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Learning how to QT advice needed!

nightmarepl

NJRC Member
hey guys, so ive decided to QT all my fish from my reef and try to kill this Ich that came with my tang...
so il be setting up a 29G tank with a sponge filter few pvc pipes for good hiding a small 240 GPH wave maker a small heater keep water temp at 79 degrees, wave maker pointed upwards have 2 5g buckets of salt water mixed on hand for water changes.
ill get the biospira bacteria to speed the cycle process up i wont be using a light heard its not require the tank will be in a basement so its pretty dark in there should effect the fish correct?

supposedly the best way to is use copper to cure ich, my question is how long do they have to be in the QT tank what kind of copper levels do i need whats the best copper product used to cure this ich, and how long do the fish need to be out of my tank for also will ich stay on any of my shrimp snails crabs or will it die off if know fish in there

trying to get this done the fast possible way to get my fish back into the DT asap please inform me of what i have to do to get this done.

29g tank 1 small 1-2 tang /1 watchman goby / 1 clown fish / 1 yellow fin damsel ( will all these fish be okay in this copper medication? should i add anything else ?
 

Hallowhead

NJRC Member
hey guys, so ive decided to QT all my fish from my reef and try to kill this Ich that came with my tang...
so il be setting up a 29G tank with a sponge filter few pvc pipes for good hiding a small 240 GPH wave maker a small heater keep water temp at 79 degrees, wave maker pointed upwards have 2 5g buckets of salt water mixed on hand for water changes.
ill get the biospira bacteria to speed the cycle process up i wont be using a light heard its not require the tank will be in a basement so its pretty dark in there should effect the fish correct?

supposedly the best way to is use copper to cure ich, my question is how long do they have to be in the QT tank what kind of copper levels do i need whats the best copper product used to cure this ich, and how long do the fish need to be out of my tank for also will ich stay on any of my shrimp snails crabs or will it die off if know fish in there

trying to get this done the fast possible way to get my fish back into the DT asap please inform me of what i have to do to get this done.

29g tank 1 small 1-2 tang /1 watchman goby / 1 clown fish / 1 yellow fin damsel ( will all these fish be okay in this copper medication? should i add anything else ?
With that many fish you're gonna want some form of ammonia filter. Maybe super frequent water changes or live rock. Or even marine pure that's been acclimated In your DT with a large bio life
 

nightmarepl

NJRC Member
With that many fish you're gonna want some form of ammonia filter. Maybe super frequent water changes or live rock. Or even marine pure that's been acclimated In your DT with a large bio life
yah but wont having copper based medication kill the bioload either way?
 

diana a

Staff member
NJRC Member
Moderator
It will not. But remember that if you use copper in the QT, nothing from this setup can ever be used in your DT or as your DT later on... examples: filters, filter media, heater, probes, thermometer, etc. Bleaching your items to sterilize them will not remove the copper fully. If your bacterial colonies are not established or fully established, do many water changes and watch your nitrates.
 

falconut

NJRC Member
First, I'd highly recommend getting a hanna copper checker, since you need to keep the levels without going too high or going too low. High could kill the fish, low could be ineffective. The other color text kits are so hard to read & even found I was way off once I got my checker.

Second, add copper slowly. Go slower than instructions. I took about a week to get to my dosage.

Third, don't rush it. You should probably do at least 30 full days once you reach the correct level, then observe for 30 days after removable off copper to be sure it's gone.

I'm not sure I agree that you can't use any equipment once it's been used with copper. I've been told it only binds to porous objects, like rock or sand. This is for cupramine, that's what I've used. I've also been told the rock & sand will eventually leach it out after time, too. I know this isn't what most people say, though.

Be careful adding any ammonia neutralizer when using copper, I believe that's the stuff that makes copper extremely toxic.

I used cycled tanks to do my treatments & the ammonia only slightly went up in 1 tank, but not at all in another, so you should be good. If you add the fish all at once it might spike like any other tank if you add too many fish at once.

If you're using cupramine, you'll need an ammonia alert badge to monitor ammonia, since the regular tests don't work with it.

Good luck, I've done this a few times & it's no fun. But really the only way to resolve the problem.
 

nightmarepl

NJRC Member
First, I'd highly recommend getting a hanna copper checker, since you need to keep the levels without going too high or going too low. High could kill the fish, low could be ineffective. The other color text kits are so hard to read & even found I was way off once I got my checker.

Second, add copper slowly. Go slower than instructions. I took about a week to get to my dosage.

Third, don't rush it. You should probably do at least 30 full days once you reach the correct level, then observe for 30 days after removable off copper to be sure it's gone.

I'm not sure I agree that you can't use any equipment once it's been used with copper. I've been told it only binds to porous objects, like rock or sand. This is for cupramine, that's what I've used. I've also been told the rock & sand will eventually leach it out after time, too. I know this isn't what most people say, though.

Be careful adding any ammonia neutralizer when using copper, I believe that's the stuff that makes copper extremely toxic.

I used cycled tanks to do my treatments & the ammonia only slightly went up in 1 tank, but not at all in another, so you should be good. If you add the fish all at once it might spike like any other tank if you add too many fish at once.

If you're using cupramine, you'll need an ammonia alert badge to monitor ammonia, since the regular tests don't work with it.

Good luck, I've done this a few times & it's no fun. But really the only way to resolve the problem.
thank you for the detailed info bud currently everyone is doing fine once i see the ich get crazy or alot more noticable ill run the QT setup currently ill probably just set it up let it cycle for a few days / weeks
 
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