Setting up first hopsital/QT tank *suggestions*?

[Lostmind]

I have read a lot of posts on this subject. I havent quite seen a perfect or ideal QT tank setup.

So, what is an ideal QT tank setup if I dont plan on dosing medicines/chemicals?

20-30Gallon tank
rocks (live or no?)?
cheap lighting
heater
sand or no?
filtration - el cheapo skimmer? some form of mechanical filtration?
Should the QT tank be run all the time like a regular tank? Or just when needed?

I am kinda thinking to just have the tank setup, live rock, little skimmer, sand and all running full time with some zoo's or something easy in it. When I get a fish, use this little tank to see how the fish does for a few weeks before going into the tank. If I am patient between my fish purchases, most of the parasites should die off (due to lack of food, host, etc) because there is no fish in the tank for extended periods of time.

Does this make sense?

 

[Anonymous]

I would go with a bare bottom. Leave it running all the time if you have space for it. A skimmer is not required, though it won't hurt anything. I just use a AquaClear 300 on my 20G QT. I keep a snail in there all the time. If you have zoos and eventually have to use meds, they'll die. My liverock has a few polyps growing on them now. They would be sacrificed if I needed to use meds.

HTH

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

If you are looking for a quarantine/hospital tank, then you need a bare tank with inert shelter in it, like some large PVC elbows. NO rock, No sand

the rock will mess with any meds you end up using, plus quarantine should be 4-6 weeks of healthy quarantine

Bryan

 

[Anonymous]

do what Knucklehead said...but youll have to rid the water for next use...reason being that some parasites and bacteria can lay dormant for long periods of time just awaiting a host...but for filtration, use a sump that is in use and just clean the filters good..ie hot water....but if you are having a problem with sick fish, its easier to freeze them, then eat them the next day and go buy new ones :twisted:
IM ONLY KIDDING
with the freezing and eating them that is...



8)

 

[Micah00]

For my q/t tank I have a 10 gal with a heater and hang on power filter. Mine is bare bottom with pieces of PVC for some structure. It's better to have something that is easy to sterilize if you have an outbreak of some sorts or have to dose meds. I leave mine running all the time and when there are no fish in it I throw a little food in it a couple of times a week.

 

[Lostmind]

Hmmm, ok. Thanks for the suggestions people

Guess I cant have a pretty quarantine tank sitting in the home office.. so... I need to put the qt tank in my basement, and get another tank for the office

hehehe. Glad my girlfriend loves me...

 

[Anonymous]

Knucmlehead said:

the rock will mess with any meds you end up using

How's that?

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Louey, I do believe that copper is absorbed by rock and sand, which makes it hard to maintain a specific level for treatment, also, it ends up killing microfauna on the rock and sand, which defeats the purpose of the rock and sand in the first place

Bryan

ps lostmind, mine is set up in my living room a couple of weeks before I buy a fish, then after the quarantine period, it gets taken down and cleaned and stored in the basement.

HTH

Bryan

 

[Anonymous]

I do believe that copper is absorbed by rock

I'm no expert, so I wonder if this is so? I understand what you are saying about the meds being bad for the microfauna. But my thinking is that on the rare occasion that you have to use meds, your rock loses it's filtering abilities. You run carbon later to remove the meds, then you rock slowly bounces back.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

I will spend some time tonight researching that Louey, as I am not 100% sure on it

Bryan

 

[Anonymous]

I was thinkin about setting a ten gallon up just for guppies(feeders)in a bare tank with heater and a small power filter. I would keep copper in it at all times.

 

[Anonymous]

How is keeping guppies in a tank supposed to work as a QT tank?? besides guppies dont need saltwater to live so if you were setting up a tank for guppies, id almost see it as a waste of salt..




8)

 

[Anonymous]

Actually I was thinkin about mollies...Dah.LOL

 

[Anonymous]

Again, mollies do not need salt to survive....They do fine in normal water and will even breed w/o salt...They, like guppies and goldfish are pretty hardy and can tolerate saltwater, brackishwater, and freshwater...


8)

 

[Anonymous]

Again, mollies do not need salt to survive....They do fine in normal water and will even breed w/o salt...They, like guppies and goldfish are pretty hardy and can tolerate saltwater, brackishwater, and freshwater...


8)

So whats the problem?....are you saying they will not breed in Salt? If I set up a tank for QT and/or chemical treatments it could do double duty and provide some live food for my fish.

 

[Anonymous]

no real problems i guess...but if i were gonna set up a hospital tank i definetely would tear it down and clean it when i was done...You wouldnt wanna be put in a unclean hospital bed where some just had SARS..You may cure the problem but the disease mayfloat around in your tank and lie dormant...As for mollies or guppies, thats a good idea for feeder fish, id do the same thing too for my cichlids if i had the room for it.....

 

[Anonymous]

no real problems i guess...but if i were gonna set up a hospital tank i definetely would tear it down and clean it when i was done...You wouldnt wanna be put in a unclean hospital bed where some just had SARS..You may cure the problem but the disease mayfloat around in your tank and lie dormant...As for mollies or guppies, thats a good idea for feeder fish, id do the same thing too for my cichlids if i had the room for it.....

Well....I just realized I can't use my ten gallon as a sump because of the location of my tank...I goofed big time but I can use it to raise livefood for my fish. Yes I know about the "change the bedding" issue. I am a Nurse.LOL

 

[Anonymous]

I dont think a feeder tank would work very well as a Hospital tank....How bout the SARS analogy??? what a coinkidink...LOL



8)

 

[Anonymous]

K louey, here is what I have found so far

WHile the copper used for meds will bind to the rock and substrate in your tank, the amount that binds is negligible since you should be testing to keep the copper at the same level during treatment anyway.

The part were trouble comes in is the ammonia and nitrate spike caused by the dieoff of all the microfauna and inverts on the live rock. This is the main reason it is not recommended to use Live rock in a treatment tank.

Bryan

 

[Anonymous]

Ummmmmmmmmmmm? Well what if copper were always in the Feeder Tank? This would be a bare tank.....with mollies.