Seeding new DT with rock from old tank.

[Radman73]

I'm in the process of setting up a 220. Filling as I type. I would like to seed it with rock from my existing 60 cube but I only QT's a couple of fish that went into the tank. None of the 3 current inhabitants were QT'd. All 3 were from before I knew better about QT. The clowns have been with me for 7 years, the wrasse for 2.5-3 years. I have never had a noticeable ich outbreak but don't want to take chances.

If I go at least 72 days before moving the fish over, I should be fine moving the seed rock into the new tank from the old one correct and there should be no worries of ich correct?

I really don't want to screw this new tank up. 220gal can hold too much livestock to take silly risks.

TIA

 

[Scarybo]

I'm in the process of setting up a 220. Filling as I type. I would like to seed it with rock from my existing 60 cube but I only QT's a couple of fish that went into the tank. None of the 3 current inhabitants were QT'd. All 3 were from before I knew better about QT. The clowns have been with me for 7 years, the wrasse for 2.5-3 years. I have never had a noticeable ich outbreak but don't want to take chances.

If I go at least 72 days before moving the fish over, I should be fine moving the seed rock into the new tank from the old one correct and there should be no worries of ich correct?

I really don't want to screw this new tank up. 220gal can hold too much livestock to take silly risks.

TIA

Tank needs to be fallow for 76 days.

 

[Humblefish]

Tank needs to be fallow for 76 days.

+1 76 days fallow for "anything wet" (rock, sand, corals, inverts, equipment, etc.) you plan to transfer into the new tank.

As for the fish, it would be ideal to run them all thru TTM: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/tank-transfer-method.192655/

 

[aykwm]

+1 to the above. In the new DT tank, after it cycles you can add a fresh water black molly that YOU acclimate to salt water and you can keep it the display to ensure there is no ich. Make sure that you get it from FW tank and acclimate it to SW to ensure it has no immunity for SW parasites. If you see any parasites it will clearly contrast against its black body. Then you will have to go fallow and remove the moly, if not you will be sure it has no parasites + it will keep algae under control while you perform TTM on the fish. Another option is to put the molly in the old DT with the fish and let the DT stay fallow for a period of time in case the ich is present the new DT remains fallow and you dont start from zero.
Unfortunately, since ich has different life cycles with different duration there is no specific period that will ensure ich is free (the longest evidence of strain is 72 days, hence going fallow for 76 days, but some had ich appear after that either due to wrong fallow process or a strain that can live longer), but the longer you keep the molly and it stays ich (or parasite in general) free the more confident you are that your fish has no ich.

The safer option is to buy Live bacteria in bottle and the rock that way instead of using a live rock from suspect tank.

Best of luck with your new display

 

[Radman73]

Thanks folks.

The rock in the old display is too nice to leave there as a long term QT tank. I'll go the 76 days and then start the TTM for the fish. I don't really consider my tank suspect as there has never been any indication that it has ich present. In fact, there are plenty of reasons to think it hasn't now that I think about it. The fish went into a coral only tank that a friend had up and running when I shut down the cube before moving. The rock went into a Brute trashcan with a hole cut in the lid for the Kessil light . This was for well over 120 days. With no new corals or fish, I may just be over thinking this.

 

[Scarybo]

Thanks folks.

The rock in the old display is too nice to leave there as a long term QT tank. I'll go the 76 days and then start the TTM for the fish. I don't really consider my tank suspect as there has never been any indication that it has ich present. In fact, there are plenty of reasons to think it hasn't now that I think about it. The fish went into a coral only tank that a friend had up and running when I shut down the cube before moving. The rock went into a Brute trashcan with a hole cut in the lid for the Kessil light . This was for well over 120 days. With no new corals or fish, I may just be over thinking this.

You could be right, it all depends.....
How long has the rock in the display been in a tank/brute without fish. Has it been over 76 days with no fish, no equipment used in a tank with fish, no new corals added basically completely fallow? Anytime fish are added they can become a host for ich and not show visible signs. Fish need to be removed for 76 days. Coral and inverts cannot be hosts but they can bring ich into a tank. They dont need to be removed from tank since they cannot be host, but the tank needs to be fallow for 76 days since the last addition to ensure the ich life cycle is broken and all parasites are dead.

 

[Radman73]

You could be right, it all depends.....
How long has the rock in the display been in a tank/brute without fish. Has it been over 76 days with no fish, no equipment used in a tank with fish, no new corals added basically completely fallow? Anytime fish are added they can become a host for ich and not show visible signs. Fish need to be removed for 76 days. Coral and inverts cannot be hosts but they can bring ich into a tank. They dont need to be removed from tank since they cannot be host, but the tank needs to be fallow for 76 days since the last addition to ensure the ich life cycle is broken and all parasites are dead.

I dropped the fish off with him in December and didn't pick them up until the end of May so it was easily over 150 days. I'll confirm with my friend though on the temp tank he used to house my fish. It was a little biocube that he just had coral in and was steady state. I know my stuff was fallow, just need to make sure his biocube was before adding the fish and that nothing else was added while the fish were in there. Completely forgot about that time period.

 

[Scarybo]

I dropped the fish off with him in December and didn't pick them up until the end of May so it was easily over 150 days. I'll confirm with my friend though on the temp tank he used to house my fish. It was a little biocube that he just had coral in and was steady state. I know my stuff was fallow, just need to make sure his biocube was before adding the fish and that nothing else was added while the fish were in there. Completely forgot about that time period.

The fish should be treated in QT. If the fish were exposed to ich at any point (even years ago) they could have immunity. That means they are carriers and can infect your new fish, or at any point they can lose that immunity and a outbreak occurs that can kill them. I believe this is why people say there is ich in all tanks. Not true. Proper QT of all items "wet" (fish,corals,inverts, cuc) can ensure ich never enters your tank. If all "wet" items arent QT it is just a hope and wait situation. You may have fish in your tank for a long period with no symptoms or deaths. It just needs one catalyst for the ich to reproduce in numbers that overwhelm the fish.

The rock may be safe at this point if it was in a system with no fish for over 76 days. To keep it safe, you will need to QT all fish before the rock is exposed to them again.

 

[Radman73]

Seems like it's a day fro wrapping up old threads for me.

I did perform TTM on the old fish as well as a FW dip to check for flukes. None were found and TTM was completed. Old tank was left fallow before reusing any rock. Fish, of course, look as happy and healthy as ever. Better safe than sorry.