Quarantine tanks

[Mandy]

I read here about setting up a quarantine tank
http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/qtank.html

But it doesn't say anything about cycling it. If I have to keep a
couple of baby angels or kribs in a ten gallon tank for four weeks,
won't ammonia be a problem? What did I miss?

Thanks!

[Billy]

"Mandy" > wrote in message
oups.com...
|I read here about setting up a quarantine tank
| http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/qtank.html
|
| But it doesn't say anything about cycling it. If I have to keep a
| couple of baby angels or kribs in a ten gallon tank for four
weeks,
| won't ammonia be a problem? What did I miss?


Purchace a cheap bubbler\sponge filter at your LFS. Mine was 3 bucks.
Either run it in a sump, or have a hunk of
sponge\media\floss\whatever pre-cut to fit it sitting in one of your
filters ready to be pressed into use. I pull a few gallons of water
out of a main tank, and use treated or RO water for the rest. Drop in
a heater, get the temp within a couple degrees and drop in the sponge
filter. Instant (almost) Q-tank.

HTH

billy

[Margolis]

"Mandy" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> I read here about setting up a quarantine tank
> http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/qtank.html
>
> But it doesn't say anything about cycling it. If I have to keep a
> couple of baby angels or kribs in a ten gallon tank for four weeks,
> won't ammonia be a problem? What did I miss?
>
> Thanks!
>


On a small tank like that with an extremely light bio-load you can change
out 40-50% of the water every day and not have any problems. But you are
correct in thinking about cycling. It would be better and easier if it was
an established tank.

--

Margolis
http://web.archive.org/web/20030215212142/http://www.agqx.org/faqs/AGQ2FAQ.htm
http://www.unrealtower.org/faq

[Dick]

On 1 Jan 2005 21:36:50 -0800, "Mandy" > wrote:

>I read here about setting up a quarantine tank
>http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/qtank.html
>
>But it doesn't say anything about cycling it. If I have to keep a
>couple of baby angels or kribs in a ten gallon tank for four weeks,
>won't ammonia be a problem? What did I miss?
>
>Thanks!

I have had a 10 gallon tank setup as a Q tank for over a year. It has
no gravel in it. I use a Whisper Junior filter with no charcoal. I
keep plants in the tank except when I use medications in which case I
move them to another tank until the treatment is over. I change 20%
of the water twice weekly.

When not treating a sick fish, which is most of the time, I keep a
few fish just to keep the tank cycled.

dick

[Ozdude]

"Mandy" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>I read here about setting up a quarantine tank
> http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/qtank.html
>
> But it doesn't say anything about cycling it. If I have to keep a
> couple of baby angels or kribs in a ten gallon tank for four weeks,
> won't ammonia be a problem? What did I miss?

This: ;)

" I know fish keepers who keep small 10g tanks up and running permanently,
fully planted and cycled with danios or barbs which they add to the main
tank when a new arrival needs the space."

One of the fishless cycling documents I have here recommends you feed
ammonia to a fishless quarantine tank, but I agree with the above statement
simply because for a tank that may need to be broken down a completely
steralised at some time in it's life I think it's better to have live things
in there, than all the artificial stuff.

A plant can be saved with an Alum bath and danios can be easily moved to the
main display tanks in the interim.

I personally am going to use an artifical grass for the bottom and a dual
sponge filter and a couple of bananna lilys for live plant and shade. I have
a ceramic plant pot which is also going in there for the fishes security and
a small wattage CF reading lamp directly over the plants (which will shoot
up massive surface leaves if they can't get enough light).

I will have about 3 danios in there for bio load because I'm not into
putting ammonia directly in the water.

I'll report back once the new tank is up and running and cycled and the old
10g cube tank is repurposed.

I think as the author of the piece states it's good policy to quarintine all
plants and fish bought new from the LFS if, like me, you can't help yourself
sometimes.

My Serpaes when i first got them developed white spots on their bottom lips,
which was cured by moving them into a 5g tank I had and adding sea salt (5g
per 4.5L) and these were from the shop where I aways get my fish. It could
have affected every tetra in the tank if I hadn't done this. Fortunately the
tank had been cycled by having one live plant and a male Paradise Fish in
there.

You only need one plant and three fish to keep a tank cycled I believe, so
it's not that demanding on the wallet.

Oz

[NetMax]

"Mandy" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>I read here about setting up a quarantine tank
> http://www.aquatic-hobbyist.com/profiles/misc/qtank.html
>
> But it doesn't say anything about cycling it. If I have to keep a
> couple of baby angels or kribs in a ten gallon tank for four weeks,
> won't ammonia be a problem? What did I miss?
>
> Thanks!


I fill an empty tank with a mix of tank/tap water (whatever mix I need to
start acclimating the new arrivals to the difference in hardness), attach
a small powerfilter and stuff in a piece of filter sponge from one of my
running filters. Works for me.
--
www.NetMax.tk

[Mandy]

lol - I just have a feeling it's going to become another tank - i.e.
there will be more than danios living in there!

[Dick]

On 2 Jan 2005 11:13:33 -0800, "Mandy" > wrote:

>lol - I just have a feeling it's going to become another tank - i.e.
>there will be more than danios living in there!

Since I no longer order new fish I keep a 10 gallon more as a
"hospital" tank. Recently one of my older Black Mollies got what I
diagnosed as fungus. I put her in the hospital with another molly for
company and tried raising the temp and salt baths. She seemed stable,
but then the growths got more fibrous, so I decided to use "Fungus
Elimenator". The instructions said it might be harmful to plants. No
mention of snails. So, I removed the plants which are held down by
lead weights, and moved them temporarilly to another tank. To be
safe, I also moved the one larger snail in the tank. The patient
died. So, after a couple of water changes back went the plants and
snail. I added a pair of Platties and one more Black Molly.

The tank is in my Utility room which I go through many times a day. I
am glad it is there and I like to look at it. When I need it for a
sick fish, it is a comfort it is there and the rest of the time I keep
it up and healthy.

Not having this tank available and healthy is no longer an option for
me. I have gone the single tank route and do not like treating a
community tank. I can remove the plants and snail to another tank
and not lose them. With no running tank you are forced to treat a
community tank with the potential loss of more than the sick fish.

dick

[Mandy]

Thanks, Dick. Good answer! I'm going to get a small one (NEXT payday)
and keep it in the kitchen where it will be much easier to care for.
:)