Does a short term QT need to be cycled?

[Mr. Limpet]

My two Black Moors need to go thru a 5 - 7 day medical treatment. Rather than tearing up my main tank, I'm going to do the treatment in a 20gal QT.

My question is, do I need to fully cycle the QT for that short of a duration? FYI: The treatment consists of PWC nearly every day.

Also, my water pH always stays at 7.6. For the treatment I'm supposed to have a pH of 7 to 7.1, will the drastict change in pH be hard on them to the point of hurting them?

TIA

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[ejaramillo01]

I would say ideally yes,

Specially because you are going to treat them, you don't want to add, to whatever they have, more stress due to ammonia spikes.

 

[brando600rr]

I would say yes to as to keep any stress down. I just run a small hob filter on my main tank that can be transform to qt tank any time and is cycle from main thank after any treat ment its cleans then replaced in main tank for next time. Don't know about the ph. What treatment u using?

 

[herp_mommy]

If there's water changes every day, I would say no. This is just from my personal experience, I have never cycled a QT tank when I know I'll be doing water changes every day. But if you want, you can take media from your established filter and add it to the filter on the 20gal. boom, cycled. The pH shouldn't be too much of a concern, but yuo can place the fish in a bucket and gradually add small amounts of the new water to the bucket to help the pH transition go more smoothly

 

[BigJim]

Ideally yes, in this case probably not with the caveat that you're doing large PWCs daily and keeping an eye on the ammonia levels.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

I would say ideally yes,

Specially because you are going to treat them, you don't want to add, to whatever they have, more stress due to ammonia spikes.

Ideally, yes you are correct. Since all readings are zero and I will be testing daily with my API FW kit, I'll be monitoring it carefully.

I would say yes to as to keep any stress down. I just run a small hob filter on my main tank that can be transform to qt tank any time and is cycle from main thank after any treat ment its cleans then replaced in main tank for next time. Don't know about the ph. What treatment u using?

I have 2 oversized filters on my main tank and transferred the sponge from my AC 50 to the filter on my QT tank, but after 12 hrs still not seeing any Ammo, NO2, or NO3 in QT. I seeded the tank with an ornament, food and added a bubbler too. I'm going take some of the gravel, put into a nylon bag and add it to the QT.

The treatment consists of:
Heavy dosing with salt, adding Furan-2 and dropping pH from my norm of 7.6 to 7.0 over a 5 to 7 day period.

If there's water changes every day, I would say no. This is just from my personal experience, I have never cycled a QT tank when I know I'll be doing water changes every day. But if you want, you can take media from your established filter and add it to the filter on the 20gal. boom, cycled. The pH shouldn't be too much of a concern, but yuo can place the fish in a bucket and gradually add small amounts of the new water to the bucket to help the pH transition go more smoothly

Excellent suggestion on a transition bucket. Thanks herp mommy! I did a media transfer, see above.

Ideally yes, in this case probably not with the caveat that you're doing large PWCs daily and keeping an eye on the ammonia levels.

That's what I felt too. Given that I have to conduct the treatment 2 weeks earlier than expected due to them (well 1 of them) looking worse in the last couple of days.

 

[AdamHorton]

Even with doing PWCs every day, and even with your HOB sponge, I think you should consider testing for ammonia and nitrite maybe twice a day, at least towards the beginning of the treatment.

 

[Mr. Limpet]

Even with doing PWCs every day, and even with your HOB sponge, I think you should consider testing for ammonia and nitrite maybe twice a day, at least towards the beginning of the treatment.

+1 on doubling up on testing.

Thank you all for your help/advice.

I'll start a thread on how it goes once I get it going.

Sent from my Epic 4G

 

[Mr. Limpet]

+1 on doubling up on testing.

Thank you all for your help/advice.

I'll start a thread on how it goes once I get it going.

Sent from my Epic 4G

Here's a link to the treatment thread:

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f17/treatment-for-bacterial-fungus-thread-144054.html

Sent from my Epic 4G