View Full Version : makeshift QT....?
RPetty
12-09-2007, 6:52 AM
I do not have a quarantine tank in my apartment... so i have been using 5 gal buckets with an air stone in each one. I change the water out every other day and so far i have not seen any problems with the fish i have in them. I medicate the water every other day with quick cure and I am about to start an antibiotic treatment for the last week of qt. Is this even an affective way to quarantine? Am I doing any good at all?
:confused:
Grins
12-09-2007, 10:32 AM
Why are you treating them? Are they sick?
animalman
12-09-2007, 9:08 PM
Was gunna say the same thing....i would treat them less they are sick. someone correct me if i'm wrong but the buckets should be ok for a part time Qt and small fish.
RPetty
12-09-2007, 11:01 PM
they aren't sick... i treated them with quick cure because there were fish in the tank at the LFS that were scraching. and i am treating them with antibiotics because my friend at the LFS said that the diver that collected the fish uses needles to puncture the fishs swim bladder instead of using a decompression proceedure. both medications are being used as a precautionary measure. should i not have medicated them?
mandy21
12-09-2007, 11:41 PM
I know I'm not too bright when it comes to collecting fish from the ocean, but why would anyone deliberately puncture a fish's swim bladder?
I, personally, would not have medicated but kept an eye on them in the QT for any signs of illness and only then would I have medicated. I probably would do hyposalinity without question if they were in a tank with questionable tankmates. I'm not a fan of medication on fish or people without due reason.
Was gunna say the same thing....i would treat them less they are sick. someone correct me if i'm wrong but the buckets should be ok for a part time Qt and small fish.
Large buckets might work.
Like Mandy, I would not have medicated unless I knew there was something wrong with them. You could do more harm than good, even masking symptoms of something else.
RPetty
12-10-2007, 2:29 AM
i understand. i am introducing my yellow tang into my display tomorrow and will change the water in the other buckets to get rid of the medication. All my qt fish look really healthy and have wonderfull appetites... so meds aren't really needed. thanks guys!
How long has it been in QT?
RPetty
12-10-2007, 8:14 AM
about two and a half weeks.
mandy21
12-10-2007, 8:14 AM
QT no less than 6 weeks unless you want to risk introducing some unwanted something into the display tank.
about two and a half weeks.
I'd not put it in the display quite yet. At least 4 weeks with no signs of ich present.
RPetty
12-10-2007, 8:28 AM
:wall: its so hard to wait....
I know, believe me I know. :uhoh:
RPetty
12-10-2007, 8:36 AM
why is it that we qt for so long... is it so the ich has time to go through it's cycle?
ChangDriX
12-10-2007, 9:50 AM
petco has a tank right now for like 40 bucks its a 12 gal, comes with light/hood HOB heater...i thought about picking one up for a qt i thought about it real hard you should check it out.
Subliminal
12-10-2007, 10:13 AM
If you're doing 100% water changes frequently and cleaning the buckets so there's no place for the parasites to drop off and incubate in the substate, I'd say you're good.
That's the key to breaking the life cycle...you've got to remove the parasites when they want to incubate.
So, basically, it really depends on your procedures as to the time the fish should stay in the bucket.
RPetty
12-11-2007, 10:27 PM
If you're doing 100% water changes frequently and cleaning the buckets so there's no place for the parasites to drop off and incubate in the substate, I'd say you're good.
That's the key to breaking the life cycle...you've got to remove the parasites when they want to incubate.
So, basically, it really depends on your procedures as to the time the fish should stay in the bucket.
Thanks, damon.
i change the water every other day and clean the buckets with fresh water. so far everything is working well... i prefer to use buckets instead of a seperate tank because my appartment is small and an extra tank would be hard to store while not in use. buckets i just stack on my balcony.