fw quarantine tank

[rob28]

So as many of you may know i have a 55gal tank that is currently undergoing high water temp treatment for ich do to not using a quarantine tank method to introducing new fish.

I have a 5 gal with an hob filter and a small airstone and a 15 watt light in the fixture.
my questions are as follows:
1) is this a good enough tank for the purpose
2) do i need to cycle the tank
3) can i have the tank up and running all the time even if fish are not currently quarantined
4) if sick fish are quarantined, what do i do to tank after treatment

i did do a quick search on this but did not find much so if there is a sticky somewhere please point it out.
thanks

 

[Alaris]

So as many of you may know i have a 55gal tank that is currently undergoing high water temp treatment for ich do to not using a quarantine tank method to introducing new fish.

I have a 5 gal with an hob filter and a small airstone and a 15 watt light in the fixture.
my questions are as follows:
1) is this a good enough tank for the purpose
2) do i need to cycle the tank
3) can i have the tank up and running all the time even if fish are not currently quarantined
4) if sick fish are quarantined, what do i do to tank after treatment

i did do a quick search on this but did not find much so if there is a sticky somewhere please point it out.
thanks

1) A 5gal will suffice depending on how many fish you get at a time. I suggest also getting a heater.
2) Yes the tank needs to be cycled. You can either run the 5g filter on the 55g for a couple weeks, or take filter media from the 55g and add it to the 5g's filter.
3) Yes you can have it running. If there are no fish in it, I suggest running the 5g filter on your 55g to keep the bacteria alive in the filter and then add it to the 5g before you add fish.
4) The treatment is going to kill your bacteria. So go ahead and take the tank apart and clean it and everything with bleach or vinegar to disinfect it.

For a QT tank, you'll want to qt the fish for at least 4 weeks, if not 6-8 weeks. So the tank must be cycled, filtered, aerated, and heated. As for will the tank be big enough for your fish, remember that for a QT tank you can consider the current size of the fish instead of the adult size of the fish.

 

[rob28]

thanks

 

[Jnam]

A agree with alaris. I just keep the "filter pad" in with my 55's HOB filter between uses to insta cycle the new tank. My QT is 2.5 gallons which works well for me. its also bare bottom and only a few fake plants and a small tunnel for the hiders... And believe Alaris when he says that treatments will kill the bacteria I treated a Molly for Fin Rot with Tea Tree Oil and it destroyed the biological filter and caused a mini cycle after I moved the Molly out PWC are a HUGE must when treating ill fish with any medication (follow the directions of the medication though if it tells you not to). Good luck and its nice to see someone else jumping on the QT tank wagon.

 

[rob28]

will putting the filter back into the 55gal after treatment hurt the 55 at all?

 

[rob28]

Good luck and its nice to see someone else jumping on the QT tank wagon.

well, with as much trouble as it is treating my 55gal. it just makes sence to use a qt.

 

[gheitman]

It would probably be a good idea to disinfect the filter before putting it back on your main tank. You will also want to remove any carbon from the filter before using it in your QT.

 

[Purrbox]

will putting the filter back into the 55gal after treatment hurt the 55 at all?

If the the filter is going to the same aquarium as the fish and you didn't have to treat for disease, then there is no reason not to simply move it over. On the other hand if you did have to treat for disease, then I would go ahead and disinfect the filter first.

 

[rob28]

if the the filter is going to the same aquarium as the fish and you didn't have to treat for disease, then there is no reason not to simply move it over. On the other hand if you did have to treat for disease, then i would go ahead and disinfect the filter first.

thanks