After I cycle the QT tank.....

[Meaile]

If any of you have read my other threads you know that I had somewhat of a fish disaster. The last two fish I brought home had Ich and through the heat method I've had two deaths and some very unhappy looking fish. All the remaining fish are fine now, no sign of stress or disease, numbers are good, but I know I could have avoided the whole thing if I had just had a QT tank.

I decided to buy a new heater and upgrade the filter on the 29 gal to an AquaClear 200, put the old filter on a 10 gal, get a little heater and make this my QT tank.

My questions are.... After the tank has cycled (I plan to go fishless) do I keep fish in it until a fish gets sick or I bring in a new one?

What do I do with the healthy fish in the 10 gal while I re-hab/acclimate?

Would a male Betta be suited for a 10 gal?

 

[greenmaji]

I would get a sponge filter to keep in the main tank that can be brought over to the new QT tank when fish are put in it.. When you have a outbreak, wich hopefully wont happen, its good to have a hospital tank if you are going to need to use ani-biotics they will kill the bacteria that processes the waste so the use of a bio-filter is pretty much useless, mechanical filtration is still needed... water changes is what will be needed for removal of the ammonia..

 

[Meaile]

Hmmm....I'm new so bear with me...

I should keep the 10 (hospital/qt tank) empty and when I need to use it, take the sponge filter that I have added to the 29, and move it into the 10. I then need to manually remove the ammonia with water changes.....

That makes sense. When I buy new fish and won't be using meds will this sponge filter supply enough bio?

 

[gheitman]

You understand completely. The sponge filter, despite of or because of its simplicity, is an excellent biological filter. This is due to the extremely large surface area that it gives to bacteria. As long as the filter is rated for 10 gallons or more you will be fine.

I keep a 10 gallon quarantine/hospital tank empty and when I need it I just fill the tank with water and move a sponge over from an established tank.

 

[Meaile]

Excellent! Thanks so much! This will be very easy and sponge filters are inexpensive. Any brand reccomendations? I will be buying from Big Al's.

 

[gheitman]

I like the Azoo sponge filters myself because they are easy to change the sponges while still in the tank. I tried the Hydro sponges first and I had to remove the hood completely from the tank to get at the sponge and take it off of the filter. I bought mine from Drs. Foster & Smith. I don't think that Big Al's carries that brand.

 

[Meaile]

I already have a big order ready to place with Big Al's so I'll have to go with the Hydro but I don't mind having to take it out to remove the sponge. I don't work and have plenty of time. Thank you both so much for the advice

 

[gheitman]

Glad to be of assistance and good luck with your quarantine tank. Some other pointers are that a quarantine/hospital tank should have a bare bottom (i.e. no substrate) so that it is easier to clean, that you should have some plastic decorations to make the fish more comfortable in their surroundings and that the equipment you use with the tank (i.e. siphon, net, etc.) should not be used with any other tanks so that you don't risk spreading any illnesses.

 

[Meaile]

Substrate in the hospital tank was something I was wondering about.....I imagine I should keep it bare bottom with new fish as well incase they are sick. Should I rinse the sponges in the fish water I change weekly or run it under tap water (A fish site reccomended under the tap water but that doesn't sound right to me....)?

 

[gheitman]

If you rinse the sponge under untreated tap water it will kill the bacteria that converts fish waste to nitrates. I always gently squeeze my sponges once or twice in water I had just removed from the tank.

 

[Zezmo]

I keep a half dozen or so Ghost Shrimp in my QT/Hospital tank. I also toss the stem plant and java moss clippings from my main tank in there for a while before getting rid of them.
I used to put some of the water from my main tank in there as part of the water change, but now I use a DIY python to drain my water, so I just refill the QT tank with the same water mix I toss in the main tank, ferts and all. The idea is that I want to keep the water very "similar" in both tanks. Also, I try and keep them at the same temperature.

 

[greenmaji]

Zezmo...
ferts in the QT/Sick tank.. how does that work out.. how high is the NO3 and PO4 in the tank?

 

[Zezmo]

In my QT tank are many plant clippings and a large ball of Java moss are planted in there too. As for light, I have 2x 15watt Flourescents (3wpg). The amount of plants changes as I maintain my main tank. So I expect that actual "need" for ferts varies. Tonight, for example, I just pulled a bunch of plants out to take to a local auction tonight. The tank also has a few varieties of plants that currently don't have a place in the main tank. As for animals, it has a Baby Swordtail, my Mystery Snails that are in QT (see my post under planted section), as well as the MTS I have been pulling out of the main tank. So since it has its own "bio-system" the tank stays fairly "normal".

 

[TomK2]

You could also take some biomedia from your main tanks filter when you put something in the QT. I don't want anything more running in my display tank, but I have plenty of biomedia in my canister filters to use. All I have to do is crack one of the canister open, take what I need, add fresh biomedia to the canister and restart the canister. With two canisters on one tank, there is so much surplus media the main tank can always spare some to give to the QT.

 

[afishoutofh2o]

Thanks for such an interesting question Meaile!
The discussion here has been so helpful and interesting.
Cheers!

 

[Meaile]

Sure! Thanks for all the information! i'm sure it will save many fishes!

One more question....is it possicle to hook up a power head to the sponge filter? Would a Aqua Clear 30 be too big in a 10 gal?