Getting the first fish

[dodgersfan25]

my tank just finished cycling about 5 days ago (nitrites, ammonia at 0) and i performed my first water change. well now i'm ready to add the fish. i need more info about quarantine tanks and the acclimation process. can anyone give some advice?.

 

[tmcpeek]

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=17 This article is what I used and it works great

 

[Atari]

My advice is to get a cleanup crew so you have something to look at for the next month while you have a fish in QT.

 

[dodgersfan25]

it didn't work, it says there's an error on the page or something?

 

[dodgersfan25]

do u have to put a cleanup crew in the QT? or are they more hardy to changes in their surroundings?

 

[revhtree]

No you do not have to qt inverts. Just make sure that the water in the bags, do not pour into your tank.

Also PLEASE make sure you QT. I, and many, many others have paid the price for not using a qt. I want make that mistake again.

Congrats on your new tank!! What were you thinking about adding first as far as fish?

 

[Atari]

You don't need to QT them because they aren't very likely to be carrying parasites, but you do need to acclimate them slowly as inverts are very sensitive to changes in water chemistry.

Here's the working link from above:

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showquestion.php?faq=2&fldAuto=17

 

[dodgersfan25]

thanks a lot guys! as far as fish, i'm still deciding. any suggestions? i plan to make it a reef tank.

 

[dodgersfan25]

i dont want to kill anything so i want to make sure im doing this right. for acclimitating the snails and shrimp, I:
1) float the bag in the main tank for 30 min
2) empty everything in the bag into a 5 gallon bucket
3) slowly drip water from the tank through siphoning for 4 hours
4) net the inverts and place them into the main tank

is this correct?

 

[dustybrannum]

would you necessarily have to quarantine your first fish? unless you were going to buy another fish in the next month or so right?

 

[Atari]

Yes you should still QT because if the fish shows signs of infection then you will need to be able to treat it accordingly. You can't treat in the main tank.

 

[ClamKnuckle]

you should QT your first fish too because you need to observe the fish for signs of disease and parasites. Most people wouldn't recommend treating the main tank with anything, so this way if your first fish comes down with something it's in the QT and you can deal with it with out worrying about adverse effects on your main tank

 

[ClamKnuckle]

maybe next time i should check the second page before posting a reply!