QT Tank or not?

[savetheocean]

Do you think QT tanks are necessary? Can diseases or parasites get in the tank any other way than fish?

Will the fish fight it off if the water quality is good and they are fed well.

 

[Raul Navarro]

Im actually new to saltwater but have been doing freshwater for 10 plus year now and never had a quarantine tank. That being said I got lucky for 10 years and never lost a fish due to disease or parasite until last month. I got a fahaka puffer and he ended up having a parasite and ich. During treatment I lost 7 of the other fish in the same tank they ended up getting ich. The puffer survived through it so that's the upside. I'm actually working on setting up a QT tank as we speak.

 

[ndrwater]

In order asked:

Depends on who you ask.
Yes
Not necessarily.
Now let's expand on these answers.
Quarantine is not 100% necessary, but highly recommend. If you prophylactically treat your fish for common ailments, you are much less likely to introduce a pathogen that could potentially wipe out your fish population.
Parasites like Ich can and do enter our systems on things like live rock and corals. There is a portion of it's lifecylife where it is attached to rock or substrate.
A fish in a system where the parameters are perfect and stable, fed a good ballanced diet, have no other stressors to worry about can beat back some diseases or parasites. Does that mean all will? Absolutely not.
Some forms of diseases are terminal more often than not, and internal parasites are almost impossible to beat without medication.

Choosing fish wisely from a trusted source, who got their fish from an area where the fish were caught sustainably, properly packed and shipped, and then handled well at the wholesaler goes a long way to being successful with or without quarantine.
Quarantine just helps swing the odds more in your favor.

 

[Big G]

Yes. Parasites can come in with anything "wet" like corals, snails, etc.

 

[deedubz]

Yes. Parasites can come in with anything "wet" like corals, snails, etc.

Yup. Just finished tank transfer and hypo on 8 fish because I didn't know I was supposed to qt some new snails/hermits.

I strongly advise qt because it's easier to observe and potentially treat a couple new additions than it is to break down your tank, catch, and then treat your whole fish population in a hurried hospital tank...Trust me on that one

 

[AquaART]

As much as I hate the whole quarantining process, I think that it’s a solid foundation to a successful population of fish. Now, disclaimer, you don’t need a qurantine system, and a lot of veterans in the hobby will tell you ‘do as I say not as I do’, as many don’t actually quarentine fish because they have a great relationship with their suppliers and a nack for identifying healthy specimens.

I also think a lot of people put off the whole ordeal because they think it’s expensive and you need to have another tank setup. I have my old 20 gallon and a hang on back filter as my QT system and I only set it up when I get new fish. I have a huge roll of filter floss that I cut into squares to fit inside the HOB filter and I always have a nice mature filter pad in my sump. When I get a new fish I fill up the QT with display water and pop in the mature pad into the HOB filter and a fresh new pad goes back in the sump. When the new fish is a good to go, the old filter pad get tossed, tank is taken down, rinsed, put in a large garbage bag, and outside it goes. This minimizes any ammonia spikes, gets the fish into nice and mature water, and makes the process easy and streamlined—thusly, I never needed to have a QT system live and on standby.

Now, of course you can get nasties on corals, snails, and inverts (I don’t quarantine them), but it’s the fish that generally carry things like marine velvet that can wipe out your prized family members. So in the end it’s ultimately your choice, but as with everything in this hobby, I would recommend you lean on the side of caution and have good husbandry skills—remember, an ounce of preventaion is worth a pound of cure.

 

[ps2cho]

You decide if its worth losing all your livestock over having a simple 10g tank and waiting at minimum 4-weeks .

 

[Flexin]

Once you have a problem from a new introduction, fish or coral, and it takes months to recover not counting losses, you will QT. Why roll the dice when there is so much out of our control.

 

[tgrick]

It's a really great question and one I used to struggle with. The LFS looks clean, the fish look healthy and they mentioned they took all the precautions in the world to make sure the fish they sold you was disease free! Sound familiar? Well, what if parasites morph into ALIENS that looked like the ones in the movies and became 6 feet tall and had acid for blood. Would you still avoid quarantine? Knowing that this simple step can save you from being eaten alive and having a monster come out of your chest?

It's dramatic the above thought. It's just a fish. But I'm tired of the same reality. Those "healthy" fish become sick later and here were are chasing our tales spending time and money to save a fish.

I'm no longer in the quarantine tank maybe phase. I'm in the treat for parasites and other disease and move on. It's hard, it's not fun and I am going to upset the CFO (WIFE) with expenses and an ugly tank. But I feel that's the best option for me.

 

[savetheocean]

I started off without qt, its too late now. I get all my fish from the same place and have never had a real issue. I don't have that much more room for fish so whats the point now? If there is anything, its already in the tank.

 

[Flexin]

When you treat a whole tank for something, if you have a simple tank with the same corals and fish, you can get away with it, maybe. But if you like softies, SPS, LPS, fans, sponges, inverts,...... Treating the entire tank will result in the loss of something. Saying you QT means you have a place to put a fish and treat it down the road, it's not just for the introduction phase. But, it's all well and good until something happens. Then you start a new threat or stop posting all together while you silently battle something that could have been avoided.