Lets see those QT tanks

[mrhasan]

Well I woke up to two dead chromis due to another (possibly 3rd till now!) ich breakdown. Don't really know what happened since everyone was fine and eating like pigs and I fed them what many would say "extremely" generously. Even I used occasional selcon. Really ****ed me off this time.

Anyway, this boxing day, I am getting QT tank setup (and the ATI dimmable fixture ). Would love to get some idea about how reefers run QT. Permanent qt or temporary qt? I will probably run permanent since I will keep on adding fishes every two months till the tank is stocked.

Worked really hard to get the tank to the point of being "sterile of ich" and I was kinda of happy when I saw no ich outbreak when my 1st clownfish was got to the point of no eating and died. Added a 2nd clownfish which was healthy and was in the LFS for a really long time and it was perfectly all right but I started noticing white spots on chromis and the trigger (initially through they were just dusts because of the places they sleep) and now the outbreak.

[BuschWacker]

i started a post similar to this last week. didnt really go very far, only got two replies. hopefully you can do better. i would like to do the exact same thing. look for a good deal on boxing day for something smaller, that i can keep running in a back room until its needed. would also like to know the basics that need to be in it. tagging along.

[mrhasan]

Originally Posted by BuschWacker

i started a post similar to this last week. didnt really go very far, only got two replies. hopefully you can do better. i would like to do the exact same thing. look for a good deal on boxing day for something smaller, that i can keep running in a back room until its needed. would also like to know the basics that need to be in it. tagging along.

Don't worry; I am good at grabbing people's attention

Problem is I don't have the required space for something big but can still try to accommodate something.

[darkreef]

Ekkk! I forgot to dip (ran out) my frags will my fish get it ?!

[mrhasan]

Originally Posted by darkreef

Ekkk! I forgot to dip (ran out) my frags will my fish get it ?!

Don't think that would be an issue.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by mrhasan

Don't think that would be an issue.

I wouldn't be too sure about that. I have read of others that got ich in their tanks, when they hadn't added any new fish for a long time, and it happened after adding corals.

To be safe, I double dip my corals, first with the dip solution and then rinse again in tank water before adding to my display tank. If for some reason, I have to keep the old plug or rock with the new frag, then I also QT it for a week or so, and then double dip a second time before adding to my DT. The other reason, of course, is to try and prevent AEFW from getting into my DT. So far, so good, but AEFW (and other pests) are actually my greatest fear, not Ich, when it comes to corals.

[BuschWacker]

Originally Posted by mrhasan

Don't worry; I am good at grabbing people's attention

Problem is I don't have the required space for something big but can still try to accommodate something.

Umm ya, aahh, I never noticed. I was thinking of getting one of those starter kits that come with lights, filters, heaters, etc. should be able to find one for under a hundred bucks.

[BackPackHunter]

When I finally get my tank set up, I'm going to set up a 75g or 90g QT tank
always running, its going to have 2 dividers, that are removable,
(going to silicone 1/2" acrylic strips in the aquarium to the bottom and back and front, so i can slide in different peaces of drilled out acrylic 3/8 thick to divide ... will have different peaces with different size holes depending on the size of fish being QT) and it will let me divide my tank into 1/3 or 1/2... going to be a Bare Bottom, with lid, thats running a 4 bulb Compact Fluorescent for light(because I saved it from a old aquarium), Im going to run 2 Fluval 306 canisters, with hang on skimmer. I will have fake rock in the tank for them to hind in and be happy while they are getting med's if any, (then removed and bleached) after im happy there, I will be removing all meds with carbon, then adding live rock that I will be keeping in my sump, will also be keeping spare foam filters in the sump for bio filtering,

Can anyone add to that? maybe I've over looked something?

I think its cheep insurance to have a good QT tank

The size of the QT tank should reflect on the size of the display tank, and the fish you intend on QT,to keep stress low

My above tank will let me QT 1-3, or a group of schooling fish depending on what fish is on the list to be added next...

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by BackPackHunter

When I finally get my tank set up, I'm going to set up a 75g or 90g QT tank

That is pretty large. Depends on what size fish you want to QT, I guess. Mine is only 30g, but I usually only buy a few fish at a time, and no really large ones. It is not intended as a hospital tank to transfer fish out of my DT, but strictly as a prevention against disease for new fish.

I also have a few cut pieces of 3" PVC pipes for them to hide in. They seem to like that.

Not sure why you want a 2nd canister filter. Or a skimmer. Because you will be doing some major water changes (with hypo), it never gets a chance to build up a lot of nutrients for the length of the QT period.

And I wouldn't be using any meds, except Prazipro. Keeping it simple, but effective, is what matters.

[Reef Pilot]

Quarantine for new fish: After a few newbie hard lessons in the beginning, I set up a QT for new fish. Initially, this tank was connected as a refugium to my sump, and then disconnected when in use as a QT. I use the hyposalinity routine, and have had great success with acclimating new fish including some more finicky Butterfly fish such as Copperbands and Pearlscales. The entire QT process usually takes 2 or 3 months for me. Here is a good article on the benefits of hypo.
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007/6/fish

I have always had a permanent QT with a canister filter, and I now keep some live rock in there as well. It is still multi purpose, and I QT some corals in there too. And I use it as an overflow frag tank, when I run out of room in my DT frag rack. I use water from my DT water changes, so no salt costs.

Pretty simple set-up actually. But the key is permanent. Most failures happen because of new set-ups (no stable nitrogen cycle), and the misuse of copper or other chemicals. I have had 100% success rate, when I used hypo. You can also use Prazipro at the beginning before you lower the salinity if you suspect internal parasites. Then after a few days, start the RODI water changes to lower the salinity to 1.009. And to raise, just use the DT tank water from water changes.