Beginners Guide to Acclimation and Quarantine

[Brew12]

Question:
if i use the same test kits/beakers etc that I use for my quarantine tanks on my display tank is this gonna cause a problem?
I always rinse them with tap water and let dry before using again

Nope, it won't if you dry them in between usage.

For a fish QT I don't do any testing once it is established. The only shared piece of equipment is my refractometer which I dry carefully. I use a Seachem alert badge for ammonia and I don't bother testing for nitrite or nitrate.

For a coral/invert QT I do more testing. Test your DT first, then your QT, then let it dry before using it on the DT again.

Good write up! I also use those same meds except for a couple bacterial treatments you have. Cheers

Thanks, glad you liked it!

 

[Bthomas]

Nope, it won't if you dry them in between usage.

For a fish QT I don't do any testing once it is established. The only shared piece of equipment is my refractometer which I dry carefully. I use a Seachem alert badge for ammonia and I don't bother testing for nitrite or nitrate.

For a coral/invert QT I do more testing. Test your DT first, then your QT, then let it dry before using it on the DT again.



Thanks, glad you liked it!

I only let them air dry is that ok?
What about say the dropper that comes with the refractometer kinda hard to dry that out good i think but I've used it on all my tanks as well

 

[Brew12]

I only let them air dry is that ok?
What about say the dropper that comes with the refractometer kinda hard to dry that out good i think but I've used it on all my tanks as well

Air drying is just fine.

Use the dropper on your DT first, then your QT. Rinse it out really well. let it dry as well as possible when done. Odds of it carrying anything through is slim to none.

If you are really worried about it, just use something different as a dropper for one of them. Lots of options to get a drop or 2 of water on the lens.

 

[Bthomas]

Air drying is just fine.

Use the dropper on your DT first, then your QT. Rinse it out really well. let it dry as well as possible when done. Odds of it carrying anything through is slim to none.

If you are really worried about it, just use something different as a dropper for one of them. Lots of options to get a drop or 2 of water on the lens.

Awesome thanks
I hadn't been worried about it but wasn't sure if i should be worried about it

 

[Nickcdll]

okay i got the gist of setting up this tank. Now since i'm a beginner at this and your article is more than compelling...it's a great article but the info is spread out and for me, i need it condensed to follow it. First i match the salinity in the tank to the bag the fish is in. then for the first 3 days i get it to feed. then i start to ramp up the copper treatment. what does it need to be ramped up to and over how many days? at what day do i level this treatment off? how often and how much water am i taking out during the partial water changes. Do i do the freshwater dip after i get it to eat but before the copper treatment? and during this time i'm working to match the salinity. you said you mix yours up at 1.40, and put how much in the partial water change ? all of this should come to 14 days? i'm gonna take alot of notes when i do this. if coppersafe is having some quality problems do you have a suggestion for another chelated copper treatment? sorry for all of this btw

 

[Bthomas]

I just noticed my royal gramma has one cloudy eye. I have some kanaplex that I'm going to use to treat him once I get the 2 clowns out of the quarantine. Thursday is the end of their copper treatment so i can move them to the display then.
Question is: do I need to remove the copper from the water before treating with kanaplex? If the fish stays in the quarantine tank without copper for any amount of time do i have to repeat the 30 day copper treatment again?

 

[Bthomas]

I just noticed my royal gramma has one cloudy eye. I have some kanaplex that I'm going to use to treat him once I get the 2 clowns out of the quarantine. Thursday is the end of their copper treatment so i can move them to the display then.
Question is: do I need to remove the copper from the water before treating with kanaplex? If the fish stays in the quarantine tank without copper for any amount of time do i have to repeat the 30 day copper treatment again?

Or should i treat the clowns as well since they've been in the tank with him or would it be safe to go ahead and move them to display on thursday

 

[Maritimer]

okay i got the gist of setting up this tank. Now since i'm a beginner at this and your article is more than compelling...it's a great article but the info is spread out and for me, i need it condensed to follow it. First i match the salinity in the tank to the bag the fish is in. then for the first 3 days i get it to feed. then i start to ramp up the copper treatment. what does it need to be ramped up to and over how many days? at what day do i level this treatment off? how often and how much water am i taking out during the partial water changes. Do i do the freshwater dip after i get it to eat but before the copper treatment? and during this time i'm working to match the salinity. you said you mix yours up at 1.40, and put how much in the partial water change ? all of this should come to 14 days? i'm gonna take alot of notes when i do this. if coppersafe is having some quality problems do you have a suggestion for another chelated copper treatment? sorry for all of this btw

For chelated copper, therapeutic value (what it needs to be ramped up to) is 1.5 - 2.0ppt. How many days can vary - if I'm working with wrasses or other more sensitive fish, I like to be able to ramp up over five days or a bit more, but if any of the fish in question have velvet, that luxury doesn't exist; 24-48 hours is all you've got - and 48 hours is stretching it.

I usually do a 20% water change, 50% if I need to change conditions in the QT fairly quickly. It's not unheard-of to perform a 100% water change. When I mix water for a water change, I try to mix it at about the same salinity as what's in the tank. For raising salinity gradually (for fish that arrive at low salinity), I use pre-mixed saltwater to top off / compensate for evaporation. So, for instance, if my QT evaporates a quart in a day, I would add a quart of saltwater to replace it, instead of RO/DI.

Several people have reported good results with Copper Power, another brand of chelated copper treatment. I've been using Coppersafe, but rather than dosing by the instructions printed on the bottle, I add a dose - and then test - until I reach the desired therapeutic level. I'll add small doses in the evening and again in the morning, and then test the level in the tank at around lunchtime (I work close to home) when there's sunlight available to read the color in the vial.

~Bruce

 

[Nickcdll]

Does the quarantine period start from when the copper is added or when it reaches therapeutic level? Oh and what tests do you use for copper power?

 

[Brew12]

I just noticed my royal gramma has one cloudy eye. I have some kanaplex that I'm going to use to treat him once I get the 2 clowns out of the quarantine. Thursday is the end of their copper treatment so i can move them to the display then.
Question is: do I need to remove the copper from the water before treating with kanaplex? If the fish stays in the quarantine tank without copper for any amount of time do i have to repeat the 30 day copper treatment again?

Sorry, I haven't been available very much these last few days.

If you haven't already, I'm going to recommend you post to the Fish Disease forum.

 

[Brew12]

Does the quarantine period start from when the copper is added or when it reaches therapeutic level? Oh and what tests do you use for copper power?

It starts from when copper reaches the therapeutic level. The old recommendation was the API test kit, but that is very challenging to use. It looks like the Hanna high range copper test kit is exactly what we have been looking for and could be the best thing out there. Some members have had fantastic results with their testing to the point where Hanna and BRS have used their results to do new additional tests. Hanna used to state that their copper test kits weren't good for salt water but we expect that recommendation to change soon.

 

[Bthomas]

What is the best way to go about removing copper from the quarantine tank?
Is it ok to dose kanaplex with some copper still in the system?

 

[Brew12]

What is the best way to go about removing copper from the quarantine tank?
Is it ok to dose kanaplex with some copper still in the system?

A large water change and Cuprisorb or Polyfilters will remove the copper. It is ok to use kanaplex with some copper still in the system.

 

[Bthomas]

So I just cleaned out my quarantine tank and set it back up for the next round of fish using a sponge that had been in my display tank sump for well over a month. I added a tiny bit of ammonia to make sure it was good to go and the ammonia is still sitting there after 2 days.. I thought with using the sponge from my dt that it would be good to go right away?

I have prime on hand would I be able to throw some of that in there and go ahead and add fish today?

 

[Brew12]

So I just cleaned out my quarantine tank and set it back up for the next round of fish using a sponge that had been in my display tank sump for well over a month. I added a tiny bit of ammonia to make sure it was good to go and the ammonia is still sitting there after 2 days.. I thought with using the sponge from my dt that it would be good to go right away?

I have prime on hand would I be able to throw some of that in there and go ahead and add fish today?

How much ammonia are you reading?

And did you have flow through the sponge in your tank?

 

[Bthomas]

How much ammonia are you reading?

And did you have flow through the sponge in your tank?

1ppm ammonia
Sponge was between the baffles of the bubble trap in my sump so should have been getting good flow

 

[Brew12]

1ppm ammonia
Sponge was between the baffles of the bubble trap in my sump so should have been getting good flow

That is very odd.

You can use Prime and add the fish, just remember that you need to add Prime every 3 days while ammonia is present.

 

[Bthomas]

That is very odd.

You can use Prime and add the fish, just remember that you need to add Prime every 3 days while ammonia is present.

Thanks. Should I go ahead and get some bottled bacteria also or do u think just adding prime would be fine
Any idea why the sponge wasn't good to go on it's own? I didnt have any fish in the display until now would that have anything to do with it

 

[Brew12]

Thanks. Should I go ahead and get some bottled bacteria also or do u think just adding prime would be fine
Any idea why the sponge wasn't good to go on it's own? I didnt have any fish in the display until now would that have anything to do with it

That is probably why. It helps to have a fresh ammonia source in the tank. You may have been ok if you had reasonably fresh decaying food in there.

Bottled bacteria would be an excellent idea.

 

[Bthomas]

That is probably why. It helps to have a fresh ammonia source in the tank. You may have been ok if you had reasonably fresh decaying food in there.

Bottled bacteria would be an excellent idea.

I did have a cleaner shrimp and crabs and snails so I was feeding the tank.
I'll pick up some bottled bacteria.

Is it ok to use prime with prazi or no? I know copper can't be used with it correct? so how do I ensure there's no prime left before starting copper?