Big enough QT?

[Brando457]

I plan on quarantining a 3" naso tang, 3" hippo tang, and 3" yellow tang.

The plan is to put them all in a 55g tank w/ a hob filter, powerhead for circulation, heater, and ammonia badge.

I have 1 sponge that has been in a 20g long for about 6 months and that tank has never had any wild caught fish in it, only housed my tank bred clowns. In addition I just added another sponge approximately 2 weeks ago to cultivate some good bacteria.

Would I need to cycle the 55g tank or would moving the sponges suffice?

Would the 55g long suffice to act as a quarantine for the 3 above fish?

Also I plan on doing a trio of anthias, wondering if a 20g long would suffice for them or if I'd need to do them in the 55g as well after the tangs?

Thanks!

 

[Newsmyrna80]

I think to QT the tangs you should be fine in a 55. If you are getting the anthias after the tangs I would use the same tank. That is contingent upon how long you are quarantining the tangs, protocol or procedure of quarantining (TT, etc), meds used, etc. Otherwise you could just start fresh in either tank.
The 2 week old sponge will not have established bacteria. The other sponge will have established bacteria but it is a question of quantity in order to keep up with the bioload of 3 tangs.

 

[Brando457]

The anthias would be after the tangs, unless they'd be okay in a 20 gallon long then I could do them at the same time in the 55g and the 20g.

I plan on doing a 10g water change every 3 days on the 55g and qt-ing for at least 4 weeks. If I need to treat for diseases then that will depend on the treatment. I plan on hypo-ing if the fish show signs of ich. I also have crypto-pro, copper, and other meds on hand if necessary.