How much water change can I do?

[Jvesche20]

40 would be much better for sure. I prefer a 55 for larger tangs minimum. I understand though you are just trying to take care of your fish and do the right thing. Cannot fault you for that. You may be able to make this easier on yourself if you Up-size your QT or add another.

Alright I’ll go to petco tomorrow and see what they have

 

[Instigate]

I think it would be less stressful to the fish to do two 50% WCs and not removing the fish from the QT but dose the new water up to whatever level of copper you're at before adding it to the tank. That way you don't have to catch the fish and the copper level never drops. +1 on the larger QT tank and ammonia alert badge too.

I initially tried to QT a CBB in a 2o long and it seemed ok but I had water quality issues that I believe led to a bacterial infection. Then I switched to a 37 gallon(roughly same dimensions ad a 40 breeder) and a 60 gallon(TTM) and the fish was noticeably more active and acting normal and it was easier to keep water quality good. And of course, when doing large WCs be sure you have the SG, and temp the same as the tank.

 

[paulcwilson]

try using large plastic totes as a qt for your fish they work and have your filter running with no carbon in it while treating

 

[Jvesche20]

So I found my self a 55 gal for free on Craigslist. The guy was selling it for $20 I went to his place and he was an old retired man and said to use the $20 for gas. Was very pleased. I put my fish in the tank used 25 gallons that I had them in before and added another 25 gal. I’ve been doing water changes a lot to try and get my nitrite levels down. The levels still seem to be sky high. My tang seems to be struggling. He is just laying on his side and hasn’t ate in 2 days. The color is starting to fade on the fish. My other fish are loving the 4ft tank. Not sure what to do any suggestions what to do with this blue tang?

 

[Instigate]

So I found my self a 55 gal for free on Craigslist. The guy was selling it for $20 I went to his place and he was an old retired man and said to use the $20 for gas. Was very pleased. I put my fish in the tank used 25 gallons that I had them in before and added another 25 gal. I’ve been doing water changes a lot to try and get my nitrite levels down. The levels still seem to be sky high. My tang seems to be struggling. He is just laying on his side and hasn’t ate in 2 days. The color is starting to fade on the fish. My other fish are loving the 4ft tank. Not sure what to do any suggestions what to do with this blue tang?

Nitrite is not toxic to marine fish in the amounts found in our tanks. Presence of ammonia or lack of oxygen seem much more likely culprits. Did you get an ammonia alert badge? Could add a cheap powerhead shooting across the water surface to ensure good oxygen exchange. Parasites like ich and velvet tend to attack at gills first and might not be visibly present on the outside of the fish. Could be causing lack of oxygen possibly. How quickly did you ramp up the copper? What's the current copper level?

 

[Jvesche20]

My fish did this before and I flushed out all the water and gave it new water. It was perfectly fine then as the fish have been in the QT longer and my levels are starting to grow the fish has gotten worse. I have a power head aimed up so it makes More oxygen flow in the tank. When I did the copper I added the amount it says on the bottle to the 5 gal bucket with the water inside. I don’t have a copper test kit. I’ll get one tomorrow along with an ammonia alert badge.