QT question

[Baldy]

Hey all,

Not sure if i should even really be asking this but here goes.

Ive got a 75g reef tank thats got ich. i added a kole tang as well as a solar fairy wrasse lately. everything was ok until the kole had an outbreak. it went through the first cycle and dropped off the fish entirely. i pretty much knew that it was going to come back in a week or so, and now here i am, and its coming back.

I have a large kole tang, medium foxface, flame hawkfish, 2 clowns, solar fairy wrasse, and matted filefish. and i only have a 29g QT.

should i risk 8 weeks with all fish in QT, or try letting the ich run its course? i dont have the ability to set up a larger QT atm unfortunately.

[Aquattro]

Unless you have a fully functioning bio filter that can handle all those fish in 29g, I'd try the garlic route and let them fight it off. Even with a filter, I'd probably not put them all in that small of a tank.

[Baldy]

That's what I'm worried about

[daniella3d]

If you really want to get rid of the ick, you could put them in quarantine tank in hyposalinity but you would need to put a lot of cured liverock. This would be your biofilter and avoid ammonia during the hyposalinity treatment. Hypo does not kill the biofilter in the liverock, so there is no cycle really. I did this often and no problem. Liverock must be fully cured and free of coral of course. The type of liverock that we keep in a sump is often ideal.

Catching the fish is usually the problem. During quarantine, only a very small light is needed, no need to have a strong light.

[Baldy]

I thought the dieoff on the live rock would put the system through a cycle?

[Aquattro]

A 29g tank full of rock isn't going to leave a lot of room for all those fish. I just see that as a disaster in the making.

[George]

Can you borrow a bigger tank as your QT? The 29 g is too small for all your fish. It's not the end of the world if the QT is not cycled. I do that all the time. The only thing that you need to manage is ammonia in QT and that is very easy to deal with. Regular water change and prime will manage ammonia problem. An ammonia badge will help with monitoring ammonia level.
Worse comes to worst, I will put all fish in your 29g if no ways to get a bigger tank. Use bare tank don't put any extra in there (no rocks etc). I will monitor ammonia closely and have prepared salt water on hand to do water change. Treat ich in QT with your favor method. Fallow your DT for 8+ weeks. (however there are new strains of ich that last more than 8 weeks without host. Some people propose to fallow for 11+ weeks now)
You should get rid of the ich in your DT. Don't let it run its course. It will come back again as your experience. You may not be lucky in the next wave of attack.

[Baldy]

So if i were to buy a bigger tank for a QT, i have 2 choices. either buy a 180g now which is what i was planning on moving up to, or buy a 55g or close to for a dedicated QT. I want something that is big enough to QT tangs in the future. maybe not full size, but would a 55g or another 75g be big enough to QT larger tangs for 8 weeks? im planning for the future here, and a 180 is a lot of salt to be doing regular water changes on as a QT

[chi]

Tangs are notorious for ich outbreaks. Qt the tangs. And when you reintroduce it back to maindisplay. Use utmost caution and the best acclimation procedures (minimal stress, low light, drip acclimate . Etc etc). Borrow a uv sterilizer or purchase one or increase water change frequency. They help in addition to regular water changes. Hopefully it can fight off the ich.
The ich lifecycle is really a hit or a miss. Some people have 99.9% success rate for 8 weeks of fallow tank. But some with only ten days of fallow. Then there are the poor bastards who waits for that 99.9% 8 week fallow period and still get hit with ich. Then there are people who gives them garlic and vitamins and they appear to gain "immunity". Ich is always going to be there wih the garlic and vit method. Its as us living along with the common cold. No biggie
But in my experience. Garlic. Fallow for two weeks and uv with 10% water change twice a week rid of it entirely.

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[Baldy]

I checked with bog als and I can get a 55 for a decent price. Have a canister filter and heater, light, ECT already so I think on going to get that and qt all the fish and do hypo. Let the tank go fallow for.12 weeks just to be damn sure. I i just have to decide if a 55 is big enough or if it's worth the extra 125$ to go with a 90. No 75s in stock unfortunately.