Setting up a large hospital tank...need tips

dynagirl

dynagirl

Member
I am planning on setting up a 55 gal QT to hypo all my fish and I have a bunch of questions...
I have 3 chromis
1 flame angel
1 yellow wrasse
1 b&w ocellaris
I am trying to rid my tank of ick so I'm guessing I need to keep them in QT for at least 6 weeks. My friend is going to loan me a 55 and I was planning on buying maybe an
Emperior 400 biowheel filter?
Is there some other filter that I should consider?
Should I add all the fish at once or one at a time over a few weeks?
My yellow wrasse buries in sand to sleep...so can I provide a maybe a bowl of sand in the QT?
Can I use something like chemipure in the filter to help prevent a cycle? (along with water changes of course) Are the ammonia binding agents safe to use in an emergency?
I am just nervous that I will harm my healthy fish by making some mistake so I want to
get as much info as possible.
Thanks!
 
dynagirl

dynagirl

Member
Yes...50 lbs of live rock, live sand, corals, shrimps, hermits, etc. My clown has ick and now my angel has it as well so I have to do something. I can borrow the 55 and I just ordered a filter, but I don't know if I have to let the tank go through a complete cycle or if I can maintain water quality with chemical filtration and lots of water changes....I could really use some advice....
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
You can stop it from cycling or at least slow it down and dilute the toxicity by doing water changes. You can also take an aquarium sponge and let it sit in your display for a few days to collect some bacteria in it and then add it to your qt. Chempure doesn't realy do anything as far as biological filtration goes. There are many types of biological filtration boosters that you can buy. I can't think of the name, but there is one that is kept in the refrigerated section that contains live bacteria. I have used Start Zyme and Cycle before to speed things up. Amquel plus is pretty good at reducing Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate. Just be sure to use it before things get out of control. If you have the time on your hands, adding the fish slowly to the qt will make the bioload impact much less severe than adding everything at once.
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
Does your display tank have LR? If it is a FO tank, then you can do hyposalinity in the display.
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
Originally Posted by Beth
Does your display tank have LR? If it is a FO tank, then you can do hyposalinity in the display.
Beth, she does have LR & LS plus inverts.
 
dynagirl

dynagirl

Member
I think I am going to give up the hobby. Between ick and slime algae I am worn out and broke. I think I am going give my fish away to anyone local (Bridgeville Delaware, 1 hour from Annapolis, 1 hour from Wilmington) who has a QT tank and is willing to hypo. All my other fish look healthy besides the very sick clown.
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
Ah, don't give up! The first year is the hardest. Once your tank is up and stable and you qt all of your fish you are going to absolutely love your fish. People will sit for hours and stare. I know things seem very overwhelming at first. It does to everyone. You are not alone in this. I had ALOT, trust me ALOT of problems when I first set up my tank as well. Luckily I found this site (by accident I might add) I got wonderfull help on here and my tank is now doing beautifully. I have done alot of research since I first started and have read I don't know how many posts. This is a wonderfull hoby, give it time. You will love it and if you have questions, ask them. There are so many very brilliant people on here that will be able to walk you through almost anything. Don't give up, it will all be ok.
 
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