Guide to setup a Quarantine Tank (QT).
- Thread starter Dr. Reef
- Start date
qt is best practiced bare. but u can add live rock from ur main or sand in sock to boost bacteria in qt and once ur ready to put fish in the tank pull them out and add fish. watch for ammonia spikes if any.
ornaments and fake stuff generally if made for fresh water tank. like mentioned before its best to run qt bare.
Very good... i am happy to see ur fish doing good. yes now u can start adding salt. increase salinity about 1-2 points per day. best ways are either adding salt to ato or just doing a gal or 2 water change with higher salt content mix.
Good luck and keep me posted.
tanzer16
Member
Bnumair.....quick question for you. I'm setting up my 10g QT as you recommended earlier in this thread........hob filter......ceramic rings......and cycled with one shrimp.
I left shrimp in about a week.....longer than I should have, as ammonia pegged at 8 on my API test kit. It took about two weeks for it to start coming down, and I am now showing nitrites as well as nitrates. Good sign so far....my question is ....based on my readings, should I perform any water change or continue to let it proceed on its own.
Current readings:
Ammonia 2.0
Nitrites. 5
Nitrates. 40
I left shrimp in about a week.....longer than I should have, as ammonia pegged at 8 on my API test kit. It took about two weeks for it to start coming down, and I am now showing nitrites as well as nitrates. Good sign so far....my question is ....based on my readings, should I perform any water change or continue to let it proceed on its own.
Current readings:
Ammonia 2.0
Nitrites. 5
Nitrates. 40
I am glad to hear the progress. Ur definitely on the right track. I usually pull the shrimp out once ammonia reaches 1 to 2 ppm on test kit. Any ways leave tank as is till u get ammonia and nitrite down to 0 then do a water change. Nitrates are not an issue in qt unless u will qt anything other than fish. Fish dont get bothered till u get into 90 and up on nitrates. Corals and inverts like it under 5 ideally but under 20 is acceptable.
Thanks for the nice complement and faith in my work u left in another forum.
Thank you again. Hope ur qt goes through cycle soon and ur ready for fish. And no I dont mind sending people here for help with their setups. I enjoy sharing my knowledge and glad I can help fellow reefers.
Thank you
JonnyD91
New member
I have my QT running with fish currently in it. Prior to adding the fish i had live rock in the tank for about a year. The filter is a eheim wet/dry professional. It is a biological only filter that contains ceramic type balls as media. Before adding the fish all params were in check. Since adding the fish I am having issues with Ammonia. For some weird reason I also have nitrates. The Ammonia has been between 0 and .50ppm (API test).
I have been adding amquel plus to detoxify the ammonia and doing 20-50% water changes every other day. I assume I am in a cycle and have to bear through it. No meds being used in the tank as of yet, just observing.
I also added a power filter with filter floss and carbon in addition to the wet/dry.
When I do my water changes am I better off replacing the water in the QT with water from the display or new Saltwater?
Is there anything else I should be doing to get through this ammonia?
Weird thin is I got one of those seachem ammonia alerts and it always says safe.
I have been adding amquel plus to detoxify the ammonia and doing 20-50% water changes every other day. I assume I am in a cycle and have to bear through it. No meds being used in the tank as of yet, just observing.
I also added a power filter with filter floss and carbon in addition to the wet/dry.
When I do my water changes am I better off replacing the water in the QT with water from the display or new Saltwater?
Is there anything else I should be doing to get through this ammonia?
Weird thin is I got one of those seachem ammonia alerts and it always says safe.
the process i use is pull the fish out from qt with its dedicated net only used on qt drop the fish in bucket of tank water then use a different net to fish it out from bucket to main tank.
Hi
i would get a second opinion on the ammonia kit. i had a kit that showed 0.25 always and never under. i replaced it. so check that first and get that out of the way. if ammonia is still a problem then water changes and prime/amquel etc will be best to do for now.
my personal feeling is that if u had Live Rock in the tank for a while then it should have enough bacteria in there to support the fish. i have my doubts on the test kit being bad.
JonnyD91
New member
My display tests 0 with the same kit. Kit is brand new. I removed the LR from the QT, due to recommendations here. I figured there was enough bacteria in the wet/dry. I have run that same wet/dry on a 50 gallon before with no issues.
Just weird that the seachem alert is "safe".
Should i use the display tank water when doing a water change?
or should i just use new saltwater?
Is there any bacteria in the display water that will help with ammonia?
that is weird and if test kit is showing 0 on main tank then kit is good. this only means that qt is still cycling.
u can used main tank water but water itself does not hold much bacteria.
r u using any medication or plan on using any?
if u are not using any medication then what u can do is get few pieces of live rock out of ur main tank and place them in qt to help with ammonia. but remember when u decided to medicate either take them out or sacrifice them for qt use only. if u use copper based med then pull them out completely, hopefully having rock in the qt for a week or 2 might give the bacteria a boost and ur hob filter may get cycled faster.
still keep eye on ammonia and do water changes.
good luck
u can used main tank water but water itself does not hold much bacteria.
r u using any medication or plan on using any?
if u are not using any medication then what u can do is get few pieces of live rock out of ur main tank and place them in qt to help with ammonia. but remember when u decided to medicate either take them out or sacrifice them for qt use only. if u use copper based med then pull them out completely, hopefully having rock in the qt for a week or 2 might give the bacteria a boost and ur hob filter may get cycled faster.
still keep eye on ammonia and do water changes.
good luck
JonnyD91
New member
Knock on wood all fish look good right now. No signs of ich or infection visible by eye. I was going to dose PraziPro but not until the fish were in there for a week or two. I will now hold off till the tank stabilizes.
My only concern of putting the live rock in there is I cant put it back in my display again without drying it out (to avert any disease from the QT going to the display) ?
I guess after quarantine is over and the fish are of and i did not medicate i should be able to put the rock back in.
The media in the wet dry is hundreds of tiny ceramic balls, i would figure this would be just as good as LR. This shows the filter and how it works:
http://www.discoveraquatics.co.uk/filtration/2229.htm
I guess ill just keep doing WC every other day. Is .50ppm very bad for the fish?
any amount of ammonia is bad for fish. water changes and placing few rocks will not be a bad idea at this point.
yes u can either dry the rock out and then place it back in to main and let it get alive again over time or just discard them completely.
copper based med is the only problem which can be absorbed by the rock and leech later.
prazipro, amquel prime is not a concern with rock.
once qt is over leave rock in the empty fishless qt for 8-10 weeks just to be sure and then rinse it in a bucket of salt water and into the main.
yes u can either dry the rock out and then place it back in to main and let it get alive again over time or just discard them completely.
copper based med is the only problem which can be absorbed by the rock and leech later.
prazipro, amquel prime is not a concern with rock.
once qt is over leave rock in the empty fishless qt for 8-10 weeks just to be sure and then rinse it in a bucket of salt water and into the main.
Hi, Thanks for the awesome thread. I am in the process of setting up a 10 gal quarantine tank for my 55 gal DT and have some questions. I am new to the hobby and my DT cycled about 8 wks ago. I have a HOB penguin dual bio wheel filter. I'm thinking of getting the same HOB filter but with one bio wheel for the 10 gal QT. The smallest size I find is for a 20 gal. will that be OK? I also have an older marineland 600 power head I could put in, would that be too much flow in a 10 gal? Do i need to use the PH or will the filter move enough water?
I read here (I think, so much reading
that the carbon filters (in my DT) should only be changed when the flow is restricted and/or they are really dirty. On the package it says every 2 wks which I've been doing and maybe why my tank took so long to cycle? My bio load is very small with 1 small clown and 2 small chromis and various snails as CUC. Just unsure how often I should be changing my carbon filters.
When cycling the new QT do I take the carbon out of the filter? I understand it has to be out to treat with copper and other meds so thinking it would be easier to remove the carbon right from the get go.
Thanks again and I really appreciate your time in replying.
I read here (I think, so much reading
that the carbon filters (in my DT) should only be changed when the flow is restricted and/or they are really dirty. On the package it says every 2 wks which I've been doing and maybe why my tank took so long to cycle? My bio load is very small with 1 small clown and 2 small chromis and various snails as CUC. Just unsure how often I should be changing my carbon filters.When cycling the new QT do I take the carbon out of the filter? I understand it has to be out to treat with copper and other meds so thinking it would be easier to remove the carbon right from the get go.
Thanks again and I really appreciate your time in replying.
single 20gal HOB penguin will be just fine for 10gal qt along with mj600. between both u will move enough water not to worry about adding something else.
now remember carbon filter/cartridges are where the bacteria resides and everytime u take them out rinse them or change them u lose ur bacteria causing tank to go into mini cycle again. best you can do is have spare filter/cartridges on hand and leave them in ur tank somewhere behind the rocks so they get bacteria living on them. leave the new filters in the tank atleast 3 weeks before using them..
generally when they start getting clogged is when they need changed. the key indicator will be inside the HOB unit itself. when filter are new water will enter the bottom of the unit and fill up to 75% of the carbon filters and flow through and drop back into the tank.
when they start to get clogged (needing change) water will rise up and maybe flow over the filters.
yes its best to take the carbon out of the filters as it will absorb/eliminate the medication u put in the qt tank defeating the purpose of dosing.
also keep few extra filter in ur main tank so if needed to change in qt u can just swap it out and its ready to go.
good luck and happy reefing...
now remember carbon filter/cartridges are where the bacteria resides and everytime u take them out rinse them or change them u lose ur bacteria causing tank to go into mini cycle again. best you can do is have spare filter/cartridges on hand and leave them in ur tank somewhere behind the rocks so they get bacteria living on them. leave the new filters in the tank atleast 3 weeks before using them..
generally when they start getting clogged is when they need changed. the key indicator will be inside the HOB unit itself. when filter are new water will enter the bottom of the unit and fill up to 75% of the carbon filters and flow through and drop back into the tank.
when they start to get clogged (needing change) water will rise up and maybe flow over the filters.
yes its best to take the carbon out of the filters as it will absorb/eliminate the medication u put in the qt tank defeating the purpose of dosing.
also keep few extra filter in ur main tank so if needed to change in qt u can just swap it out and its ready to go.
good luck and happy reefing...
Thanks again, got some bad info from my lfs again 
Now to find a place to hide 3 filters in my DT ( I'm sure I'll be going to a sump before long).
If I'm understanding correctly the good bacteria isn't the main reason the filters get plugged its the suspended stuff that plugs them up? After reading your reply I remember my filter instruction say you can run 4 filters at the same time (2 on each side),but only 2 are required. I've only been running two, can I use other 2 spots for pre soaking filter or should I always have 4 in it?
When hiding the filters in display tank can blue pad side be against glass? It blends in better with my black background.
Now to find a place to hide 3 filters in my DT ( I'm sure I'll be going to a sump before long). If I'm understanding correctly the good bacteria isn't the main reason the filters get plugged its the suspended stuff that plugs them up? After reading your reply I remember my filter instruction say you can run 4 filters at the same time (2 on each side),but only 2 are required. I've only been running two, can I use other 2 spots for pre soaking filter or should I always have 4 in it?
When hiding the filters in display tank can blue pad side be against glass? It blends in better with my black background.
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LFS are in it for the money, they look out for the best interest of their pocket first then ur tank/livestock second (if any).
I work for ur blessings and ur livestocks blessings.
no bacteria will not cause clogging in filters. uneaten food, poop and nasty's in water build up and clog the filter as they cannot pass through the filter pad.. u can run 4 filters in HOB but they probably will all get clogged about the same time or just one after the other. its best u keep fresh filters in main or sump till needed. remember to keep them in main/sump for atleast 3 weeks for bacteria to grow on them.
its ok to place them anyway or anywhere u like close to rocks in ur main tank to blend in.
I work for ur blessings and ur livestocks blessings.
no bacteria will not cause clogging in filters. uneaten food, poop and nasty's in water build up and clog the filter as they cannot pass through the filter pad.. u can run 4 filters in HOB but they probably will all get clogged about the same time or just one after the other. its best u keep fresh filters in main or sump till needed. remember to keep them in main/sump for atleast 3 weeks for bacteria to grow on them.
its ok to place them anyway or anywhere u like close to rocks in ur main tank to blend in.
Algae in QT
Algae in QT
I am upgrading from a 40 gallon (running 9 months and healthy) to a 90 gallon with 20 gallon sump. My LFS finally got a shipment of flame angels, we have wanted one for quite some time. Anyway, I set up a 10 gal QT tank to house the flame angel and perform the quarantine, used water from my existing tank, new ceramic rings, added some filter floss and a couple small live rocks from my existing system. The QT has been running 3 days now and I am getting a lot of algae on the live rock and on the tank bottom. It is a bare bottom tank. I do not run a light on the QT, just ambient room light during the day. Is this an issue?
Algae in QT
I am upgrading from a 40 gallon (running 9 months and healthy) to a 90 gallon with 20 gallon sump. My LFS finally got a shipment of flame angels, we have wanted one for quite some time. Anyway, I set up a 10 gal QT tank to house the flame angel and perform the quarantine, used water from my existing tank, new ceramic rings, added some filter floss and a couple small live rocks from my existing system. The QT has been running 3 days now and I am getting a lot of algae on the live rock and on the tank bottom. It is a bare bottom tank. I do not run a light on the QT, just ambient room light during the day. Is this an issue?
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