for the hundredth time...

[Anonymous]

i want to set up a 10 gallon hospital/quarantine tank, since i don't have one yet. i'm not sure how i should go about it. should i take some sand and rock from my 40g and use it for the 10g? should the water be completely "new" or should i mix it with some of my existing tank water? what about powerheads, a heater, type of lighting, a filter? since i'm sure it will be empty most of the time, i'm not sure what is absolutely necessary. also, how long should it cycle before it's ready?

any advice is greatly appreciated. thanks

[ March 05, 2002: Message edited by: coralshrimp ]</p>

 

[BROKER]

You can use LR/LS from an existing tank. You can even use water from the existing tank. No need for intense lighting since you don't want to stress the fish any further. A small ppwerhead a heater and a penguin biowheel can be used since it will be empty most of the time (hopefully

)If you use existing rock/sand/water from a tank I would not worry to much about cycling. HTH

 

[Gatortailale1]

I'm far from an expert,

But I would say that you do not need sand or rock in a hospital tank. I would get some pieces of PVC pipe in various diameters 1" to 5" and cut them 3-8" long. The tubes will give the fish a place to hide.

Lighting - nothing strong - light = extra stress to already stressed and sick fish. A simple all-glass or perfecto hood would be max needed.

Water/cycle, I guess tank water is fine, but I think new water will work fine too; just get SG at proper level. Test PH too to make sure it's not a big difference b/w tank fish is in and hospital tank.

Heater- yes you will need one.

If you are going to treat with chemicals, any type of charcoal filter will just reduce effectiveness of chemical. However, I guess you could use a cheap FW power filter (like a wisper 1) and remove charcoal pads.

 

[BROKER]

You don't need rock but I you should provide a place for the fish to hide. I double mine as a cleaner shrimp tank and like the sand and the rock, but Gatortailale is right it is not needed.

 

[Chucker]

One thing you might consider is having a larger Q tank. Most folks use a 10g simply because they have an extra one lying around, but many times it's not the best size for a fish. Part of the Q tank concept is to make sure living conditions are stress-free, and a tiny tank sometimes results in exactly the opposite.

 

[mariner]

Live rock will die in a hospital tank if you are using any parasitic removing chemicals(I.E. copper). Use water from old tank so that it is already cycled. You'll need a filter with a pad of some sort for a place to host denitrifying bacteria. Places for fish to hide(PVC works well). A heater(keep about 78-80 degrees). I would have a thin layer of sand or some substrate in their. Do small water changes every 2-3 weeks. Normal output lighting is sufficient. Thas about it.

[ March 05, 2002: Message edited by: mariner ]</p>

 

[Anonymous]

okay, i may do a 20g versus a 10g instead. i also like the cleaner shrimp idea. i was wondering, could i use large barnacles for hiding places in lieu of pvc pipe?

 

[Dan81]

If you do use PVC pipe make sure you scrubb it before putting i in your tank because it can turn the water cloudy.

 

[calboyz]

Mariner, Any suggestion on the brand of copper for Q. tank? Thanks.

 

[Fishbreath]

A lot of good suggestions so far, so not much to add. I set up a 20 gal quarantine tank in early January and have successfully quarantined 4 new fish in it: 3 in Jan and 1 in Feb. All fish showed early signs of ick shortly after they arrived and Copper Safe quickly stopped it. Glad I have the quarantine tank and highly recommend one. Since you WILL need to use copper eventually live rock is not recommended.

My tank: 20 gal with 1/2inch crushed coral. Some coral pieces (not live) for fish to hide behind. 75 watt heater. Filter is as AquaClear 150 hang-on using carbon and foam pad inserts. This filter produces good water flow (150 gal per hour)and it's cheap, about $26. The foam inserts provide a site for the good bacteria needed for a bio filter. I use 2 foam inserts (filter comes with one so buy an extra one)to increase the bio surface area. Even with 2 foam inserts there is room for a carbon insert. I stack them foam on bottom, then carbon, then foam on top. Light- small 15 watt PowerGlo lamp. Finally, I use 100% tank water from my main tank. Every 3 weeks I do a water change in my main tank and I use it in quarantine tank.

My procedure for new fish: New arrivals go into the quarantine tank with carbon running. After a few days I pull out the carbon (easy to do) and add Copper Safe. I leave fish exposed to copper for 7-10 days. Then I do a water change, adding water from the main tank and carbon goes back into the filter. I watch the fish for a few more days then if they look ok and eat well I move them to the main tank. Important..I siphon the crushed coral bottom weekly to keep it clean. Process takes 3 weeks.

My process for sick fish: Don't know yet

 

[Chucker]

One more thought.... From what I've seen people do in the past, Steve's method seems to be the exception, but is a great idea. Lots of people just set up a Q tank when they need one, and end up stressing the fish further, since the Q tank itself hasn't cycled before the fish is added. If possible, leave your Q tank up all of the time, or at least give it a chance to cycle before you use it.

 

[Rich-n-poor]

Mine is kinda similar to steve's

I have a 5 1/2 gallon tank, live sand from my reef tank, some coral rock rubble, an old skilter 250 (which I am switching out to an aquaclear 150 I also have)

I originally used the skilter for some protien skimming but it is noisy and unneccessary IMO. I run the filter empty for circulation only all filtering is provided by the rubble rock.

When I treat in this tank I use Paragaurd which is copper free and does not destroy the bacteria culture. I just treated a perc for 7 days and still have speghetti worms and pods in the tank.

I normally use this as a prop tank but when I treat a fish all cuttings go back into the main tank. When treatment is done I run a carbon pack for 48 hrs to remove any chemicals.

Water changes consist of taking a couple cups of water out and switching it with a couple cups from my reef that's all.

I feed this tank even when it is fishless since it has some life in it and to keep the bacteria culture going works great and looks like a nano when the cuttings are in it

_________________
green crack seeds

 

[mariner]

Calboyz,
I personally have never used copper. I have always used Kent Marine RXP. I have had 100% results with it. I have even used it it my main tank with the live rock and no die off. Now that I have a reef tank I don't use any chemicals as such. When using the RXP watch your skimmer closely when adding. You'll have to make an initial adjustment cuz it'll go nuts right away upon adding this stuff.

 

[Anonymous]

thanks to everyone for the great info. special thanks to Steve and Rich-n-poor for your detailed breakdown which is exactly what i was looking for. you guys are all very much appreciated.