How to setup a quarantine tank?

[Beckett]

Howdy,

I just got my 38 gallon freshwater tank cycled and have had 14 corycats in for exactly a week now. Eventually I plan to add more fish once I can get my live plants to grow and fill out more. But in the mean time I am wondering how to properly setup a quarantine tank?

Once I add more fish, I want to make sure I am not risking the health of my existing corycats. How critical is it to have a quarantine tank setup? And what is needed for one? Do I have to go all out and setup a full second tank with plants, decor etc?

My next fish will be a super red BN pleco that a LFS is going to special order for me. They said they will keep it for a full week in quarantine at their shop for me. Is that enough time to tell if anything is wrong with the fish? Or should I get my own quarantine tank setup before then, so I can move it into that for a period of time before placing it in my 38 gal?

Thanks!

 

[Derekshatch]

I have never used a quarantine tank so I dont know for sure but you might need to get one because your water is different from the fish store. Plecos are pretty hardy and in my opinion do not get as stressed like other fish but it is up to you.

 

[Metalhead88]

If you plan to quarantine it should be 30 days.

The best way to do this is to have a smaller tank like a 10 gallon or a plastic storage bin on standby.

I prefer a small tank as I can easily add a lid and lighting. Plus I can monitor the fish more easily.

One reason I have a sponge filter is for this purpose.

When you get the fish, add 75% water from your old tank and 25% of conditioned tap. Move over an established air powered sponge filter from an existing tank and power it with either a dedicated air pump or tap into an existing one with a gang valve. Add in your heater and monitor temperature very closely. Acclimate fish.

I have a gang valve and have one air tube that would reach to a quarantine tank if needed. All I have to do is move the sponge filter, connect it to the spare line and open that valve. Bam. Established filtration. If you'd like you can bring over some rocks and decor for added beneficial bacteria and to make the fish feel more secure.

I have one of those dual sponge filters that suction onto the glass. That thing easily handles the small bioload of a few fish in a 10 gallon.

 

[Byron]

Not everyone may be able to do this, but there is absolutely no better way to quarantine new fish, other than in an established QT that runs permanently. I use a 10g now, it has a sand substrate, a couple chunks of wood, a single sponge filter, heater, and a thick cover of floating plants. It runs permanently. I do water changes every second week as there are no fish, jut to keep it "fresh." The heater is not on as it can sit empty for months, and it is easy enough to add warm fresh water if I acquire fish. When the fish come home from the store, the bag(s) is/are floated in this tank, water is mixed, and the fish netted out. Going into a planted and aquascaped tank makes a huge difference. The fish are immdiately less stressed than they would be in any temporary set-up, it is actually the same as going into the display tank. They can stay in the QT for weeks if necessary, to ensure they are feeding well or whatever. I have never had to treat fish in QT, but it is easy; the plants can be tossed out after, even the sand if necessary.

This is not the same as a hospital tank for sick fish, that is a very different concept.

 

[Colin_T]

My next fish will be a super red BN pleco that a LFS is going to special order for me. They said they will keep it for a full week in quarantine at their shop for me. Is that enough time to tell if anything is wrong with the fish? Or should I get my own quarantine tank setup before then, so I can move it into that for a period of time before placing it in my 38 gal?

The reason you quarantine new fish is to stop them introducing diseases into the main display tank. The new fish can have diseases when they are at the wholesaler/ importer, or they can pick up diseases at the pet shop.

The pet shop holding the fish for a week is fine to let the fish settle down and recover from its journey to the shop, but does not guarantee the fish won't pick up a disease in the shop.

When you buy fish from a shop, try not to buy them on the day they do a water change or for several days after they have done a water change.
eg: They do water changes on Wednesday. Try to buy the fish on Sunday, Monday or Tuesday, preferably Tuesday.

When you get the new fish home, it should go into a quarantine tank for at least 2 (preferably 4) weeks to make sure it is free of diseases.

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There are some diseases that fish can carry for longer than 4 weeks and don't show any symptoms during that time. Intestinal worms and fish TB are the main issues that don't always show symptoms and fish can carry these diseases for months or even years.

There is no cure for TB so it's a hit and miss affaire with that disease. You hope the fish don't have it but there's no way of identifying it in a live fish and no way of treating it, so you just hope for the best.

Intestinal worms can be treated while the fish is in quarantine. This is generally the only prophylactic treatment I recommend for new fish. If you were getting livebearers then I would suggest salt too but that's not normally necessary for catfish.
Praziquantel treats tapeworm and gill flukes.
Levamisole treats round/ thread worms.