Quarantine and Ammonia spike

[alp5747]

hello! I am in the process of setting up a large quarantine tank which I will treat all my fish in. (Copper 30 days + praziquantel afterwards) The tank is about 160 gallon + 30 gallon sump. I am running a skimmer (nyos 160) and a rollermat (ClariSea sk5000)

1. My question is how would I reduce the chance of ammonia spikes when quarantining a lot of fish around 25 fish?

Right now I have around 50x50x15 cm worth of 30ppi sponges combined in my main system, to give better perspective, if it was a cube it would be around 12x12x12 inches. But keep in mind that they have only been in the system for a week.

2. My second question is. When the volume is near 200 gallons how much does biological media like a polyp lab genesis rock or another calcareous rock absorb and reduce copper levels.

thanks in advance

 

[Jay Hemdal]

alp5747 Welcome to the Fish Disease Treatment and Diagnosis Forum!

The #fishmedic team and other knowledgeable members of our community will do our best to help you resolve your questions. Please provide as much of the following as you are able:

• Brief description of the issue you are observing and answers to the following questions:
  • How long have you had the fish with the condition?
  • Did you quarantine with medication when you first acquired the fish? (If Yes, which medication?)
• Current water quality measurements
• Clear photos of the issue taken using WHITE light and/or a short video of any behaviors (post in your response or on YouTube).

If you can help us by providing as much of the above info as possible, it will make diagnosing and providing recommendations for treatment MUCH easier! The Fish Medic team will get back to you as quickly as possible. In the meantime, other members of our community may also share their experience with similar situations and advice that they may have regarding your situation.

You may also feel free to provide a more detailed description of the condition if you wish to share more info than the above list.

Additionally, these links may be useful while you await a response:

• CURRENT QT PROTOCOL LINK
• HOW TO ASK FOR DISEASE DIAGNOSIS HELP LINK

 

[vetteguy53081]

hello! I am in the process of setting up a large quarantine tank which I will treat all my fish in. (Copper 30 days + praziquantel afterwards) The tank is about 160 gallon + 30 gallon sump. I am running a skimmer (nyos 160) and a rollermat (ClariSea sk5000)

1. My question is how would I reduce the chance of ammonia spikes when quarantining a lot of fish around 25 fish?

Right now I have around 50x50x15 cm worth of 30ppi sponges combined in my main system, to give better perspective, if it was a cube it would be around 12x12x12 inches. But keep in mind that they have only been in the system for a week.

2. My second question is. When the volume is near 200 gallons how much does biological media like a polyp lab genesis rock or another calcareous rock absorb and reduce copper levels.

thanks in advance

Unless this tank is intended to be fish only (no coral or inverts) I would utile a 29g to 40 breeder as a quarantine tank. As for ammonia, test with a reliable test kit and change water when/if necessary during the QT period

 

[alp5747]

Unless this tank is intended to be fish only (no coral or inverts) I would utile a 29g to 40 breeder as a quarantine tank. As for ammonia, test with a reliable test kit and change water when/if necessary during the QT period

Thanks for the response. The tank is going to be a fish only system (no coral or inverts).
I don’t think I can you anything close to a 40 gallon breeder. I have around 12 tangs ranging from 2-6 inches. But are you saying that I would have a ammonia spike with all the fish obviously if I leave the sponges in longer like 1-2 months there is going to be enough nitrifying bacteria to keep ammonia down it would essentially be 30 gallons of total sponges. The problem is the sponges have only been in the tank for about a week so I doubt there enough beneficial bacteria on it.

I am essentially trying to figure out closer to how commercial quarantine systems run when stocked with fish and using medication with copper

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thanks for the response. The tank is going to be a fish only system (no coral or inverts).
I don’t think I can you anything close to a 40 gallon breeder. I have around 12 tangs ranging from 2-6 inches. But are you saying that I would have a ammonia spike with all the fish obviously if I leave the sponges in longer like 1-2 months there is going to be enough nitrifying bacteria to keep ammonia down it would essentially be 30 gallons of total sponges. The problem is the sponges have only been in the tank for about a week so I doubt there enough beneficial bacteria on it.

I am essentially trying to figure out closer to how commercial quarantine systems run when stocked with fish and using medication with copper

Fish only changes everything. A 55 gallon would bee more ideal but not needed based on your plans

 

[alp5747]

Fish only changes everything. A 55 gallon would bee more ideal but not needed based on your plans

Thanks for the reply. I will probably test out the Ammonia processing capability of the system by adding around 2ppm Food grade Ammonium chloride to the system and testing in 1-2 days to confirm a stable nitrogen cycle.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thanks for the reply. I will probably test out the Ammonia processing capability of the system by adding around 2ppm Food grade Ammonium chloride to the system and testing in 1-2 days to confirm a stable nitrogen cycle.

Once you add the chloride and ammonia rises then falls and holds a steady reading of Zero for at least 5 days and nitrate rises and falls and holds at 20 or below- you are cycled.