Please help urgent quarantine setup

[03whiteg]

Hi guys so I made a post about early signs of white spot turns out it is white spot, I've purchased everything needed, skimmer, powerhead, hob filter, heater and a 50 gallon quarantine tank this is the same size as my main tank lol but I'm already heavily stocked so this is needed once quarantined will be returning 2 fish


Couple of questions which I'm sure have been answered but i need advice for my situation

So firstly does this quarantine tank need to be cycled like usual id like to get the fish in there this weekend is this actually possible ?

Can I take 50 percent of my water from DT and top up the rest with new saltwater in the quarantine tank I know the water is obviously contaminated but wont the copper treatment wipe any ich from the water? My fish are very early signs and still eating very well so I really think they can all pull through If somebody could guide me I would appreciate that so much.

It's so disheartening spending so much money getting everything right doing your water changes maintenance etc and stuff like this happening but I did not quarantine my fish and bought at different times from lfs so maybe I deserve this and it's a good lesson to learn early as I'm very serious about this hobby

 

[W1ngz]

You've got 72 days of a fully stocked QT that you'll need to run. With a 50 gal, you'll want to cycle it.

The other option is a 25-30 gallon water change every day or two. It will drive you crazy and cost a small fortune in salt for the first 2-3 weeks until the ammonia starts to drop on it's own. I would sacrifice some of the rock from the display, into the QT for a faster cycle, dose with ammonia or ammonium chloride, and wait for it to drop to 0. This will help to build up the bacteria quick before moving the fish and the sudden jump in bioload. With 72 days, it will be plenty of time for you to add some dry rock to the display and have it catch up to the existing rock.

After your QT period is done, consider the QT rock contaminated and unusable again in the display until you bleach/acid bath it and then rise, dry and cure it all over.

While waiting for the QT to cycle, it might be an idea to get some plastic bins and do the tank transfer method. Prep one bin, put the fish in it. Prep another bin right away salinity and temp matched, and move the fish after 3 days. Repeat for about 4 cycles of this, or 12 days. That's my quick and dirty paraphrased tank transfer, there's much more accurate and detailed posts elsewhere.

 

[shesacharmer]

I did the tank transfer method for my large population of fish using totes from wallyworld. After the 12 days I put them into a 28 gallon tank and they lived there for the rest of the 72 days with their hang on the back filter filled with filter floss and an ammonia badge. When the badge said change the water, I did it. It was a hassle but I only lost one fish to Ich and didn't contaminate my QT with copper.

 

[Pigpen17]

You've got 72 days of a fully stocked QT that you'll need to run. With a 50 gal, you'll want to cycle it.

The other option is a 25-30 gallon water change every day or two. It will drive you crazy and cost a small fortune in salt for the first 2-3 weeks until the ammonia starts to drop on it's own. I would sacrifice some of the rock from the display, into the QT for a faster cycle, dose with ammonia or ammonium chloride, and wait for it to drop to 0. This will help to build up the bacteria quick before moving the fish and the sudden jump in bioload. With 72 days, it will be plenty of time for you to add some dry rock to the display and have it catch up to the existing rock.

After your QT period is done, consider the QT rock contaminated and unusable again in the display until you bleach/acid bath it and then rise, dry and cure it all over.

While waiting for the QT to cycle, it might be an idea to get some plastic bins and do the tank transfer method. Prep one bin, put the fish in it. Prep another bin right away salinity and temp matched, and move the fish after 3 days. Repeat for about 4 cycles of this, or 12 days. That's my quick and dirty paraphrased tank transfer, there's much more accurate and detailed posts elsewhere.

You can't do both, right? Tank transfer and use rock from your tank to cycle the QT. You would be bringing Ich into your QT on the rocks, so TT would do nothing. If you do TT than nothing from your display, (water, rocks, or even a dipped net), can get into your QT.

Thankfully I have never had to QT for 72 days, but in theory you could cycle the QT with an oversized HOB filter like an Aquaclear filled with sponge and biorings and spiked with Biospira.

 

[W1ngz]

You can't do both, right? Tank transfer and use rock from your tank to cycle the QT. You would be bringing Ich into your QT on the rocks, so TT would do nothing. If you do TT than nothing from your display, (water, rocks, or even a dipped net), can get into your QT

Good point, I should have mentioned the two are mutually exclusive. Also copper meds in the QT would make the rock pretty much permanently unusable in the display.

 

[tmz]

Hi guys so I made a post about early signs of white spot turns out it is white spot, I've purchased everything needed, skimmer, powerhead, hob filter, heater and a 50 gallon quarantine tank this is the same size as my main tank lol but I'm already heavily stocked so this is needed once quarantined will be returning 2 fish


Couple of questions which I'm sure have been answered but i need advice for my situation

So firstly does this quarantine tank need to be cycled like usual id like to get the fish in there this weekend is this actually possible ?

Can I take 50 percent of my water from DT and top up the rest with new saltwater in the quarantine tank I know the water is obviously contaminated but wont the copper treatment wipe any ich from the water? My fish are very early signs and still eating very well so I really think they can all pull through If somebody could guide me I would appreciate that so much.

It's so disheartening spending so much money getting everything right doing your water changes maintenance etc and stuff like this happening but I did not quarantine my fish and bought at different times from lfs so maybe I deserve this and it's a good lesson to learn early as I'm very serious about this hobby

Returning 2 fish to where?

A danger in a qt is ammonia. If you are using a copper med like cupramine don't use an ammonia detoxifier it will mess with the organic binding and timed copper release and can overdose copper .
Using some live rock or even a bowl or two of sand , some filter material, sponge etc from the display can accelerate the cycle. I'd get that started right away and move the fish a soon as possible.Monitor the ammonia and do water changes as needed until ammonia is under control. Use some pieces of pvc for hiding and resting places.

Using the display tank water will not help the cycle. It will bring in organic materials without the bacteria (the bacteria are benthic, ie, colonize surfaces) to handle them contributing a potential ammonia problem.

Tank transfer is my preferred course but may be impractical for the volume of fish you need to treat. Copper is my second choice.



This thread of mine may be of interest going froward:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2185929&highlight=fish+acclimation+and+quarantine