Adding some tanks for QT and medicating...

revhtree · Oct 12, 2016

Hey gang it's time to start getting my other tanks together for my 400+ build. I have plenty of room for tanks and I want to make sure I have what I need plumbed into place the first time!

I was thinking I need a QT tank and two tanks for the tank transfer method.

Any reason why I would need more?

What size tanks do you recommend?

cromag27 · Oct 12, 2016

I use 20 long and 40 breeder for my qts. can't beat dollar per gallon sales.

revhtree · Oct 12, 2016

cromag08 said:
I use 20 long and 40 breeder for my qts. can't beat dollar per gallon sales.

Right on! I picked up some as well from the sale. But if you were in my shoes with the 400+ build and had enough space how many tanks and what sizes would you go with for QT and Hospital tanks?

cromag27 · Oct 12, 2016

For me, the size and amount of the tanks would be determined by the size and amount of fish you want to qt at once.

Might be overkill but I'd say two 40b for hospital tanks. at least two 20 long for ttm, 29 if you have larger fish.

400 is a lot of water and I'm guessing you're going to introduce batches of fish slowly?

revhtree said:
Right on! I picked up some as well from the sale. But if you were in my shoes with the 400+ build and had enough space how many tanks and what sizes would you go with for QT and Hospital tanks?

dragon99 · Oct 12, 2016

pair of 40's. I'm assuming you will have some big fish for the big tank.

cromag27 · Oct 12, 2016

For ttm I also have two sets of filters, heaters, etc.

DLHDesign · Oct 12, 2016

I'd think the number and size would depend upon how quickly you want to ramp up - combined with the types/sizes of fishes you plan on getting.

TTM requires two tanks, but only one will really be in use at a time. The other will be drying, basically. And TTM only lasts 12+ days. The rest of the QT time is spent in a single tank. So as long as you stagger your new-fish batches by 14+ days, you could run two TTM cycles with three tanks (eg; not four). Along the same lines, you would be able to respond to an ich outbreak in the DT in the same fashion. You can also use your TTM tanks as hospital tanks when/as needed - so long as you're not in the middle of a TTM cycle. That's a chance I've been willing to take so far, personally. If absolutely critical (eg; needed a hospital tank while in the middle of a TTM cycle), I could always go pick up a 10gal nearly anywhere for cheap.
So, in short - I'd think two QT/hospital tanks is enough, while three covers every need.

As far as size, that depends upon what you're buying - and how much at once. I limit myself to young (read: small) fish as it gives me more time to watch them grow. I also do batches of limited size (<4, typically). As such, I've been able to get away with 10gal tanks so far. I've not done any tangs yet, so I may need more QT space when I go to introduce 4 of them into the tank at the same time. But even with that, I'm glad I have the 10gal tanks for most fishes as I use less water to fill those up. TTM is great (IMO), but it's biggest downside is that it puts a lot of water (and salt) down the drain. As such, keeping the volume as low as possible makes the most sense to me.

Also as a reminder; you'll want the QT tanks 10ft+ away from each other and your DT to prevent aerosol transfer. It's unclear to me whether a good cover on the tank (obviously keeping good air transfer) could reduce this distance, but that might be an option to help reduce the footprint required...

Duke4Life · Oct 12, 2016

Plastic totes for ttm, once done you can stack together and put away while having your others for observation.

Humblefish · Oct 12, 2016

^^ I agree, the kind & size of fish is the most important factor to consider when determining QT tank size.

@revhtree Please provide the community with your proposed stock list.

Dreadnaught · Oct 12, 2016

I'm finding ~5 medium size fish per 20G is a happy zone. Your going to burn a ton of water quickly so plan for that.

Eva Rose · Oct 13, 2016

Are you planning on having a tank for coral frags??

Xclusive Reef · Oct 13, 2016

I would do 40b for QT and have 2 20 long (1 for corals, 1 for fish) in case you see a contaminated fish you can isolate them. 400 gals!!!! can't wait to see the build.

Brew12 · Oct 13, 2016

Personally, I would go with 2 x 10 gallon for TTM and then have at least a 55g set up as a hospital tank for fish that are too large for TTM or for longer term holding. And of course, a large shallow tank for frag/invert QT.

In my opinion, trying to tear down and clean anything larger than a 10g tank 3 times a week for TTM isn't a whole lot of fun.

4FordFamily · Oct 13, 2016

revhtree said:
Right on! I picked up some as well from the sale. But if you were in my shoes with the 400+ build and had enough space how many tanks and what sizes would you go with for QT and Hospital tanks?

Dual 55 gallons IMO

Diesel · Oct 13, 2016

I always planned my stock list very well and ordered my fish accordingly by size.
Never went over 3" on a fish, they will grow pretty quickly in a 400

For that a 20 gallon long is big enough and for TTM two 10 gallons were plenty.
Plan also having a frag tank (60x24x10) system setup as when fish needs to be paired up (tangs or angels) you can keep them in there with tank dividers so that they can used to each other.
Also it can be positive to have some random frags in there to see for fish like angels if they will nip on corals from the get go.

Duke4Life · Oct 13, 2016

Diesel said:
Also it can be positive to have some random frags in there to see for fish like angels if they will nip on corals from the get go.

That's a great idea. Going to have use this myself in the future.

revhtree · Oct 13, 2016

Great advice from you all! Taking it all in!

As far as a fish list goes well.....LOL! Everything?? HA!

Diesel · Oct 13, 2016

revhtree said:
Great advice from you all! Taking it all in!

As far as a fish list goes well.....LOL! Everything?? HA!

Bandit, Gem tang, Black tang, some rare Angels, nice looking wrasses and a Yellow Tail Damsel........... got to have a YTD

revhtree · Oct 13, 2016

Diesel said:
Bandit, Gem tang, Black tang, some rare Angels, nice looking wrasses and a Yellow Tail Damsel........... got to have a YTD

I would love to have each one of those you mentioned except the damsel! HA!

Diesel · Oct 13, 2016

revhtree said:
I would love to have each one of those you mentioned except the damsel! HA!

NO NO NO cant have each of these with out the YTD.
Is tike a Pastor without a Church.............. can't have that either

FYI, in each of my tanks I always had a YTD, it was my first salt water fish in the early 80's and from there on I always had one as my first fish.
Never had a problem with them, yes they have their own place in the tank but a 400 would be a problem, you wouldn't even notice him/her