50/50 on first new fish :(

Z

Zer0.

New member
So got my QT tank finally cycled. params are,
SG- 1.026
temp = 77-78
ammonia = 0
nitrite = 0
nitrate = 40ppm
alk = 8-9
p.h. 8.2-8.3
tank is 30 gallon.

I got 2 occ. clowns (very small). I emptied the bag of water and the two fish into a 5 gallon bucket after floating bag for about 20 min in QT water. then started a drip line dripping about 3 drips per 2 seconds or so I'd say. Let this drip for about an hour if not a bit more. I think I doubled the water volume but it was hard to tell in the 5 gallon bucket. Netted out the fish and released them into QT tank. One did fine. The other lay on side breathing heavily pretty quickly after being introduced, then started kinda flicking around thru the water in bursts not swimming right, like straight up and not staying top up then eventually died.

The heavy breathing made me think ammonia or lack of o2. I double checked ammonia and it is at 0 and Im almost positive there is enought o2 in the water as i had a power head blowing accross the top as well as a fluval c4 HoB filter running and injecting bubbles into the water with its output.

The water in the bucket felt kinda cold when i reached in to get the fish out. Maybe the drip wasnt fast enough to keep temp up? Should I have re-floated bag after drip?


Thanks for any advise, I feel bad about losing one. I thought I did everything right.
 
Match the SG of the QT tank to the water the fish are in. Then you will only have to float them to temperature acclimate them. Ask the store what the SG is of the water & go with that.

If they are going into slightly lower salinity than what the store keeps them at you are ok to just put them in. If the store's SG is lower than your QT tank add RO water to lower the salinity of the QT tank first.

An hour is a bit long for acclimation. I float mine in the tank for 10 to 15 minutes & then start the drip at 4 drips per second. If the SG is the same or very close I won't drip for more 30 minutes total.
 
Okay, so if his SG is at 1.025 (I think this is what he said) and mine is at 1.026. My best bet would be to float bag for 15-20 min then do a faster drip (4 drips/sec) for about 30 min?

Thanks for the replies guys, havent lost any shrimp, snails, crabs or zoas going into the DT with long drips, so I thought it would be best bet with fish too :S
 
a difference of .001 is fine and wouldn't require a drip. best thing to do if you can is find out before you buy the fish what the SG is. that way you can already have the QT at that number, or at least you may be closer and won't need to acclimate as long. A good dealer will not only tell you his SG but you should be able to expect it will always be close to that. Of course test the SG of the bag water when you open it just to be sure. Getting them out of the bag water as quick as possible is what you're after.
 
Fish die. It's one of the few universal truths about aquarium keeping. Moving a fish, no matter how careful you are is enormously stressful so you may have lost the one fish regardless. Having said that, if you are using a QT, as you should, drip acclimation is an unecessary stresser. As others have said, find out what the salinity is for the incoming water, adjust your QT to that level, and all that's necessary is a quick temperature float. I've been doing it thus way for over a decade and it is very easy on the fish. Drip acclimations can result in ammonia problems (for fish shipped long distances), falling temp in the bucket, etc. Just no reason to do it. Also, nitrates are unlikely to be a contributing factor; and no LFS I deal with keeps fish at 1.025.
 
ca1ore said:
Fish die. It's one of the few universal truths about aquarium keeping. Moving a fish, no matter how careful you are is enormously stressful so you may have lost the one fish regardless. Having said that, if you are using a QT, as you should, drip acclimation is an unecessary stresser. As others have said, find out what the salinity is for the incoming water, adjust your QT to that level, and all that's necessary is a quick temperature float. I've been doing it thus way for over a decade and it is very easy on the fish. Drip acclimations can result in ammonia problems (for fish shipped long distances), falling temp in the bucket, etc. Just no reason to do it. Also, nitrates are unlikely to be a contributing factor; and no LFS I deal with keeps fish at 1.025.
Click to expand...
They usually keep their salinity lower I assume you mean? This guys were in with coral and no long term shipping. No long distance shipping going to LFS nearby (about a 25-30 min drive)
 
I check the LFS water myself while the bag is floating then adjust the QT water to that or lower. Fish can adapt to a lower salinity than a higher one.
 
Newsmyrna80 said:
I check the LFS water myself while the bag is floating then adjust the QT water to that or lower. Fish can adapt to a lower salinity than a higher one.
Click to expand...
Only prob. is i already got the surving clown in the QT...
Would he be OK if i lowered it slowly while new one floats? ie take a cup out let ato top off.....wait 5 min. repeat? 30 gal QT
 
What is his current SG and that of the qt? I'm getting confused trying to sort this out.

If he's within .002 of the qt sg, just put him on in.
 
OK did over 50% WC nitrates about 15 now and I am matching salinity to LFS exactly (tested their water on my refractometer). However my pH is about 8.0 (what my rodi water and kent marine salt mix to apparently) and theirs is about 8.3 - 8.4. Will this be a problem for only floating the bag for 30 min/ no drip?
 
Going to get fish today, I'm currently under the assumption that the difference in pH will not require me to drip.
 
Zer0. said:
Going to get fish today, I'm currently under the assumption that the difference in pH will not require me to drip.
Click to expand...

A change in pH is not a problem for fish, so long as the receiving tank is 7.8-8.3. You can even go a little out of bounds with that and still be OK. Now, if you were acclimatizing certain inverts (crustaceans, especially starfish) then pH (and other parameters) are much more critical and that is why those always need to be dripped.
 
HumbleFish said:
A change in pH is not a problem for fish, so long as the receiving tank is 7.8-8.3. You can even go a little out of bounds with that and still be OK. Now, if you were acclimatizing certain inverts (crustaceans, especially starfish) then pH (and other parameters) are much more critical and that is why those always need to be dripped.
Click to expand...

Thanks! really appreciate the input. sounds like I'm good to go then.
So far I have 3 emerald crabs, 4 blue leg hermits (tiny), 2 halloween hermits, a serpent star (havent seen since he scurried off on day one), 5 nassarius, 2 skunk cleaner shrimp, 2 turbos, 3 astrea and 2 zoa frags in the DT and havent had a single loss...assuming the serpent star is still alive and hiding somewhere. Only lost the fish.
 
Zer0. said:
Thanks! really appreciate the input. sounds like I'm good to go then.
So far I have 3 emerald crabs, 4 blue leg hermits (tiny), 2 halloween hermits, a serpent star (havent seen since he scurried off on day one), 5 nassarius, 2 skunk cleaner shrimp, 2 turbos, 3 astrea and 2 zoa frags in the DT and havent had a single loss...assuming the serpent star is still alive and hiding somewhere. Only lost the fish.
Click to expand...

You're welcoming. Not to be preachy, but I highly recommend quarantining all fish before placing them into your DT to avoid loses to diseases.
 
HumbleFish said:
You're welcoming. Not to be preachy, but I highly recommend quarantining all fish before placing them into your DT to avoid loses to diseases.
Click to expand...
That's where they are :). I'm new to this but trying to do it right :bounce2: plan is get the at home for a couple days, then a round of prazipro then observation for a few weeks. Thought about doing cupramine pro actively but don't want to stress them more than needed
 
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