Quarantine Tank Question

[Marco S]

I am planning on purchasing the following tank to use for a quarantine\hospital tank for all fish and corals I will be adding to my main display tank.

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/nuvo-aquarium-fusion-mini-40h-tank.html

My main questions are as follows:

1. Will this tank be a good enough size or should I go bigger?

2. Besides a Protein Skimmer, a sponge filter, a heater and some large PVC tubes, what other equipment would you recommend and why?

3. Will I need to replace the filter media after the quarantine is complete for the current fish or corals before adding new livestock to be quarantined? Or can I continue to use the same media until it needs to be replaced?

4. What medications would you recommend besides copper and why?

5. Should I quarantine the cleanup crew the same way I quarantine the fish and coral?

Any advice is welcome and much appreciated!

Thank you,
Marco

 

[TheEngineer]

What fish do you plan on holding in it?

 

[Reefpuck]

Honestly...if you want to save a few bucks... just get an aqueon 29g or 40g. You can get a 29g on the dollar per gallon sale for $29. Buy a cheap hob filter and a small preset heater... and call it a day. Either tank is big enough for most fish.

I'd do some searches on proper qt methods. There are already plenty of in depth conversations about that.

I've never qt inverts. Copper will kill them.

 

[Reefpuck]

Yes you will need to replace filter media. Always have a filter pad or bio ball's in your main tank... so they're seeded with beneficial bacteria for your qt.

However once you put that media in your qt tank...it can never return to the main tank. Again search the forum...lots of threads on this already.

 

[PDR]

It would work but is overkill imo. I agree with everything @Reefpuck said. Also, I think a skimmer is pretty unnecessary on a qt tank. Check out the stickies on this forum https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/fish-disease-treatment-and-diagnosis.771/. It will answer anything you need to know and much much more lol.

 

[PatW]

I find that a cheap 29 gallon tank is a good size for a quarantine tank. I use a hang on the back filter and it works well, but a sponge filter is fine. A protein skimmer is over kill.

Copper as a prophylactic is good for ich, marine velvet and brook.

You can run copper for at least 2 weeks. Then do a large water change and run prazipro for a week or two.

Another thing I try to accomplish in quarantine is to get my new fish eating the food I offer. I also feed them with abandon. I figure that they are stressed in shipping. So I try to get them visibly fattened before they go into the display tank. I also want them to recognize feeding time. Going into the display is stressful. The new fish are usually picked on a bit. It takes them awhile to find a hiding place and get learn to get into the scramble at feeding time.