT (PraziPro, Cloroqhine Phosphate, etc)
3. ICH - What it is and is not.
4. Marine Velvet overview
5. SPS QT
6. Invert QT
7. "Live" rock QT
8. Infected Display Tank - tips and procedures

Can we "sticky" posts?

Information is always welcome here! Any Board Member can sticky a post. If you write it, I'll stick it! For now, write it up in a new thread here, http://www.marinecolorado.org/forum/...ng/expert-info We may move it later, but we can get it started for now.

 

[Balz3352]

I definitely think writeups would be fantastic. Separate ones for each topic. Think this would be invaluable information.

 

[daskibum]

I would agree on any startup write-up being helpful. At least something covering a very basic starting point that is effective with additional ideas/theories after the basics. Reading up on places like reef central usually ends in a cluster of info and for someone starting out its a bit overwhelming.

 

[NanoNexx]

Quarantining your fish, and corals is always a great idea, but not all of us have room to setup a tank that we don't actually use. Since you're only running a nano system, it's hard to justify setting up another system, when you're display is only gonna house 1-5 fish. I'd recommend just dipping any corals your receive, and enjoy your fish as they are.