Show me your QT's!

[timsedwards]

Hi All!
Well if you have spent more than 5 minutes with Beth or Terry in this forum then you will have a QT!
Well in the other forums we always see pictures of peoples tanks etc, and I thought it would be really good to see pictures of each other's QT's to contrast and compare and also get new ideas!
I know I should really start this off with one of mine but (lol) no batteries in camera, but when i get some I promise to post some!
Looking forward to them!
Tim.

 

[beth]

Hey Tim, we did this a while back, but any one who wants to post updates, please do! QT's are great, and those of us who have them should encourge the "have nots" to get them by showing ours off! LOL Well, hopefully anyway.
I just got a midas blenny from SWF.com and, as soon as I can get a clear shot of him, I'll post up a pic of him in my QT.
Still waiting for Terry to give us a pic of his QT. He probably has a whole room in his house deadicated to QTs !

 

[beth]

Hey, that wood in the backgound makes the QT look nice. Mine is just plain ole wall.
Here's my new blenny. He's still too shy to stay out in the open much and this shot isn't very good, but, he's a nice looking fish and so far looks pretty healthy. He's hiding under a fake sponge.

 

[beth]

Well, I managed to get a "forced" better shot because I moved his fake home. I really needed to get a good look at him with the magnifying glass as he's been hiting pretty much for 3 days, so don't think I just did it to take a pic!
Also, he needs to move out a bit more in to the QT in order to eat, etc., thus I'll try repositioning the fake sponge.

 

[kinkfish]

I have a 20 gallon little tank glass can I put some live sand and live rock in it with some power heads. To make it a qt tank?

 

[timsedwards]

Hi guys thanks for the replies!
Sorry beth musta missed that post!
Yes I must admit I am dying to see a whole tank shot of yours and Terry's QT! The maestros themselves! I agree with something you mentioned to me when I was first considering gettting a QT, encouraging people to get them is in the best interests of the hobby and the wellbeing of the fish! It can be really relatively inexpensive as well if you get some bits second hand or something.
Melody - yes rocks are good, if there arent enough the fish cna get stressed as not enough shelter etc. I am not sure about sand though, Beth will be able to tell you. Ive always had no substrate, just made sure the bottom was painted black (on the outside!) to stop the fish seeing itself and stressing! (maybe humans should try that!!).
Keep em coming guys!
Tim.

 

[beth]

Tim, my QT is as simple as can be. Nothing to get excited about. It’s a 20L sitting on a cheap metal stand. It has an eclipse hood with the accompanying filtration that comes with the eclipse [filter pad with charcoal]. I also added a fluval underwater filter that is basically a glorified powerhead that has a chamber for 2 small filter pads, and a very small charcoal pad. I also have a heater. I add a cupful of LS [after I pick out the bristleworms/snails] to seed the QT about a wk before adding a fish. The filter pads also seed in the main tank before fish adds to the QT. I use water from my main tank for water changes in addition to fresh made up salt water. Optimium water quality is the most important thing for QT.
Kinkfish, what I would do with your new QT is add 2 cups of sand from your main display to the QT [pick out any snails or bristleworms and return them to your display before adding the sand to your QT]. If you note in the pic above with the fish I posted, you will see a bit of sand in the QT. To kick start a new QT you could add a bit of LR. However, know that once you add LR to a QT that has been occupied by fish/or medicated, it is best not to return the LR to your main tank. LR will lose its coraline in a QT wo the intense lighting, calcium, etc. Don't add a standard sandbed as QT's are much easier to maintain without a thick bed. In a QT, you will want to diligently vacuum up all uneaten foods and detritus that you see. This is easiest by not adding substrate. This is imperative to maintaining water quality. For decorations, you could use dead rocks, but I use fake corals, etc. easy to clean and disinfect if I do have deal with a disease in the QT. If you haven’t already, read the FAQ section stickied at the top of this forum for QT info.

 

[nas19320]

How do you keep a QT tank cycled so when you add fish it does not cause a cycle?

 

[beth]

Frankly, I don't. When I know I'm going to add fish, I usually spend about 10+ days, seeding and conditioning the QT. However, that means that you have to plan ahead with fish acqusitions.

 

[nas19320]

I'm just worried that I will have any emergency and no place to put the "problem".

 

[beth]

Yes, I understand.
You can keep a QT always going by feeding the tank with some food and seeding it repeatedly as I've descibed here. You can also use LR, if you are willing to sacrafice the rock.

 

[beth]

Originally posted by Melody
How are you liking your new blenny?? I have been wondering about getting a mate for mine. Do you have any idea's on that? I just hate for something to be lonely..maybe I'm to sensitive about such things.
I like him just fine. He's a good looking fish! He's actually the first "online" fish that I've gotten, though most of the stuff in my tank is from online, this was the first time for a fish shipment. So far, very good. I don't have a lfs here, thus, I have to get most of my stuff online or drive 150miles to get it.
I would not try to pair up another blenny with the one you have. They will fight like pit bulls.
I felt like the rocks and caulerpa would kinda make them feel a little safer.
You should remove the algae. If you have to treat the tank the algae will die off and polute you QT.

 

[beth]

Actually macroalgae could be a nite natural filter for a QT, however, if a fish gets sick in the QT with the macro, then you need to discard the maco. DON'T RETURN IT TO YOU DISPLAY.