Does everyone quarantine everything?

[kcinminni]

I'd like to know how everyone acclimates their new inhabitants. Do you quarantine everything you get--fish and corals alike? Only fish? Neither? It seems like putting them in a quarantine tank (with none of the water stability or rock/hiding places that they like), then moving them again would be more stressful than just putting them into the main tank to start with. I understand that this is supposed to protect the rest of your inhabitants and allow you to treat only the new one. I just wonder what everyone thinks and does.

 

[Jawbone]

Originally posted by Me
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr> Oh and yes your supposed to Q everything that may be alive
<hr></blockquote>

I forgot to tell you that I dont follow this advice. I just know that your supposed to quarantine everything.

 

[Anonymous]

I have yet to q a coral, but I do q fish. In my next tank, all animals will go through q, as will rock.

 

[Jawbone]

Hey KC Hows the Wiggin fish doing

Oh and yes your supposed to Q everything that may be alive

 

[danmhippo]

I will take my fifth.

 

[wreckscuba]

for me it depends on where the item comes from . i have two lfs that i dont Q anything.then there are some that i do becouse they get it in and sell it wright away.

 

[SteveP]

I "Q" all fish. I rarely q corals though. I'll give them and the rocks they come on a good examination, stripping just about everything off it. I also factor in where it came from, how long it was at its previous "home," and anything that I might have found on it.

Steve
8{I

 

[Anonymous]

I quarantine all fish using hyposalinity for 1 month. Corals and invertrbrates - no but I do keep them in the q-tank overnight and carefully observe for things like flatworms. Absolutely nothing goes from the LSF to my tanks the same day.

 

[kcinminni]

RI am amazed at how many people indicated what "should" be done, but didn't say that they actually do it! Hmmm. . . :wink:

Jawbone--the wiggin' fish drove me nuts. I finally tore down all my rock to catch her and give her back to the LFS--she was killing all the other fish! (Rude!) Other than that, the tank is doing well.

 

[Jawbone]

Turth be told I actually did say that you are supposed to Q all living things but I dont ever do it.

Somehow this got lost misplaced in the changeover

 

[Lynn]

Well I'm just in the starting stages, but YES I have quarantined all my fish so far (3) For up to 3 weeks. I haven't Q any corals yet.

 

[Anonymous]

I never have quarantined anything. I've been lucky. I would suggest quarantining suspect and probably all fish before adding them.

One time I inherited flatworms from a tainted piece of coral. But I got them cleared up within the week.

 

[MitchMc]

"Hi my name is MitchMc and I am a nonQer" :lol:

I must confess that I know the general wisdom is to Q

I don"t

When I add new fish I run a Vortex Diatom filter through a UV
for a couple of days never had a problem

And yes I know..............

 

[Anonymous]

I don't either!

 

[naesco]

I used to QT fish in a small ten gallon. I had mixed results likely from the fact that the QT caused additional stress.
I no longer QT but follow this religiously.
1. I refuse to buy anything online as I cannot see the condition of what I am buying.
2. I inspect the fish I am interested in at a LFS to ensure that it appears 100% healthy. Agressively eating; alert; clear eyes (interested in me); no spots, tears, blemishes, discolouring etc. If not I PASS on the fish.
3. I acclimate the fish for 15 minutes and carefully put him in the unlit main tank and keep the tank unlit for a day (avoids stess and arguments)
4. I feed exclusively garlic extract soaked foods for a couple of weeks.(an ich preventative)
5. I would never buy a fish like a powder blue tang, Moorish Idol, clown tang, and other impossible to keep species which are guaranteed to create problems no matter what you do to avoid it

Since practicing the above I have not lost a fish to stress or disease.

 

[kcinminni]

Thanks for all the responses. I personally think that the double-transfer is more stressful and I would rather immediately get them into an environment they can quickly adapt to. Seems like every time I've put them in the Q tank, they just hide in the corner terrified, anyway. Appreciate the honesty.

 

[Anonymous]

1. I refuse to buy anything online as I cannot see the condition of what I am buying.
2. I inspect the fish I am interested in at a LFS to ensure that it appears 100% healthy. Agressively eating; alert; clear eyes (interested in me); no spots, tears, blemishes, discolouring etc. If not I PASS on the fish.
3. I acclimate the fish for 15 minutes and carefully put him in the unlit main tank and keep the tank unlit for a day (avoids stess and arguments)
4. I feed exclusively garlic extract soaked foods for a couple of weeks.(an ich preventative)
5. I would never buy a fish like a powder blue tang, Moorish Idol, clown tang, and other impossible to keep species which are guaranteed to create problems no matter what you do to avoid it

Since practicing the above I have not lost a fish to stress or disease.

I pretty much do the same thing, but with a couple of differences:
I acclimate the fish in a dark bucket with a slow drip from the main tank for 2-3 hours. Then I float the bucket for 20 minutes or so to acclimate the temp.
I feed well while the temp is acclimating and turn the lights out.
And lastly, I am not so crazy about the garlic and only do it for less than a week if at all.

Since I started doing this I have had great success with new additions.

RR :mrgreen:

 

[MandarinFish]

But I need to start quarantine tank...

so many things to do...

 

[esmithiii]

Thanks for all the responses. I personally think that the double-transfer is more stressful and I would rather immediately get them into an environment they can quickly adapt to. Seems like every time I've put them in the Q tank, they just hide in the corner terrified, anyway. Appreciate the honesty.

The double transfer is the only way to keep ich out of the display aquarium. I know that many here are firm believers in garlic treatment, but IMO it simply masks the symptoms.

The idea is that you run copper in the Q-tank to kill the parasite before it enters the main tank. If you do this religiously you will eradicate the parasite and no matter how stressed your fish get, they will not get ich. They may get other things, but not ich.

As for Q-ing corals, you cannot do this in any tank that has ever had copper in it. I also question what it buys you over a simple fresh-water dip.

Personally I purchase corals and fish mail order from reputable sources and have yet to have an issue with MO items (knock on wood.) MO is the only way I can get tank raised or reared fish. My LFSs only carry wild collected specimines.

 

[srbayless]

Howdy,

I've only quartantined fish, never corals. I usually do a quick dip with the corals and just put them into the tank. I have a 20g that I keep as a Q-tank and keep the biological filter going by adding food every few days.

I don't use any chemicals in the Q-tank, just lowered the salinity to reduce stress on the fish and hopefully kill all the parasites. Haven't had any fatalities in either the Q-tank or show tank lately. At first I was loosing fish when I transferred them, but then realized that I wasn't adjusting them to the higher salinity slowly enough.

Scott.