Adding my first fish. QT or Not?

[JimBonks]

About to add my first and only fish in my tank, 2 clowns. It will just be those 2 and corals. Should I QT.? I know there is a risk but I will not be adding any other fish to the tank and they will be th first. I have a few zoas thriving right now and the tank has been up for 3 and a half months post cycle.

Any thoughts either way I would appreciate.

 

[Ctg0209]

Quarantine no question. If the fish have a parasite or disease you can take care of it. If you don’t quarantine and they have something it’s gonna get in your DT and then have to go fallow and who wants to look at an empty tank for 2.5 months and answer that annoying question, “how come there’s no fish in the tank?” I know you wanna get fish in the tank after 3 months but do the smart thing and quarantine

 

[RichtheReefer21]

QT... always.

I have 5 weeks left of staring at a fishless system before I can move my "now-parasite-free" fish from hospital tank to the DT.

It's worth it to keep your DT pest free from the start! Trust me.

 

[4FordFamily]

QT. The distribution system is atrocious right now. The worst possible time to take gambles you’ll lose, unfortunately.

 

[JimBonks]

Sounds like QT is the consensus. Is a 10 gallon with a hang on the back and a filter sponge I have had in my DT since day one good enough? I will also add some PVC pipes or a flowerpot and a SeaChem ammonia badge. Should I add a small wavemaker or powerhead as well? How often to do you guys change water? Also what about lighting? Thanks, just want to get this going the correct way from the start. It's taken this long so I might as well do it right!

 

[4FordFamily]

Sounds like QT is the consensus. Is a 10 gallon with a hang on the back and a filter sponge I have had in my DT since day one good enough? I will also add some PVC pipes or a flowerpot and a SeaChem ammonia badge. Should I add a small wavemaker or powerhead as well? How often to do you guys change water? Also what about lighting? Thanks, just want to get this going the correct way from the start. It's taken this long so I might as well do it right!

It depends, it’ll be tight for a tang. I think a 20L to 55gal is ideal. I QT batches of fish, sometimes several tangs and angels at a time.

I recommend a small powerhead, yes. I’d use that sponge and also add BioSpira or Dr Tim’s to kick start bacteria.

I do not light my quarantine tanks anymore, or if I do it’s for a very short period of time. For the first week or two I do not light at all, especially for wrasses.

 

[JimBonks]

It depends, it’ll be tight for a tang. I think a 20L to 55gal is ideal. I QT batches of fish, sometimes several tangs and angels at a time.

I recommend a small powerhead, yes. I’d use that sponge and also add BioSpira or Dr Tim’s to kick start bacteria.

I do not light my quarantine tanks anymore, or if I do it’s for a very short period of time. For the first week or two I do not light at all, especially for wrasses.

It will be for 2 clowns. They will be the only fish ever going in my tank. They are about 1.5 inches or so in size now.

 

[4FordFamily]

It will be for 2 clowns. They will be the only fish ever going in my tank. They are about 1.5 inches or so in size now.

10G should be fine.

 

[RichtheReefer21]

It will be for 2 clowns. They will be the only fish ever going in my tank. They are about 1.5 inches or so in size now.

You will change your mind in time, trust me.

 

[Ctg0209]

No special lighting is needed. I have a power head in mine just for a little more flow/aeration. Equipment wise that’s all you need. If you are actively treating your fish I would recommend prazipro, some form of copper based medication and a copper test kit. If you are dosing copper make sure you are testing it as it can be deadly if over dosed. Also make sure any equipment that comes in contact with quarantine doesn’t come in contact with DT. Fishofhex on YouTube has a lot of good videos on starting a quarantine tank and maintaining one

 

[JimBonks]

You will change your mind in time, trust me.

You are so right and I know it. So QT now so I don't have to remove them later on right? I would hate to put them in and have to take them right back out! About how long should I QT? 76 days or what?

 

[JimBonks]

No special lighting is needed. I have a power head in mine just for a little more flow/aeration. Equipment wise that’s all you need. If you are actively treating your fish I would recommend prazipro, some form of copper based medication and a copper test kit. If you are dosing copper make sure you are testing it as it can be deadly if over dosed. Also make sure any equipment that comes in contact with quarantine doesn’t come in contact with DT. Fishofhex on YouTube has a lot of good videos on starting a quarantine tank and maintaining one

Do I need to treat with copper or just observer at first? Man so much to learn....

 

[RichtheReefer21]

It is up to you, there is not one way to QT.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/how-to-quarantine.189815/

 

[Ctg0209]

I like to do 30 days of copper, increasing to therapeutic levels over 4 days and then maintaining there. On my latest quarantine experience I had black ich show up on a tang after 2 days of copper so I had to do multiple water changes to remove copper and then dose prazipro. In the future I think I will do two doses of prazipro and then copper just because the copper needs to be in system longer.

 

[theKoolAidMan]

Generally recommended best practice is to QT, however a recent poll on the site showed that only about half of members actually do QT. So it's far from a requirement, but is a good idea and will help lower the risk of disease in your tank at the expense of space, time, and money. My recommendation would be that if you have the space and money to run a qt, then do it. If not, it's not the end of the world and you can still have a lot of success in the hobby. I'm that case, look into freshwater or medicated dips and only buy fish from sources you know and trust and take time to observe them before buying. Just know that most of us will have a run in with disease at some point, and not using a QT can increase the likelihood of that happening sooner rather than later. But how much? Full disclosure: I do not QT due to a lack of space.

 

[sergifed91]

I have never did a QT until now. I got flukes and killed all my fish. now I have a tank that's fallow and in process of trying to find room/space for 2 10 g qt tanks. nothing big. this way if I get flukes again in go from 1 tank for 48 hours to the next for 48 hours and back and forth. it's always a good idea to have one. lesson learned.

 

[Jesterrace]

Some form of QT is best if for no other reason then to avoid subjecting your DT to a disease. While a given fish can be resistant to disease, there is no guarantee that the fish you add afterwards will be.