Proper QTing Method, and supplies

[OCCFan023]

Well Ill soon be able to setup my QT tank and finally be able to look at some fish to buy and feel safe about treating them and keeping them safe. I have been reading up on the QT process outlined in the NMA but I had some questions about the process from what you guys do and everything.


First off this is the list of what I will use in the QT:


-5 Gallon tank
-50 watt visi-therm heater
-inside the tank thermometer
-bio-wheel mini (Thanks Camaro)
-No lighting
-PVC pipes for cover
- small peice of live rock to establish the tank.

Is this list enough, I am going to be ordering some stuff from petsmart so if I need anything else Ill order it now before I start the setup.


I just have a few questions about setup process and other things.


1) Do you ugys use live rock in the tank to establish the bacteria in the filter, or do you not use it in the QT. If I do use it should I leave it in or just take it out?

2) Do you guys keep a QT tank constantly running even if theres nothing in it?

3) Filter Inserts These are the filter inserts I was going yo buy, but I was thinking will the carbon effect treatment if I ever have to use the QT for medications. Would I be better off just finding a foam block and using that for the filter?

4) Is it ok to have no light on the tank?

5) This is my main question for you guys: Do you when you QT your fish do anything speical to them, like add medication FOR PRECAUTION? In the NMA it suggested doing a low salinity QT but this seems sorda drastic. Do you guys use your QT just to watch the fish and make sure he doesnt bring anything into the tank, or do you do something like low salinity or add medications?

Sorry for the list of questions, I will probably have more when I think of them, but Ill leave it at this so I dont overwhelm you with too many Qs.

 

[FroggyFox]

Im very interested to hear camaro and wayne etc's responses to this post...

Obviously being new I can't answer...and I dont have any thing to QT but with a bigger tank in the plans I am trying to think ahead and would like to set one up.

I can say that my lfs keeps their salinity relatively low, lower for new arrivals I think, the clown goby was brand new and they had him at at like 1.019...and then the firefish I just got his was 1.022...so I was thinking they did that as a form of QT?

 

[Henry22]

1.19 is still too high to effectivly kill the parasites, it needs to be like 1.11 or something. Im my QT tank i have a sponge filter, heater, and thats it. I put the sponge filter in my display for a week for it to culture the bacteria and then placed it in the QT. Carbon does take out meds if im not mistaken and meds take up alot of oxygen so its good to have a airpump hooked up to the sponge filter. I plan on dont treating for anything and if the need arrives treat for whatever i see.

 

[Henry22]

ohh, i put in a piece of live rock for a week and 1/2 and now its back in my display. But when you QT take out the rock because if a fish has ich or something it takes the rock a month or longer for the parasites like ich to die off. Their life cycle if with out a host i think is a month or longer. Hope this helps and correct me if im wrong

 

[tammielynz9881]

my qt tank is a 20gal (i would not go much under a 10 gal tank tho) cause if i have to put a fish in there i dont want him crowded, i have basically a bare tank with "artificial" anenome and lg piece of pvc tube for hiding area, so that i can wash it if i need to. i do have a light in there so that they know night from day, and so i can physically see the fish. Plus if they are going to be in there for upto 3 weeks or more, i want them to feel "at home". I used water from my main tank to set it up so i never added live rock. and i have a sponge filter i used in my main tank to make sure its broken in as well, i run it all the time so its ready at the drop of a hat. i also have a heater.
after i use it i completely tear it down and re set it up with new water from when i do my water change and filter media and wash down any of my "artificial" stuff.

 

[1979camaro]

1) I use a filter with a foam insert and just let it float in the sump of my display until i need it. if the QT has to be medicated i throw away the foam once the meds are in it...if the QT does not have to be medicated i re-use the foam

2) i only set it up when i need it

3) carbon will pull out any meds. i would just use a piece of filter foam

4) no light will be fine

5) I do not use any sort of preemptive strike...i just medicate if necessary (which it hasn't been yet)

 

[OCCFan023]

Thanks for all the help guys, much appreciated.

With the new light shed upon the subject I have some new ideas and questions.


1) I will use the foam insert and just float it in my display before I put it in the QT instead of using live rock. How long would it take to be adequitley seeded with bacteria?

2) Its not a problem when Im setting up the qt tank now, but if I needed to set the QT tank up for a sick fish, and didnt have a foam insert ready to go, is there a faster way to get the tank ready?

3) How long od you QT your fish, Im planning on 3 weeks of regualr salinity water with no medications, just going to use it to watch the fish.

 

[1979camaro]

1) I'm not really sure...a few days?

2) I just leave the foam floating permanently...of course i suppose you don't have a sump so that won't look so hot in your display. sooooooooooo i guess in that case i would leave LR in it and run it

3) a month roughly

 

[OCCFan023]

Ok sounds good, Im just going to have to think of a plan to do this. I wont be able to leave the tank setup unless its in a back room which is pitch black... But if I tear it down and a fish gets sick it will be useless because it will take like 3 days before I have an established filter in the tank, so the fish would be in a tank with just water movement...


If it takes two days in my display tank to become seeded would a sick fish have any chnace in the tank with just the filter for water movement? Or would the params build up quickly and kill the fish?


This is my last question (hopefully )

If I bought a 3 pound peice of live rock and just put it in the QT to establish the tank, and then took it out once the filter had bacteria and put the live rock back in my display could I do this over and over? or would the rock loose its abilty to cycle the QT. I dont want to leave the rock in the tank with a sick fish becasue then I wont be able to put it back in my tank and Id have to keep the tank setup 24/7 which I dont know if I can do that.

 

[dbacksrat]

the rock will have a good amount of this alledged bacteria to help break down ammonia and nitrates produced by a small fish in the QT

 

[OCCFan023]

do you think a peice of live rock could colonize a foam filter?

 

[1979camaro]

should be able to

 

[OCCFan023]

ok so heres the plan.


I am thinking of going to my lfs soon to buy some water so Im going to purchase another 5 gallon jug ( I need another anyway) and while Im there look at the live rock and see if theres a good peice that would fit into the display but I could take out for the qt, also I will pick up the foam blocks for the filter. If I dont find any peices of rock that are useable Ill just put it off until I buy a fish (becasue Ill just float the foam in the tank to colonize it.)


Ill keep ya posted on how it goes and when I am able to buy a fish

 

[1979camaro]

we will await updates

 

[wayne]

Sorry, been consulting in Holland a couple of days.
1Yes I use some very cheap live rock. It helps with the very sensitive feeders like dwarf angels and others that may well refuse to touch flake or floating food. Be prepared to trash it though - mine is just algae covered limestone really. If you need to use copper, it has to come out.
2. No , because it takes up space in the basement, and my son likes to play with the water.
3. I just use foam in an internal power filter (Fluval 4 I think)
4 Daylight is good, but you need enough light to be able to look at the fish. I have astonishly cheap IKEA lighting on a timer for my QT in the othersise unlit basement.
5. I use a 20 long to QT in, but only half fill it - that way if I need to treat for ich, I can just fill it up, and I have straightaway gone to hyposalinity. You can do this over a 18 - 24 hour timeframe and both the fish and filter bacteria will be fine. Raising salinity takes much longer.
I would say buy a 10 instead of a 5. 5 is a little small (though I have used one), you can put the same kit on a 10, and have an easier life.

 

[RockingCricket]

I would say buy a 10 instead of a 5. 5 is a little small (though I have used one), you can put the same kit on a 10, and have an easier life.

I don't know how big a chain of stores they have, but PetExtreme has 10 gal tanks for $10.