LiveAquaria Divers Denn

[Gaspipe]

So I ordered two fish from the Diver's Den on LiveAquaria and I should be receiving them tomorrow.

I don't QT my fish, and I know I should. I plan on setting one up in the future, more as a hospital tank.

My plan is to a) temp acclimate them and b) drip acclimate. I also have Dr. Tim's First Defense that I will use.

Some questions:

1a. Should I freshwater dip them (RODI)?
1b. If yes, how long?
2. Can I drip acclimate both fish in a 5 Quart bucket? (Royal Gramma & Melanesian Starcki Damselfish)

Thank you in advance,
Gaspare

 

[blaxsun]

1a. You can (this will really only help with flukes).
1b. No more than 5 minutes (make sure they're upright and swimming at all times).
2. Yes.

 

[MaxTremors]

Drip acclimating them after shipping is a recipe for disaster, as soon as you open the bag, CO2 is going to dissipate and raise the PH making the ammonia that’s built up in the bad toxic. I would test the salinity and ph of the bag water, if it’s fairly close to your tank, I would just float them and dump them in. If it’s way off (salinity and PH), you’re going to have a difficult time acclimating them without a QT tank (that you can match to the bag water and then slowly over a week or two get to match your DT). Since you don’t have one, I would recommend making some salt water that matches the bag water, transfer fish to that, and then drip acclimate to your DT over several hours. The issues are the ammonia and how much the bag water differs from your DT water. Since you don’t have a QT, next time I would have your LFS order the fish you want, let them deal with acclimating after shipping (the hassle is largely why I only buy fish in person, I do buy corals online though).

Edit: one other option to deal with the ammonia is to put a little bit of prime in the bag/container you’re acclimating the fish in.

 

[Gaspipe]

@MaxTremors thank you for the advice. After these two fish are introduced, it will be a long time before I add any more (one if any) and I should have a QT by then.

Thank you for the advice.
Gaspare

 

[Soren]

1a. You can (this will really only help with flukes).
1b. No more than 5 minutes (make sure they're upright and swimming at all times).
2. Yes.

@Gaspipe
Freshwater dips may also help prevent introduction of Ich (Cryptocaryon) or Velvet (Amyloodinium) since they cannot handle the change in salinity and burst. It does not always kill all cysts, though, so it is not a guaranteed method of prevention. This method tends to be used during bad outbreaks to give the fish temporary relief, especially if the gills are heavily infested.

 

[Gaspipe]

There seems to be only positive outcomes, although not 100% but no harmful treatment with permanent damage.

OK thank you!

 

[blaxsun]

@Gaspipe
Freshwater dips may also help prevent introduction of Ich (Cryptocaryon) or Velvet (Amyloodinium) since they cannot handle the change in salinity and burst. It does not always kill all cysts, though, so it is not a guaranteed method of prevention. This method tends to be used during bad outbreaks to give the fish temporary relief, especially if the gills are heavily infested.

Very true. It's certainly better than nothing.