Will I be fighting ammonia all the time in qt?

[nel621]

I set up and emergency qt for my fish.I bought 3 tangs and 1 had ich.So off to qt they went.In my dt I had 2 maroon clowns, so I added them to the qt also,although the clowns showed no signs of ich and still don't.I had an extra sponge filter in my wet dry that's been there for the longest time.I also added another sponge to the w/d to colonize which are both now on the qt.So I have 5 fish, about 4/4 inches long in a 29g. going through hypo.Every day I change at least 15g of water and also add a little ammon lock.I can only get the ammo down between .25 and .50. The fish are swimming and eating,no more spots[been in hypo 1 wwek].My questions are will this tank ever cycle with this bio load? Or is the constant water changes prolonging any cycling or stabilizing?Also will the fish be ok if I reduce feeding to every other day to minimize waste?If I put some seaweed on a clip the tangs eat it all.I know they are grazers so I don't want them to starve,but do you think skipping a day will be ok?Will I changing 15 -20g of water every day for 4 weeks!Just bought another 30lbs of salt.

 

[beth]

Expect to be dealing with ammonia. Large bio-load and a new tank. Keep the pH at 7.9 to reduce the potency of the ammonia. Add a couple of cups of sand from the display into the QT and increase water circulation.

 

[nel621]

I have and hob filter rated for 70g tank and 1 power head running.I added 2 medium size pieces of LR to the tank taht had some algea growing on it.It has been picked clean by the tangs!Ph is 7.9.What about the reduced feeding schedule? Do you think this add some more stress to the fish along with all the water changes?

 

[al mc]

Nel.....I had a similar situation about 2 years ago when I got back into the hobby. Dog Face Puffer, Foxface, three chromis into 15 gallon QT tank 'cold
turkey' because of ICH. It was about 10-14 days into the 50% daily water changes that the nitrogen cycle kicked in. I was 'making water' all the time.
I did not know about Amquel plus or Ammonia Lock. Everyone survived the cycling and subsequent Hypo treatment, but it was work. It is not impossible.
Good luck.

 

[nel621]

Thank you for the words of encouragement.It just seems as if the elusive nitrogen cycle is not arriving fast enough.My living room is a wreck.along with the Main Dt I also set up a 10g to hold 2 4 stripe damsels.Then the 29g qt. 5 5gal holding/mixing jugs of water.Stuff everywhere!I need to be done by Thanksgiving Day,that's when company comes over.I'm hanging in there!

 

[beth]

No, sick fish need to have adequate nutrition, and especially in hypo conditions when the metabolism speeds up. Try target feeding in small portions a few times a day, rather then dumping a large amt of food in once or twice a day.

 

[dinogeorge]

It may not be practical for you, but I always run my QT, even if I have no fish in it for months at a time. I turn off my skimmer, leave the lights off and keep my filters running. Once I move my fish into one of my DT’s, I drop a chunk of shrimp in the QT and let it decompose. If I need to put a fish in the QT, then I remove the shrimp test the water to determine if a change is necessary and then crank up my skimmer again. This may seem like a waste, but I can assure you that it is much more cost effective than setting up your QT again and then making tons of water changes while you "hope" that the tank cycles before your fish die. This way your tank has enough bacteria to handle nearly anything you put in it, if an emergency arises.

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by Dinogeorge
It may not be practical for you, but I always run my QT, even if I have no fish in it for months at a time. I turn off my skimmer, leave the lights off and keep my filters running. Once I move my fish into one of my DT’s, I drop a chunk of shrimp in the QT and let it decompose. If I need to put a fish in the QT, then I remove the shrimp test the water to determine if a change is necessary and then crank up my skimmer again. This may seem like a waste, but I can assure you that it is much more cost effective than setting up your QT again and then making tons of water changes while you "hope" that the tank cycles before your fish die. This way your tank has enough bacteria to handle nearly anything you put in it, if an emergency arises.
I do the same thing

 

[jamiegrl]

sorry to barge in but if you keep the filter running do you continue to do water changes and change filters and all on the empty OT?

 

[3stripedamsel]

Originally Posted by jamiegrl
sorry to barge in but if you keep the filter running do you continue to do water changes and change filters and all on the empty OT?

i think you have to feed it a little to keep the bacteria alive and when the nitrates gets to 10 or something , you do a water change but is really no use if you use copper or marcy 2. The bacteria is dead

Which is happening to my qt tank and sponge.

 

[geridoc]

Originally Posted by jamiegrl
sorry to barge in but if you keep the filter running do you continue to do water changes and change filters and all on the empty OT?
No, I only feed the empty QT, I do not change water. Just before I use the tank I may do a change, using DT water. On the topic that started this thread - Amquel Plus is an effective agent to reduce nitrogen compound toxicity while allowing the tank to complete its cycle. Just use it as directed.

 

[dinogeorge]

Agree with GeriDoc...I don't change the water until I need to put a fish in QT.