QT Tank - Post Hypo Treatment for Ich...

[Reefer2727]

Well, 8 weeks later my clowns have returned to my DT tank and look great. Hypo treatment seemed to work well. My question is, when the clowns went into the QT they were pretty infested with ich. Is there anything I should do to the QT tank before I add any new fish to it?

I know that the hypo should have taken care of all the ich but I want to play it safe. By the off chance that the clowns just actually developed an immunity to the ich rather than the ich being hypo'd away.

They were in there for 8 weeks and probably 7 weeks were at a constant salinity of 1.008-1.009. I have 2 HOB filters with nothing but foam in them. Is there anything I should consider doing before putting my next additions in?

Thanks

[darb85]

let it run fallow for 8 weeks.

[wooden_reefer]

let it run fallow for 8 weeks.

+1

While you wait, you can also add more fresh water at the start if the volume of the tank will hold. You can take hypo to lower salinity.

Nitrification bacteria can take even lower salinity than fish.

[Reefer2727]

What should I drop the salinity to? If salinity is really low I shouldn't need to wait 8 weeks correct? Wouldn't 4 weeks be plenty?

[wooden_reefer]

What should I drop the salinity to? If salinity is really low I shouldn't need to wait 8 weeks correct? Wouldn't 4 weeks be plenty?

I think drop by sg 0.002 a day or until the QT is full.

I guess with hypo and fishlessness you do not need to wait longer than 4 weeks, if the water is rather warm. Are you in a hurry?

[lucidheights]

If something happened to survive and is still living in the qt, i'd bet that it's still on your fish too. I personally would not leave the qt fallow because new additions will probably be carrying some parasites anyway, making the whole fallow process futile. The most deadly thing about a qt is the lack of nitrifying bacteria, worry about that more than anything else.

[stingythingy45]

If something happened to survive and is still living in the qt, i'd bet that it's still on your fish too. I personally would not leave the qt fallow because new additions will probably be carrying some parasites anyway, making the whole fallow process futile. The most deadly thing about a qt is the lack of nitrifying bacteria, worry about that more than anything else.

I agree with this.
Also,you'll be able to observe the clowns a while and see how they're doing before inhabiting the QT with anything else.At least a week.
I'm sure you'll be fine.

[wooden_reefer]

If something happened to survive and is still living in the qt, i'd bet that it's still on your fish too. I personally would not leave the qt fallow because new additions will probably be carrying some parasites anyway, making the whole fallow process futile. The most deadly thing about a qt is the lack of nitrifying bacteria, worry about that more than anything else.

Yes nitrification in QT is important, but there are other simplier ways to feed the nitrification bacteria in QT other than adding fish. Any one pulse of ammonia will do.

One likely do not need to wait if one QTs in the same way the next fish. I tend to agree, however.

[Reefer2727]

I agree that if something did manage to live in the QT then the clowns likely still have it. If I understand this correctly, I shouldn't leave the QT fishless for very long? This is because of the potential loss of nitrifying bacteria?

[lucidheights]

yep, just feed the qt flakes once in a while. Get an ammonia badge, it constantly monitors the water so you wont have to keep testing. Very handy tool.

[vwmike]

Not to threadjack, but is it safe to assume that the water was dosed with anything else that it should be changed as well? I'm about to start a treatment of formalin for a bad case but I want to make sure that with no LR or substrate the tank should be safe for other critters later on?

[wooden_reefer]

I agree that if something did manage to live in the QT then the clowns likely still have it. If I understand this correctly, I shouldn't leave the QT fishless for very long? This is because of the potential loss of nitrifying bacteria?

Nitrification bacteria, unlike some pathogenic bacteria, do not have a rigorous resting stage.

But they do not die easily from starvation, they do but slowly.

I think perhaps 10% loss each week with no ammonia or nitrite is a practical concept.

[wooden_reefer]

Not to threadjack, but is it safe to assume that the water was dosed with anything else that it should be changed as well? I'm about to start a treatment of formalin for a bad case but I want to make sure that with no LR or substrate the tank should be safe for other critters later on?

It depends on what you dose with and the setup of your QT.

If there is a lot of calcereous material in the QT and if you use straight copper, all copper will be gone after several days.

You can also use a chemical filter to remove drugs that may linger. You must know that the filter is effective in picking up that drug. Frequently, if you can pick up nearly all of any drug you will be OK.

[Reefer2727]

What is an ammonia badge? So I will give the tank flakes every now and then until I get my next fish. I should just make sure that no ammonia shows up?

[wooden_reefer]

What is an ammonia badge? So I will give the tank flakes every now and then until I get my next fish. I should just make sure that no ammonia shows up?

I like to keep the medium of filtration in a separate container. So when I feed it with ammonia I won't have to worry about it containing any residual ammonia. I just rinse it with tank water.

If the medium is tied to the tank, not easily separated, you have to worry about such things as residual ammonia after feeding the bacteria.

[Reefer2727]

There will be no separate container involved. I will be running my QT tank all the time. The medium is in the 2 HOB filters that are running on the tank.

[wooden_reefer]

There will be no separate container involved. I will be running my QT tank all the time. The medium is in the 2 HOB filters that are running on the tank.

If you have similar bioload thru-out stocking, your nitrification capacity in QT will be stable over the whole stocking procedure.

If you have long pauses in stocking, you may have to think of keeping your bacteria in QT independent on fish bioload. Sometimes you just cannot find the livestock that you want.

In such case, using a separate contain to re-vigorate the nitrification is very easy. You just hook up your filter in another plastic container. Sometimes this is better than doing it in the QT and having to make very sure that all ammonia is gone.