Questions About A Quarantine Tank

[Blondielovesfish]

LOL okay so just ask google next time?
That's good that I won't need to quarantine the first fish as that saves me some time!
Would about 1-2 weeks be a good time to quarantine?
One question (sorry another irrelevant one) I'm getting my tank at the start of may (around the 6th I was told although it may be sooner/later) so I will probably start cycling it pretty much as soon as I get it (after I have checked everything is working) but towards the end of June (16th-25th) I'm going on holiday, the cycling will have been done by then I would expect so would I wait until I come back to buy the fish? If so then what do I do about all the bacteria that has built up, will it be able to survive around 9 days without ammonia being added?

 

[Joshwainwright]

If so then what do I do about all the bacteria that has built up, will it be able to survive around 9 days without ammonia being added?

Most or all of your bacteria will have died off within 9 days of not having ammonia. It does, however depend on how fast the bacteria can deal with it, dosing 5ppm could potentially last the 9 days in the early stages of the cycle but it's probably going to be processing it a lot quicker by the time your tank is fully cycled.
 
Unless you could get someone to dose ammonia for you, it might just be best to hope your tank is fully cycled before you go on holiday so you can get some fish in. You'd need to be certain of it though because obviously you wouldn't be around to deal with any spikes.

 

[Lunar Jetman]

If the cycling is completed then get a couple of fish and just get someone to feed them. If you can't, then think about waiting on the cycling until you have time to so it properly.

 

[Blondielovesfish]

okay you know those little feeding block things? For when you go on holiday you just leave them in the tank and they slowly desolve etc. would one of those help? I just want to try to not get any fish before I go on holiday because I know they have to be watched and if some die then I won't be there and will come back rotted bodies which I would prefer not to do!

 

[DJH584]

Rather than using one of those feeding blocks, think of purchasing an automatic feeder that will fit on to your tank. You should be able to adjust the amount of food that is dispensed and program it so that it fits in with your normal fish feeding habits.

 

[Jenste]

The feeder blocks cause more harm then good and are mostly just cement.
The automatic feeders can be temperamental and it would be best to use them for a while before trusting them on their own. You want to make sure it works properly and doses the accurate amount before you put your trust in it, and come home to find out it malfunctioned by dumping all the food in at once and your fish died from an ammonia spike.

 

[Blondielovesfish]

Okay thank you I've just looked at the automatic feeders and they r all rather expensive but what one do you think would be the best from this link?: http/www.hollywoodfishfarm.co.nz/product/page/automatic-fish-feeders/m/964/
Thank you for your help so far!

 

[Joshwainwright]

I'd say the cheapest is fine. They all do the same thing in my opinion and it doesn't really matter if you can program it to a specific time or not.
 
Unless you're going to make use of one often, just go for the cheapest

 

[This Old Spouse]

Why not just wait with cycling until after your holiday?

 

[Blondielovesfish]

Well with the cycling it just means I will have to wait even longer! Really I want the tank up and going as soon as possible so having to wait 2 months to cycle it after I've gotten it would be very annoying!
And thanks about the automatic feeder, next time I'm in at my LFS I'll check them out!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I just posted in your other thread, there are alternatives to waiting. The bacteria doesn't die off that quickly, it goes dormant. Further if while you are away you are cycling, leaving the tank be, or adding a prawn (shrimp) can release ammonia slowly to feed the bacteria and won't involve the expense of an auto feeder, which as pointed out can malfunction or allow moisture into the food causing it to go rancid. Neither is a particularly good scenario.

 

[Blondielovesfish]

Okay thank you so much all of you!