Suggested revision in acclimation protocol

[Sk8r]

New reefers often get in trouble trying to drip-acclimate: they hold critters in the bag way too long, or push the process too fast for safety.

I have had good results with this somewhat revised procedure:

1. a query of the lfs OR the online store re salinity: ergo, by their answer, you already KNOW the salinity of the arriving bagged specimen.
2. adjust your qt salinity to match the store/online source long BEFORE the critter arrives. It should also be a good temperature.
3. ON ARRIVAL: float the sealed bag to equalize temperature.
4. as soon as your hand on the still-sealed bag tells you the temperature is matched, open the bag. Quickly TEST the bag water salinity to be absolutely certain it is within .001 of the qt salinity. If not: over a period of 30 minutes, drip water from the qt into the bag until the reading equalizes (drip acclimation).
5. When the salinity tests equal to your qt tank, put the critter straight into the qt. Keep the lights low. Do not feed for 3 hours, or until the specimen begins to swim about and look for food, whichever comes first.
[6. In the remote chance the bag arrives damaged and the creature is very short of water, do not wait: put the creature straight into the qt and advise the company.]
7. Observe your fish daily for 4 weeks. If your fish has remained healthy, on the 25th day, begin very slowly to adjust the salinity of your qt tank to match your display; on the 30th day, you move your fish into the display tank. Have the lights out, and let him adjust and explore before you introduce any food to the tank.

imho, for most species, the critical things are: a) ph/ammonia b) salinity; temperature is a far third, within sane reason. Getting the specimen out of the bag water is made much faster by having the qt at a matching salinity, which ignores all other params.

I'd be interested in expert opinions on this recommendation.

 

[snorvich]

I don't know if I would be considered an expert. However, this process sounds pretty good to me with a couple of observations. While most vendors that I deal with ship at 1.025, there is one that really makes me crazy that ships at 1.019. I would prefer that my fish not experience 1.019 longer term. Secondly I always treat with prazipro before putting into the display tank; two treatments 10 days apart. I do agree that getting an animal out of the shipping bag as quickly as possible is a priority. Once a fish is swimming around I begin a feeding program that is more frequent than most people feed because I want the fish to become healthy as quickly as possible. When putting a fish into the display tank, social acclimation is desirable; float an acrylic fish keeper so the other fish in the tank get used to the newcomer.

 

[Sk8r]

Then I'd add that starting the process of salinity adjustment would be a good idea right early.

It seems to me that incorporating the qt process into the acclimation and getting the fish out of the bags asap might urge people to pay close and favorable attention to qt. So many have the notion that 'fish die in qt', and 'qt is cruel, because there is no habitat'...and this I would hope would give it a purpose, assure mistakes aren't made with salinity or ph, and give people something to 'do' for a week, ie, adjust salinity, observe their fish closeup, etc. We've gotten the newbies not to dump their fish straight in, but perhaps a step further could get the fish aimed at qt as an essential part of the process. Once it's in there, and been there a week in low light, getting fed up and resalinated, perhaps we wouldn't hear as much of fish broken out in spots IN the DT.

 

[snorvich]

One further thing. I use quarantine as an observation platform NOT as a treatment platform. I use a hospital tank for treatment. Part of the problem is that some (many) treat during initial quarantine using hypo (which may or may not be at 1.009) or copper in some form; that is great IF that fish has cryptocaryon. But that is only one of several possible parasites. Diagnose first, treat second. If the fish has no visible parasite, treat with prazipro for those that are not visible.

 

[Sk8r]

100%, re never treating a well fish. Practically speaking, if one is pulling the whole fish population into safety from an infested tank, I'd do it, but with hypo.

I'm not a fan of copper. There may be species where it works best, and it may be cupramine is that much better (I've been at this since the Jurassic) but IME it's just too rough, considering the fish is already not at its best.

I'd be really interested to know your experience with Prazipro. I've never used it. I understand it's lethal to inverts, but how is it on fish, and how are you using it?

 

[snorvich]

I'd be really interested to know your experience with Prazipro. I've never used it. I understand it's lethal to inverts, but how is it on fish, and how are you using it?

I have once dosed a large tank with it. No effect on inverts (I have a lot of shrimp of various denominations). It may mildly inhibit appetite. Requires two treatments: first for the fish, second for the eggs that may have hatched. Easy to use, fairly effective from my experience. But for all new fish, I feel it is a relatively harmless thing to do with much greater benefits than most realize. As a matter of process, it is always done for new fish, usually in my smaller QT (nano) but sometimes in my larger one (70 gallons)

 

[Sk8r]

Interesting. I'd be interested in seeing an article on modern treatments, dips, etc, in the magazine. I had my first tank in 1947 (freshwater)---and I suspect there's a part of me that still operates in the age of diatom filters and CC sandbeds---I try to keep up. So I'd really like to know more about Coral RX and Prazipro. I don't know what all I may be missing!

 

[snorvich]

Interesting. I'd be interested in seeing an article on modern treatments, dips, etc, in the magazine. I had my first tank in 1947 (freshwater)---and I suspect there's a part of me that still operates in the age of diatom filters and CC sandbeds---I try to keep up. So I'd really like to know more about Coral RX and Prazipro. I don't know what all I may be missing!

You are older than I but not by all that much. I started with freshwater in 1957.

Coral RX and Revive are two excellent coral dips which theoretically have the same ingredients. Coral RX is the current best in class as a coral dip although I have only used revive. I have used Revive many times; Coral RX is coming this week. Coral RX has three concentrations but that is simply a dilution factor issue.

 

[TampaReefer79]

One further thing. I use quarantine as an observation platform NOT as a treatment platform. I use a hospital tank for treatment. Part of the problem is that some (many) treat during initial quarantine using hypo (which may or may not be at 1.009) or copper in some form; that is great IF that fish has cryptocaryon. But that is only one of several possible parasites. Diagnose first, treat second. If the fish has no visible parasite, treat with prazipro for those that are not visible.

Very interesting. I have a few questions though...

If you don't treat for parasites unless you see them, how long would you say you'd have to watch the fish to be able to say for certain it does NOT have a parasite present, ie: ich. Also, you have seperate qt and hospital tanks, I like this idea. QT to give it a chance to catch it's breath from shipping, and a hospital tank to treat if you see anything during qt period. Could you give a better timeline on exactly how you do this? Another thing, you said to treat with prazipro for all those things that aren't visible, do you do this in the qt or hospital tank? And do you treat ALL fish with this method?

My new upgrade is being built and I'm going to be qt'ing every single addition. Problem is that I would LOVE to use a 150 gallon or 300 gallon rubbermaid stock tank to do this and don't know if it's a good idea. What do you think? Obviously it's a lot harder to SEE the fish this way, but not impossible. Would a look down box fix this issue as far as 'seeing the fish'? And then I can pull some out and place them in a glass tank, 90 gallon or so, if they need to be treated. I'm just trying to get my ducks in a row. The reason I would like to use the rubbermaid stock tanks is because I'll probably be qt'ing plenty of fish at a time. For example, (not a definite yet) but I am considering anthias. If I go that route, I'll need to qt 25 to 30 anthias. Kind of hard to do that in ANY glass tank. lol

Thanks for your time!

 

[snorvich]

Very interesting. I have a few questions though...

If you don't treat for parasites unless you see them, how long would you say you'd have to watch the fish to be able to say for certain it does NOT have a parasite present, ie: ich. Also, you have seperate qt and hospital tanks, I like this idea. QT to give it a chance to catch it's breath from shipping, and a hospital tank to treat if you see anything during qt period. Could you give a better timeline on exactly how you do this? Another thing, you said to treat with prazipro for all those things that aren't visible, do you do this in the qt or hospital tank? And do you treat ALL fish with this method?

My new upgrade is being built and I'm going to be qt'ing every single addition. Problem is that I would LOVE to use a 150 gallon or 300 gallon rubbermaid stock tank to do this and don't know if it's a good idea. What do you think? Obviously it's a lot harder to SEE the fish this way, but not impossible. Would a look down box fix this issue as far as 'seeing the fish'? And then I can pull some out and place them in a glass tank, 90 gallon or so, if they need to be treated. I'm just trying to get my ducks in a row. The reason I would like to use the rubbermaid stock tanks is because I'll probably be qt'ing plenty of fish at a time. For example, (not a definite yet) but I am considering anthias. If I go that route, I'll need to qt 25 to 30 anthias. Kind of hard to do that in ANY glass tank. lol

Thanks for your time!

I observe for five weeks unless something shows that requires treatment. I put all fish through prazipro at the end of the observation period after they have been eating vigorously. I do use a large rubbermaid for quarantine although I prefer my nanocube if it is only one fish because of the observation capability versus rubbermaid. When introducing new fish into my display tanks I always socially acclimate unless it is a mandarin or equivalent.

 

[JHemdal]

Interesting. I'd be interested in seeing an article on modern treatments, dips, etc, in the magazine. I had my first tank in 1947 (freshwater)---and I suspect there's a part of me that still operates in the age of diatom filters and CC sandbeds---I try to keep up. So I'd really like to know more about Coral RX and Prazipro. I don't know what all I may be missing!

Sk8R,
There is a chemist I know who opines that floating sealed bags in tanks is bad - he feels that many plastic bags are semi-permeable to CO2, allowing for off-gassing, and floating them in water stops that process. In any event, I once did a study and discovered that most hobbyist sized fish bags reach temperature equilibrium when floating in a new tank, in about 15 minutes, so don't float a sealed bag longer than that.

I have an article in at TFH on fish acclimation, but they "lost it" and I had to remind them about it. No publication date set, but it discusses the problems with drip acclimation, and actually tries to calculate acclimation rates mathematically, instead of "3 drops per second".

Here is an excerpt:

Drip Acclimation
Setting up a line siphoning water from the main tank to an acclimation vessel is a common practice at many aquarium wholesale companies. These "œacclimation tables" can assimilate huge numbers of fish into quarantine systems, dealing with high ammonia levels and other issues in assembly line fashion. Some home aquarists have attempted to emulate this in their home, but there are issues that must be addressed. First of all, the name "œdrip acclimation" is a misnomer. It should be termed "œflow acclimation", as the rate must be faster than a drip. If one were to set up a drip line at one drop of water per second (as many home aquarists have assumed would be an appropriate rate) it would take FIFTY hours to equilibrate the difference in water parameters between one liter of shipping water and the receiving tank to within 90% of each other! Obviously, the flow rate must be faster than that. A flow of one milliliter per second would result in one liter of shipping water reaching 90% equilibration in 2 1/2 hours

Jay Hemdal

 

[Sk8r]

Very interesting! Duly noted, with gratitude.

 

[billsreef]

My own experiences with floating bags confirms Jay's. Even commercial size fish bags acclimate to temperature with minimal floating. I've also long since giving up any sort of drip or flow acclimation for fish, so long as salinity is within a few points. Fish can really handle small changes in salinity without so much as blinking. So I just float a few minutes, and drop them right into their QT after a brief FW dip.

 

[Agu]

My own experiences with floating bags confirms Jay's. Even commercial size fish bags acclimate to temperature with minimal floating. I've also long since giving up any sort of drip or flow acclimation for fish, so long as salinity is within a few points. Fish can really handle small changes in salinity without so much as blinking. So I just float a few minutes, and drop them right into their QT after a brief FW dip.

Although I haven't added a fish in a couple of years I'll have to confirm Bills experience, except for I don't freshwater dip. Years ago I did the long acclimation and lost more than my share of fish.

 

[snorvich]

Although I haven't added a fish in a couple of years I'll have to confirm Bills experience, except for I don't freshwater dip. Years ago I did the long acclimation and lost more than my share of fish.

I would also agree. The problem for me is vendors that keep their water at 1.019 when my normal water is at 1.025/26. I have stopped dealing with those vendors. I do not fresh water dip.

 

[Aquarist007]

My own experiences with floating bags confirms Jay's. Even commercial size fish bags acclimate to temperature with minimal floating. I've also long since giving up any sort of drip or flow acclimation for fish, so long as salinity is within a few points. Fish can really handle small changes in salinity without so much as blinking. So I just float a few minutes, and drop them right into their QT after a brief FW dip.

I don't use bags anymore. I have a insulated container that holds exactly six 2 quart platic juice containers. When I pick up the stock it goes from net into the juice container while still under the water. The juice container has a lid that is vented so the water can breath and reduce any pH shift.
When I arrive at the host tank or qt I simply drip the new water right into the plastic container and when the fish are ready they are dumped right into the new tank with no net contact.
I believe this reduces net and plastic bag stress considerably.
The water temp in the containers can be easily maintained by using heat packs in the insulated container itself

 

[snorvich]

I agree that bags are bad. I also never use nets, as tupperware containers transfer animals much better.