Quarantine tank vs fresh water dip

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

amaxwell

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Jan 10, 2014
Messages
11
Newer to the salt water tank world. The tank we bought was already established with fish. We were looking to add more and I read about a quarantine tank and fresh water dip. What's the difference: personal preferences On this? How long do you usually qt them and is it in a mini tank set up? Thanks
 
A quarantine tank is usually 10 to 20 gallons to prevent stress and disease in the new fish. It also lets it build up its strength and a feeding scedule. Fresh water dips IMO arent very good for the fish , if you dont put it in the q tank after. Id do both, but have an established q tank.
 
So for the qt tank it has the heater and pump set up in it as we'll? Do you put sand or rock in it or just water? Also after each fish if they seem in good health do u change the water? And do you keep the salinity the same as your tank or slightly hypo?
 
Mine is a 10 gallon with an over the back filter. Make sure to take out the carbon because it soaks up the meds. I leave the sponge in my sump when there is no fish there to soak up bacteria. I have a heater on mine, no powerhead , because my filter id rated for a 35 gallon tank. No live rock or sand, just a pvc pipe for a hiding place. I have led lights on mine (this was my old freshwater tank, i just kept the lights for it) btw, petco sells 10 gallon tanks for $15 i think. Any other questions , just ask!

Heres a good article on quarantining fish

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/blog/quarantining-marine-fish-made-simple
 
I change the water once a week once a fish is in there at the minimum, depends on fish and medications in use. I keep salinity and ph as close as possible in the 2 tanks, 1.023 sg and 8.2 ph.
 
QT tank is the best way to go. I use a 14 gallon with just a couple pvc pipes, and an hob filter. I keep a sponge for the filter in my DT filter to keep it seeded. Then when I am not using the QT tank, I can take it down and store it so it doesnt have to be set up all the time.
As far as time goes, it is recommended to QT for at least 4 weeks, but I think everyone has different opinions on that. SOme say more, some say less if healthy. I QT'd my clowns for 4 weeks with no problems, but my tailspot blenny would not eat any prepared foods while in QT. I aggressively QT'd him for just over 2 weeks with meds, and then had to move him or he would have died of starvation. Luckily, he has shown no signs of illness since his move, immediately fattened up, and now takes prepared foods right along side the clowns (lil booger). I am definitely not out of the clear yet, but hopefully treating him proactively helped.
I would say investing in a QT tank is by far the best choice you can make. I really debated on this when I first set up my tank, but after watching a friend who does not QT loose new fish over and over due to ich, my choice was easy.
 
QT tank should be a smaller tank (10-30g, dependig on # of different fators)
usually a hob by itself will work (no carbon, just floss, maybe a ph for bigger qt tanks)
buy a sheet of filter floss, cut a piece that fits in your hob filter, then place it in your main tank to seed it ( you'd want to disgard the floss after completing qt, then simply repeat steps)
no sand, no live rock, nothing more than pvc piping
monitor atleast daily, if not 2-3 times. keep extensive track of any bumps, spots, redness, discoloration, changes in behavior etc.
try to qt 3-4 weeks. at that point, usually any dormant sickness that is in the fish will appear.
although i dont necessarily disagree with fw dips (it has its uses) i fell its prob best left for the expert hobbyists. you really have to be able to read a fish and know when/how long a particular fish needs in fw before it starts becoming a negative issue. the beauty of qt tanks are that you dont have to treat for anything when first starting the qt. (unless you want to proactively treat, but im peronally against it). also it really gives the fish a good solid chance to calm down and establish a decent routine of eating and he can gradually adjust to the new life.
 
Now my local fish store said for fowlr tanks to keep the salinity between 1.02 and 1.022. It helps keep the parasites away and that what the store keeps theirs at. Do you recommend this? I no itS usually around 1.024-1.026. I haven't read to keep it lower anywhere else. Also so crabs starfish and shrimp need to be qt as well
 
Inverts shouldnt be quarantined due to the copper content in the water. Inverts also need salinity at 1.023-1.025 . Most fish can tolerate 1.020, just its not the most comfortable thing,..
 
Parasite will still live at 1.020. They only start dying at 1.010 or lower. Also almost all fish except sharks , rays and seahorses can deal with hyposalinity which is just below 1.010. Just to add even at that low salinity it actually doesn't even bother the fish in the least bit .

Sent from my HTC PH39100 using Aquarium Advice mobile app
 
Thank you so much for the feedback! Qt tank will be started ASAP!
 
dont use permanent hypo on your DT. thats not a cure, thats just a suppressive method. if there were diseases in the water, they would just lay there dormant until, eventually, the salinity crept up enough to allow it to take off. also you dont really need to qt inverts because the majority of the most common diseases do not affect inverts, nor do they usually carry them. as previously stated, a QT tank doesnt not need to have any form of medication at the beginning to be effective. If, at any point along the QT timeframe, you recognize and diagnose an illness, then treat accordingly. Yes you can proactively treat, but 1)youd have to treat broad spectrum, or even blindly. which the broader the treatment, usually the less effective it is against specific illnesses. and 2) you are subjecting the fish to a potentially uncomfortable treatment that very possibly dont need to.
 
Back
Top Bottom