To quarantine or not to quarantine

[Bthomas]

I know there are probably a million threads like this but i wanted to get some one on one advice related to my situation.
Im starting my first reef, a 150 gallon tank. Getting ready to start the cycle in the next couple days.
As of now i wasn't planning on using a quarantine tank. Is this a mistake?

My stock list will go as close to the following order as possible:
-After cycling is complete first fish in will be 2 clowns and a royal gramma
-Next round of fish will be watchman goby/pistol shrimp pair, one or two neon gobies and a clown goby all going in together
-group of anthias probably 5-7
-pair of spotbreast angels (possibly just the female depending on how expensive the males are)
-Blue throat trigger
-yellow tang and kole tang added together

May add a couple wrasses and possibly one more tang (would love a naso or a powder blue) if thats not too over crowded

So question is should i use a quarantine? I know the powder blue tang would be a no go without a quarantine but as far as the rest of my stock list would it be necessary

If i should absolutely use one what would be the smallest size you would recommend with my planned fish (dont have a whole lot of room)

Also can i keep the quarantine right next to my mixing water station? I think i saw something about disease being airborne. Could it be transmitted to my stored water

 

[3mm3]

I would use one without a doubt. Seems like everything is coming in with disease these days....

 

[JoshH]

I had the aerosol thing brought up with the proximity of my two QT tanks being next to each other. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of research done in this area but one article I found had stated any QT with heavy aeration should be atleast 10ft away from anything related to the main tank. If not aerated heavily around 3-5 Feet.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/aerosol-transmission.190292/

 

[Ghostcat]

I would definitely set one up, not that expensive to set up, and helps negate loss of live stock.

 

[NowGlazeIT]

Once I started buying expensive fish I set up a QT for 60 bucks and took all the fish out of my DT to start fresh

 

[Bthomas]

So if i were use one should i quarantine every fish before it goes in? Even the first ones?

 

[rich nyc]

Better to do it from the first then to do one after you get dead fish in your tank like i did. Now I QT

Yes qt every fish

 

[JoshH]

I would yes, IF you have to medicate with copper it can be absorbed into the silicone of your tank and leech out over time. Not an ideal effect to have happening in your DT.

 

[Danny N]

I’m dealing with ich right now. Qt’d all of my fish, but it must’ve snuck in on the snails or conchs that I added a few weeks ago. I’m super bummed right now. I thought I was doing everything right....

 

[NowGlazeIT]

I’m dealing with ich right now. Qt’d all of my fish, but it must’ve snuck in on the snails or conchs that I added a few weeks ago. I’m super bummed right now. I thought I was doing everything right....

This hobby can be about one learning curve after the next some times. QT everything wet there’s a good thread on here for QTing inverts
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/coral-invert-quarantine-time-frames.334584/#post-4162591

 

[coweyes298]

QT from the start. Many people learned the hard way. After loosing so many fish due to not qt and bring in velvet, I started QT my existing fish. Besides it is hard to catch them all out in the DT...Better start it before entering DT.

I played it on the extreme side : I also QT coral for 76 days before entering my display...

 

[Bthomas]

I'm just so torn on the whole subject of quarantining. I've heard so many people talk about fish dieing in quarantine that it almost seems like it would be less stressful to put them straight in the display.
I dont wanna spend the money to set one up if it isn't necessary..

 

[JoshH]

I think it could be just as stressful adding them to a DT with other fish potentially picking on them and if they already have something this could lead to there demise anyway AND you have introduced whatever they had to the rest of your tank.

 

[Big G]

I dont wanna spend the money to set one up if it isn't necessary..

To do it right you really need 2 QTs. One for fish only; one for inverts, corals.

 

[Bthomas]

Ok so let's say im gonna use a quarantine from the start. I would need to use filter media thats been seeded by the display but the display is brand new so how does that work?

 

[coweyes298]

If the fish is dying in qt it won't have better chance surviving in DT. Fish dies in QT would be caused by parasite, not eating etc. It won't change much if you bring fish directly into DT. Plus you bring parasite into DT...

 

[coweyes298]

Ok so let's say im gonna use a quarantine from the start. I would need to use filter media thats been seeded by the display but the display is brand new so how does that work?

Dose Dr. Tim bacterial prior or similar product before putting fish in. Then monitor the ammonia and do water change if needed.

You can also do tank transfer method without cycling too. But it only treats ich.

 

[USMC 4 LIFE]

If a fish dies in QT, it will die in the DT.

Quarantining isn’t hard and it shouldn’t be done selectively. Either you do it with all fish, coral, inverts or you don’t do it at all.

And having them in a QT isn’t any more stressful than what the fish has already experience (Being captured, put in a bag and shipped across the globe).

If you don’t want to spend the money on quarantining then you choose a costly hobby that isn’t forgiving to those who gamble on short cuts.

Oh and I’m not saying it isn’t possible to have a great looking reef with healthy fat fish in it. I’m just saying the the majority of reefers, myself included, aren’t experienced enough to successfully manage these diseases.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

A passive non copper qt is bare bottom and live rock and aquaclear. Places to hide and acclimate (salinity , captivity )and learn to eat.

IF you need to copper or non reef safe med, you take the rock out and put it in a bucket.

 

[coweyes298]

If a fish dies in QT, it will die in the DT.

Quarantining isn’t hard and it shouldn’t be done selectively. Either you do it with all fish, coral, inverts or you don’t do it at all.

This is very true. I first qt only fish and thought I win the war. Coral and other wet stuff I didn't QT and boom! ich again. It will be back to zero if you only do partial QT. QT everything or don't do it at all.