Current Quarantine Protocol

zheka757 · Mar 26, 2023

vetteguy53081 said:
Do not. We have too many that have overdosed and realized copper is a poison if too high.
I believe $60-$70 is cheaper than loss a a $90- $150 fish. Accuracy is important

makes sense, I guess i just needed to read this comment. already ordered one, saltwater aquarium is $15 cheaper the amazon,

Reefer1978 · Mar 27, 2023

zheka757 said:
can I go without measuring copper level? just dose what bottle tell amount? the bottle i got today it says dose 5ml for every 4 gallons, and I got 75 gallon tank. main reason is i don't want to spend $70 on Hanna checker. And cheaper tests are inaccurate based on reviews. ...I have expired api copper test kit from like 5 years ago

vetteguy53081 said:
Do not. We have too many that have overdosed and realized copper is a poison if too high.
I believe $60-$70 is cheaper than loss a a $90- $150 fish. Accuracy is important

Also wanted to add given I just finished Copper treatment, I had to additional dose Copper throughout the 30-day period. I am guessing it binds to the rock. And get a Hannah, don't go with API.

zheka757 · Mar 27, 2023

Reefer1978 said:
Also wanted to add given I just finished Copper treatment, I had to additional dose Copper throughout the 30-day period. I am guessing it binds to the rock. And get a Hannah, don't go with API.

Done, waiting for delivery of hanna checker as well as the fish.

zheka757 · Mar 27, 2023

Also another question I have is, I seeded my quarantine tank with seachem metrix media from my display sump, I don't know what it's made from, but will it bind Copper?

vetteguy53081 · Mar 27, 2023

Reefer1978 said:
Also wanted to add given I just finished Copper treatment, I had to additional dose Copper throughout the 30-day period. I am guessing it binds to the rock. And get a Hannah, don't go with API.

Api will deliver false readings. Hanna just not accurate with copper but you want to avoid overdosing. If you have to change water, and restore copper, again essential you are matching level precisely

LiquidSpace · Mar 27, 2023

@Jay Hemdal I am currently in the middle of the copper stage. Ammonia appears to be raising faster than expected. I must not have used enough bio media from my display.

Would it be okay to use bottled bacteria that people use when setting up the tank or should I just continue small water changes with pre dosed copper?

Jay Hemdal · Mar 27, 2023

SpoiledCorndog said:
@Jay Hemdal I am currently in the middle of the copper stage. Ammonia appears to be raising faster than expected. I must not have used enough bio media from my display.

Would it be okay to use bottled bacteria that people use when setting up the tank or should I just continue small water changes with pre dosed copper?

You can do both….and you may need to if the ammonia trends above 0.50 ppm

Jay

PotatoPig · Mar 30, 2023

@Jay Hemdal

So i added my first round of prazi 4 days ago and this afternoon the water has noticeably clouded, is this normal? Is any action required beyond ensuring aeration?

Also, should I water change between Prazi treatments?

/first time doing a QT…

Jay Hemdal · Mar 30, 2023

PotatoPig said:
@Jay Hemdal

So i added my first round of prazi 4 days ago and this afternoon the water has noticeably clouded, is this normal? Is any action required beyond ensuring aeration?

Also, should I water change between Prazi treatments?

/first time doing a QT…

Did you dose praziquantel or Prazipro? The latter uses a glycol solvent that can rarely cause cloudy water. You also need to consider other causes of cloudy water - are you measuring any ammonia?
I generally suggest a 25% water change after 72 hours with prazipro.
Jay

PotatoPig · Mar 30, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
Did you dose praziquantel or Prazipro? The latter uses a glycol solvent that can rarely cause cloudy water. You also need to consider other causes of cloudy water - are you measuring any ammonia?
I generally suggest a 25% water change after 72 hours with prazipro.
Jay

Thank you for the fast reply! I’m using prazi pro.

I have an ammonia tag that’s showing zero (and has read non-zero near the beginning so appears to work). I’ll run a water change this evening though.

is there any reason to limit to 25%? When I’ve been changing water I’ve typically been doing a 50% change (using water from DT water changes so have approx 50% water in a bucket ready to go each water change).

Jay Hemdal · Mar 30, 2023

PotatoPig said:
Thank you for the fast reply! I’m using prazi pro.

I have an ammonia tag that’s showing zero (and has read non-zero near the beginning so appears to work). I’ll run a water change this evening though.

is there any reason to limit to 25%? When I’ve been changing water I’ve typically been doing a 50% change (using water from DT water changes so have approx 50% water in a bucket ready to go each water change).

No limit to 25% except time and effort…..
Just checking, the DT didn’t house the fish that are you treating, right? That would just move disease with the water changes.
Jay

PotatoPig · Mar 30, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
No limit to 25% except time and effort…..
Just checking, the DT didn’t house the fish that are you treating, right? That would just move disease with the water changes.
Jay

No - these are new fish being quarantined as a precaution before going in the DT (two Zebra Barred Dartfish - starting small). I’m using the DT water in the assumption it’ll minimize adjustment on transfer to the DT.

One more question - assuming all goes well do I need to sterilize the QT tank prior to doing QT on the next fish? (QT tank has functioning cycle with colonized non-absorbent filter media so would like to keep it running if possible).

PotatoPig · Mar 30, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
Did you dose praziquantel or Prazipro? The latter uses a glycol solvent that can rarely cause cloudy water. You also need to consider other causes of cloudy water - are you measuring any ammonia?
I generally suggest a 25% water change after 72 hours with prazipro.
Jay

Jay,

Turns out it was just the glass getting cloudy after a month of no cleaning it and no pods/CUC.

Well, the little guys are now in clean water infused with pods they seem to be enjoying.

Now to get myself a QT glass cleaner…

Jay Hemdal · Mar 31, 2023

PotatoPig said:
Jay,

Turns out it was just the glass getting cloudy after a month of no cleaning it and no pods/CUC.

Well, the little guys are now in clean water infused with pods they seem to be enjoying.

Now to get myself a QT glass cleaner…

That has tripped people up before - the trick is to look down into the tank from the top to confirm if the water or the glass is cloudy.

Jay

Jay Hemdal · Mar 31, 2023

PotatoPig said:
No - these are new fish being quarantined as a precaution before going in the DT (two Zebra Barred Dartfish - starting small). I’m using the DT water in the assumption it’ll minimize adjustment on transfer to the DT.

One more question - assuming all goes well do I need to sterilize the QT tank prior to doing QT on the next fish? (QT tank has functioning cycle with colonized non-absorbent filter media so would like to keep it running if possible).

No - the only time you sterilize a QT is when you had uncontrolled losses from an unknown disease - then sterilize. Otherwise, there is nothing in your QT that the last fish you moved out of it didn't already carry into your DT.

Jay

PotatoPig · Mar 31, 2023

Jay,

Thank you again - i really appreciate the effort you and others here put into helping us newbies out

As I’m approaching the end of this QT, and seeing a horror story at the top of the thread list, I realize this QT doesn’t treat for Brook. Does this typically need preventative treatment in QT or is there a reasonable (though I assume not 100%) assumption that after six weeks in a high stress and immuno-suppressive environment that if Brook (and others not treated by the QT) hasn’t reared it’s head the fish is probably clear of it?

zheka757 · Apr 5, 2023

using api test kit, im getting 0.25 reading on ammonia in my quarantine tank, i have about 2 pounds of seachem metrix biomedia from my main displays sump. i also dose seachem stability as well as doing water changes everyday, water coming from my display tank. is it safe to dose coppersafe at this level of ammonia? never had experience with copper scared to start it.

Jay Hemdal · Apr 6, 2023

zheka757 said:
using api test kit, im getting 0.25 reading on ammonia in my quarantine tank, i have about 2 pounds of seachem metrix biomedia from my main displays sump. i also dose seachem stability as well as doing water changes everyday, water coming from my display tank. is it safe to dose coppersafe at this level of ammonia? never had experience with copper scared to start it.

Yes, that reading could be an artifact of the test. Just bear in mind that coppersafe is bound with ammonia, and you will get a slight bump in the ammonia reading after dosing it, but it isn't harmful to the fish, just that the test kits can't tell the difference.

jay

zheka757 · Apr 6, 2023

Jay Hemdal said:
Yes, that reading could be an artifact of the test. Just bear in mind that coppersafe is bound with ammonia, and you will get a slight bump in the ammonia reading after dosing it, but it isn't harmful to the fish, just that the test kits can't tell the difference.

jay

Just to make sure I made it clear, I had .25 ppm ammonia (before) I even dosed coppersafe. Also using same test kit to test my display tank, and it does show 0ppm for ammonia. So it is a fact that my ammonia was eleveted in my quarantine tank.