Q Tank

[abozoki]

My husband is trying to persuade me that adding a Q tank to our new reef aquarium system would be not only a good idea, but also “not a big deal.” I think it wouldn’t be much less work and equipment than setting up and maintaining the main aquarium. After all, the fish are supposed to be in there for 2-3 weeks. Presumably, we need to have some live rock in there, an additional filter of some sort (even with only 1-2 fish in the Q tank, they still eat and sh-t), a heater, aerator, sufficient lighting that turns itself on and off, and all the issues of keeping the water at appropriate salinity, pH, etc. And since the live rock in the system needs to stay alive, you can’t shut down a Q tank very easily, nor bring it online very quickly, so you are presumably committing yourself to keeping up this extra effort for the life of the main tank.

Am I missing something? Is it really so much “safer” to do all this work yourself than to allow the LFS to keep the fish for 2-3 weeks in one of their tanks after they acquire it? If you keep the Q tank bare-bones stripped down to the essentials, don’t you stress your new fish that much more by keeping it in that minimalist habitat rather than putting it into the presumably much cozier fully-set-up and furbished marine tank right off the bat?

Please help fend off a marital squabble by providing us with your expertise.

 

[Anonymous]

I set up one for adding fish to my tank

It does take a couple of weeks to set up even if you use water from the Main tank to set it up with. You should use a small hang on tank filter, something cheap, I use the aquaclear 150 filter, I think it was like 20$.

Most people do not recommend using live rock in your Q tank, but I use 1 piece to get the cycle started. My viewpoint on this is I can always take it out if I need to dose meds.

It is safer to do it this way, for a couple of reasons.

1. The LFS usually run their water from their tanks all through a giant filtration system, so your fish is not actually in a "quarantine" system.

2. It is less stressful to a new fish to be put in a bare tank with no other fish to compete with it

3. You can see if they come down with something like Ich and treat it without having to treat your main tank(which is a BIG no no)

HTH

Bryan

 

[Len]

Sorry to tell ya, but your husband is right.

The benefits from a Q tank are numerous and can't be overstated. From the 2-4 weeks a fish is quarentined, you can be confident you aren't adding a diseased specimen into your display tank, endangering all the existing livestock. Too often I've seen one fish wipe out half a dozen others, and this can be avoided with a simple Q tank. A Q tank can also help your new arrivals to acclimate without the stress of stronger tankmates bullying it "right out of the bag." A fully "furbrished" tank might look cozier to you and I, but don't underestimate the stresses of dealing with tankmates with established terrorities, especially in their weakened states due to shipping stresses.

Not much is needed for a Q tank. Live rock and sand are actually not recommended by most since Q tanks are often used to treat sick fish; medication not only is often toxic to inverts found on live rock and in sandbeds, but these medications also adhere to substrates for the long haul. So most Q tanks are barren with a few pieces of large (and cheap) PVC pipes for refuge.

Other then that, a powerhead and a set of cheap lights (a single normal fluorescent will do) is all you need.

Regarding the water/upkeep of a Q-tank, this is what I do: I use water from my main tank to fill Q-tanks. The main benefits are:
1) you get water that is already "mature" without much prep time
2) you acclimate your new arrivals to conditions similiar to the display tank.

Your display tank also gets a water change

 

[Anonymous]

I have two ten gallon QTs with fish in them...mainly because I want to stock my tank faster and I plan to use one for a one month invert/coral QT soon.

I recommend an air driven sponge filter for a small QT. They are cheap, the sponge will remove floating debris, and the air stone driving it will aerate the water. With a sponge filter, you don't need live rock or a bio wheel because it has plenty of bacteria growth surface area.

I also use a small power filter...otherwise you have to clean the sponge filter often to keep it from getting clogged with food.


So here is a good plan for a cheap QT:

Needed:
1. tank
2. somewhere for bacteria to grow----sponge filter
3. place for fish to hide and feel safe---PVC pipe peices large enough for it
4. heater
5. aeration----a powerhead will due or the stone driving the sponge filter
6. cover---do this! Some fish are jumpy. But you can use anything, like egg crate or nylon window screen



optional:
1. lights----ambient room light is fine. Regular schedules are great, so a five dollar light timer hooked up to a lamp sitting by the tank will be enough. But if you feel like spending $, then get a lighted hood.
2. a power filter----nice to get rid of floating crap in the water and uneaten food, but really not needed if you are willing to syphon the tank clean twice a week.


So really you can set up a ten gallon QT for the cost of losing a few fish to disease...a good investment IMO and you can always set up a mini-reef later after you stock your tank.