Quarantine tank.

Discussion in 'Corals' started by Bobby@W.U.W, Apr 27, 2007.

  1. Bobby@W.U.W

    Bobby@W.U.W Guest

    A quarantine tank is mentioned in every text about the subject of how to keep an aquarium.
    It is also the least practiced part of aquarium husbandry.
    It is true that it is not always used but when you look at national and even state aquariums that have marine veterinarians. They quarantine and treat every animal that comes in their door to keep their animals healthy. That should be our goal as hobbyist too.

    My next project for my sps reef is to set up a quarantine tank. I have everything except a house to put my new tank in and a few pumps. that’s ok. I still have a couple of years to go to meet my 5 year plan to have one of the most advanced reefs in NWA.

    Equipment That I need or that I am stockpiling until the glorious day when I am ready to set it up.

    A 30 cube with a 250w HQI
    Berlin 350 skimmer / mag 7 pump
    Seio 820
    8 lb live rock bare bottom.
    A canister filter
    And a magnified glass
    That should do it.

    The problem with parasites

    They do not need a host to be in your system. They can live in a “dormant state†on your live rock.

    They are very hard to see. Some blend into their surroundings and others are so small you almost need to have a microscope to find them.

    They are hard to treat. Medications for parasites are not readily available in the hobby and some are not known.

    I am not telling you this to scare you, but to make sure you are aware of the problem. Most of the time in my experience treatment is not needed if you only have a few sps but if you want a sps dominated reef proper precautions should be taken.
     
  2. jaysuncle

    jaysuncle Guest

    Are you referring only to SPS parasites or others such as Marine Ich too? I don't know anything about SPS parasites (yet) but I have done a lot of research on Marine Ich (Cryptocaryon irritans) and it does not lie dormant on live rock. It must have a fish host to complete its 28 day lifecycle.

    I'm hoping to have mostly SPS corals in my new tank. What other parasites have you had experience with that we should watch out for?

    Thank you for sharing your experience with us! :D
     
  3. Bobby@W.U.W

    Bobby@W.U.W Guest

    Red bugs

    They irritate the corrals and cause them to retract their polyps.
    An iodine dip usually helps but to get rid of them completely you need to treat with Interceptor.

    (Cryptocaryon irritans)
    In my experience (imo) live on the fish all the time. When the fish is stressed it becomes active.
    In my opinion, there are two types of conditions that cause Cryptocaryon irritans.

    Sick fish syndrome and sick tank syndrome.

    Sick fish there is only one fish effected by the parasites usually due to poor diet, poor handling, or by getting picked on by other fish.

    Sick tank syndrome poor water/environment quality.

    But yes everything SHOULD go in to quarantine, but for some species it is better to take a chance. On fish I think it is a little easer to spot a infestation before buying them, therefore less people quarantine them. Studying the fish or at least the family that the fish comes from is recommended before deciding if its worth it to buy or if it HAS got to be to be quarantined before going in to your main system.

    On the other hand some fish need to go into a reef to even have a chance of survival.
    Examples; Acanthurus tangs, cleaner Wrasses, Anthias, Gudgeons, Tilefish, ect……
     
  4. ScubaDog

    ScubaDog Guest

    In the sps fourm they have several extensive threads on the dreaded red bugs. Most of the serious guys dip their acros in a lugios sp , solution.
     

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