1. Welcome to Aquarium Space! We are a friendly online community for aquarium owners all over the world who love their tanks including their fish, reefs, corals, invertebrates and their aquatic livestock. If you haven't joined yet, we invite you to register and join our community!

How long should QT last?

Discussion in 'Freshwater General Discussion' started by MLBMandEdgar, May 24, 2010.

  1. MLBMandEdgar

    MLBMandEdgar Thread Starter New Member

    Messages:
    12
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    I've never had to QT a fish before... My betta Duke came to me sick and he had his own tank, my goldfish was won at the fair with another fish and both had ich before I knew what I was doing. I'm now going to be adding both of my male bettas to a divided 10g tank.. Duke is no longer sick, but Willie Nelson has only been with me for 9 days.. How long should I keep Willie out of the main tank now? Also, I had to wash the tank and sterilize it so I used white distilled vinegar and rinsed it out a lot until I could no longer smell anything, how long should I let it be until I fill with water and condition? I dont have a filter yet, and when I get a filter I plan on using some of the media from my 30g tank to help speed up the cycling process < is this a bad idea?

    Thanks in advanced :)
     
    MLBMandEdgar, May 24, 2010
    #1
  2. nossie

    nossie Member

    Messages:
    281
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    18
    I always quarantine my new fish for 2-3 weeks, while treating for any parasites (salt) and observing their every move! (happened to get two constipated Orandas few weeks ago, and they're fine, thanks to the freeze-dried food and peas! lol) This way you'll easily notice if they develop any symptoms, and you can add any remedy needed for it :)
    Maybe it would be good to know for the future :)

    I say, add water to the tank asap so the cycling could get going! I guess you don't have any left of the "old" tank water since it was infected with disease. And I think it would be okay to use the filter media, but if you're worried that it may contain some disease, maybe you'd be better off to start from zero? If ich was the problem before, you could try raising the temp in the water to about 28 degrees, which would speed up the life-cycle of these parasites, and they will die if there are no fish present in the tank!

    If I was completely out in the blue, I'm sorry, I got a bit confused by the post :'D
     
    nossie, May 25, 2010
    #2
  3. James0816

    James0816 New Member

    Messages:
    1,199
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    QT normally a couple of weeks should be fine. As mentioned already, just observe the behavior.

    As for the new tank, once cleaned, you can go ahead and set it up. If you want some "extra" security, set it out in direct sunlight for a day.

    As for the media, if it has been in contact with any diseases and such...toss it.
     
    James0816, May 25, 2010
    #3
  4. MLBMandEdgar

    MLBMandEdgar Thread Starter New Member

    Messages:
    12
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    Sorry for having such a confusing post! The goldfish hasnt had ich since march and all of the media was changed and my cycle started over after Edgar was rid of the parasites. Its also been that long since Duke had ich, however, Duke was a petco fish.... he looked healthy in his tiny little container from what I could see of him until I got him home.. only the last few months after he recovered from ich has he been looking healthier. So far Willie Nelson hasn't shown signs of parasites, bacteria, or fungus and he stopped bottom sitting after 6 days of not eating D: poor lil man.. I'll keep an eye on him for a little while longer. I have conditioner for my tank too, I have amquel+ and I have a conditioner that gets rid of chlorine and chloramines and enhances the slime coat. I dont like that the amquel takes out the nitrates but I might use it before adding the fish to make sure all the bad stuff is out of there first..

    On a second note, I dont have a filter yet, but when I get a filter I do have some cycling questions.

    I know how dangerous it is to cycle a tank with goldfish in it, I almost lost Edgar to nitrites that wouldnt zero out for a week and a half.. is it going to be harder on my bettas to try cycling the tank? Right now I'm changing their little betta cubes two to three times a week, which I don't mind doing with the 10g if it will keep them from being killed by cycling.. hopefully that made sense lol
     
    MLBMandEdgar, May 25, 2010
    #4
  5. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

    Messages:
    5,172
    Likes Received:
    15
    Trophy Points:
    38
    Spot on with the couple weeks if you're able on the QT (2 weeks should be good if the specimen isn't displaying unusual behavior or signs of illness).

    I'd simply use Seachem Prime any time you add water instead of the Amquel and the other water conditioner.

    For a cycling boost add Tetra SafeStart and the filter/media from a healthy tank that's already cycled.
     
    MOD_Dawn, May 25, 2010
    #5
  6. MOD_Dawn

    MOD_Dawn Active Member

    Messages:
    5,172
    Likes Received:
    15
    Trophy Points:
    38
    MOD_Dawn, May 25, 2010
    #6
  7. nossie

    nossie Member

    Messages:
    281
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    18
    During a spike in the nitrite, you could try and add some salt to the water, this will help your fish get through it :)
    But don't do it too often! It's a rather paradoxal treatment since it slows down the cycling process d: Rather just change about 10% of the water if you notice any harmful levels. (If you change more you may disturb the beneficial bacteria)

    By the by, do you have a cycled and ready hospital tank? That would be very useful for the purpose of quarantining new/sick fish :)
     
    nossie, May 25, 2010
    #7
  8. MLBMandEdgar

    MLBMandEdgar Thread Starter New Member

    Messages:
    12
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    right now both of my bettas are in tiny little betta tanks, one is a 1g and the other is a 1/2g. My goal is to have both in the 10g with the divider so they can have 5g each
     
    MLBMandEdgar, May 25, 2010
    #8