Hospital/fry Tank? Suggestions

[MrJohnnyB]

Right so I have my Fluval 240 Roma setup pretty much the way I want it! But really want some advice on getting a hospital tank or something to go with it. Ideally I'd like it to fit in the cabinet underneath the Aquarium for aesthetical reasons. I was thinking of a 30L but not sure whether this would be big enough for my Angelfish etc if they were to become ill? Also do i need to put anything else in with the hospital tank?!

 

[fluttermoth]

I'd say a 30l was way too small...Most people don't keep hospital tanks set up all the time, as it's too much bother keeping the filter cycled, and hospital tanks never look very pleasing; you probably want to keep it bare bottomed for ease of cleaning, and decor is usually just a flowerpot or cave and some plastic plants that can be sterilized after use.

I think your best bet is to pick up a cheap second hand tank and keep it in your spare room or under the stairs or where-ever and keep either the whole filter runnong in your main tank, or the sponges from it in your main filter, if they'll fit (I keep mine in the top of my externals), that way can pull everything out and set it up quickly if you need it, but it wont be sitting there looking bare and needing feeding/dosing with ammonia to stay cycled.

 

[Gilli]

All you need is a small spare tank, heater and filter for a hospital tank. As hopefully you wont need it much keep it empty but keep the sponges and filter media in your main tank filter so its mature. Then when you need to set up the hospital tank fill it with water from your main tank, (re top up your main tank), take out the filter media you have stored and you are cycled and good to go !

Its best not to put any substrate in for easy cleaning as you want to keep the tank as clean as possible for patients.I use plastic plants to make them feel at home as they are easy to keep clean and you can give them a good scrub and re use when not needed any more.

 

[mark2109111]

I keep my old 105 ltr on hand in case of fry or illness .I keep and extra filter cartridge in my canister filter so if i ever need to cycle the tank fast it is easy.

 

[KISSfn]

Thanks for posting this MrJohnnyB! I just bought a 10 gallon tank yesterday for my hospital tank and was about to ask the same question. Now I have my answer also!