Having a quarantine tank (QT) or hospital tank is essential to any fish keepers hobby. It allows fish keepers to separate sick fish from healthy fish, helps to reduce the spread of parasites or pathogens from newly acquired fish, and also can serve as a timeout for overly aggressive fish.
Using a QT tank makes medicating and treating sick fish easier and less costly. This is because, usually, a QT tank is smaller than a persons main tank or display tank. Most medications follow a certain dosage per gallon of water. If the QT tank is smaller, there is less medication used and in turn less money spent on the entire QT process. A smaller tank also allows the fish keeper to get a better understanding of that specific fish's appetite, activity, and waste consistency.
Setting Up a QT Tank
Tank size:
As mentioned above tank size is extremely important when quarantining any fish. Usually for a single fish or a few smaller fish, such as guppies, a 10 gallon tank should suffice. However, if you plan having to house larger fish or a large quantity of fish then a larger tank is a must. Keep in mind that without proper tank size and room to swim, you will likely run into other health problems.
Keep in mind, that any equipment, such as filters, gravel cleaners, nets, or other decor, that is used in this tank should NEVER be used in another tank. Quarantine equipment should always be used for quarantining only. It is also recommended to wash and sterilize everything to prevent cross contamination.
Initial Set Up:
1. Fill your tank with fresh water that is the same temperature as the main tank that your fish was removed from or that your fish will be permanently housed in.
2. Add a heater to the tank. Not only do most fish need a permanent water temperature of 78-80 degrees F, but some treatments require an even warmer water temperature to help eradicate parasites. For example, raising the water temperature to around 82-83 degrees F will help to speed the process of treating the ich parasite.
3. Place a filter in the tank to help keep the water clean and keep the ammonia levels down. It is best to use a gentle sponge filter, especially if you are dealing with a sick or weak fish. HOB and canister filters often put out too much flow for a sick fish to fight against. This creates added stress and makes your fish prone to getting tossed about from the current or sucked into an intake nozzle.
4. Be sure to add Seachem Prime or the dechlorinator of your choice to remove any unwanted chlorine, chloramines, and heavy metals from the water. If you chose to use Seachem brand it will not only remove the above addatives but will also neutralize ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates. Seachem works for up to 24 hours. Daily doses are very effective even if a water change has not been done for that day.
5. If at all possible add some cycled media from your main tank to help boost the nitrogen cycle. Now, with that being said, many medications will kill the good bacteria that keeps your tank cycled but adding cycled media will help to reduce the stress level of the fish in the initial first day or two it is in QT. As stated above using Seachem Prime will aid in keeping levels of harmful toxins low after good bacteria is compromised.
The Quarantine Process:
1. Now it is time to add the fish to the tank. Be sure to acclimate your fish slowly and properly. (Refer to Adding New Fish to Your Tank in the blog section of this website to learn how to properly acclimate your fish.)
2. On the first day of the initial process, remember that your fish is quite stressed due to moving tanks and being introduced to a new environment. It can help to keep the lights off and do NOT feed on the first day. Unless it is known that the fish is ill or has parasites you can also hold off on adding medications to the tank at this time.
3. After the first day, and for the next 7-10 days, you should perform daily water changes at 50-70%. Be sure to add Prime into the tank BEFORE adding new water. You should also add any medications that your are using at this time also. Please take caution that when adding meds into a tank that has just had a water change, some medications can be added at full tank dosage and some require a partial dosage for just the water that is replaced. For example, some fish keepers use aquarium salt to help kill off parasites. Salt does not evaporate over time. So if you add 2 tbsp of salt to your aquarium, that salt will remain in the water until it is removed through water changes. So if you remove 5 gallons of water from the tank, you only need to dose with enough salt to replenish that salinity of the 5 gallons of fresh water added. Over dosing medications can cause your fish to become very ill and even die. It is very important that you do your research on any medications that you are using in order to use them correct and safely.
4. At week two, you can reduce water changes to every other day but be sure to add Prime daily to keep ammonia levels low.
5. During week 4, water changes can be reduced to once every 2-3 days as long as there are signs of improvement. Keep doing Prime daily at this stage also.
6. On week 5, and if there is still improvement, you can start to remove medications from the water. To do this, you can add activated carbon to the tank to absorb medications, or you can do daily water changes to remove medication. Just remember to skip adding medications into the fresh water you are adding back to the tank. Again, be sure to add Prime before adding freshwater.
7. On the 6th and final week continue water changes every 2-3 days. If you used the high heat method to help with parasites, you should start turning the heat down a little each day until it is the same temperature is the same as the main tank that you intend to move the fish back into. Do this slowly to prevent shocking your fish. Use this last week to observe your fish. Pay close attention to appetite, body color and feces.
8. On the last day of quarantine, if there have been no signs of disease or parasites for a couple weeks, the fish may be moved back into the main tank. Be sure to acclimate and add Prime into the main tank before adding your fish.
9. Add the fish to the main tank and watch for any signs of disease or parasites. You may also need to keep an eye out for bullying for other tank mates.
>>>Disclaimer: This blog is written based upon my own personal experiences. There are different ways to apply this technique. This is what works for me. Do your research before diving in based on one persons opinions and experiences.
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