Qt help!

[Abraham1907]

Ok, my wrasse has some stuff on it's mouth area, and I don't really know what it is. He is hiding and not coming out to eat or anything. He just sits in a little rock crevace. When I was doing tank maintainance this morning he got scared when my hand was near him and swam out and just sat on the sand. I have never seen him just sit there before. After a little while he swam back into a crevace and won't come out.

 

He obviously needs to be qted, and I have an extra 3 gallon tank sitting around for him. I have never done a qt before, so I have some questions. Should I use RO water or will tap be ok? Normally I use RO for my main tank, but since there are no corals in the qt, I don't see why tap wouldn't be ok. Secondly, should I use half new water and half tank water? What medicine should I treat with if I don't know what it is? Is there one that treats everything? (I will take a picture once he is in the qt to id it) Lastly, how often should I do water changes? There is an undergravel filter on the tank which I plan on using (Although the tank will be bare bottom so i guess it's really not undergravel).

[Six]

Ok, my wrasse

what species?

 

has some stuff on it's mouth area,

what kind of "stuff"? white, cottony, filmy, cauliflower-y?

 

When I was doing tank maintainance this morning he got scared when my hand was near him and swam out and just sat on the sand. I have never seen him just sit there before. After a little while he swam back into a crevace and won't come out.

They are cryptic my nature, so depending on the species this may be semi-normal to stress related.

 

He obviously needs to be qted, and I have an extra 3 gallon tank sitting around for him.

not near large enough for a QT tank. can you get a 10 gallon instead? it's easier to maintain the water quality and dose meds ina 10.

 

I have never done a qt before, so I have some questions.

 

another reason to use a 10. smaller tanks will be much much more difficult.

 

Should I use RO water or will tap be ok? Normally I use RO for my main tank, but since there are no corals in the qt, I don't see why tap wouldn't be ok. Secondly, should I use half new water and half tank water?

IMO, all tank water. we want to reduce stress, so get him to a new tank with the same water, settle in for a day and then do 10% changes 3+ times a week

 

What medicine should I treat with if I don't know what it is? Is there one that treats everything? (I will take a picture once he is in the qt to id it)

 

nothing. please dont use any medication on the fish until you've id'd the problem. medications are hard on the animal and shouldnt be used unless you need them. usually QT is all you need to do. meds are a last resort if the husbandry you're doing isnt enough to re-boost the fish's immune system.

 

Lastly, how often should I do water changes? There is an undergravel filter on the tank which I plan on using (Although the tank will be bare bottom so i guess it's really not undergravel).

 

3+ times a week and an UG filter wont work in this case.

 

 

Suggestion:

 

10gallon

sponge filter

air pump and airline to run sponge filter

background on all sides of the tank except front

lid

PVC tubing cut to make hiding places

a little bit of live rock to get some bacteria going and some old filter media to seed the sponge

heater

thermometer

light (optional)

 

a 3 gallon (im guessing it's one of those "all in one" kid's tanks?) wont be enough space. if you plan to medicate, all meds go in 10gallon increments, so dosing for a 3 will be a nightmare.

 

whew, im tired of typing.

HTH.

6

 

here's a sponge filter that i use in all my fw tanks. works great for sw QT.

 

cheap too.

[Abraham1907]

"what species?"

 

Carpenter's flasher wrasse

 

"what kind of "stuff"? white, cottony, filmy, cauliflower-y?"

 

As I said, I don't know, he just hides and I can't really see him. If anything i would say it looks like a bunch of string white stuff around his mouth. I guess cottony...

 

"They are cryptic my nature, so depending on the species this may be semi-normal to stress related."

 

I have never seen him do it before, he hides a lot, but he never actually sits on rock, he is always floating/swimming

 

"not near large enough for a QT tank. can you get a 10 gallon instead? it's easier to maintain the water quality and dose meds ina 10."

 

I'm kindof just going with what I have right now. I have a 3 gallon so that will have to do.

 

"IMO, all tank water. we want to reduce stress, so get him to a new tank with the same water, settle in for a day and then do 10% changes 3+ times a week"

 

My main tank is only 25 gallons, so 10 gallons would be a ton to take out. I already set the tank up because I hadn't seen a reply and I used half tank and :half RO.

 

nothing. please dont use any medication on the fish until you've id'd the problem. medications are hard on the animal and shouldnt be used unless you need them. usually QT is all you need to do. meds are a last resort if the husbandry you're doing isnt enough to re-boost the fish's immune system.

 

ok, I will find out what it is first, I was just wondering if there was something that treated everything, but I guess not.

 

3+ times a week and an UG filter wont work in this case.

 

Ok, an undergravel was all I had, I know it isn't enough, but at least it circulates the water for now.

 

 

My LFS doesn't sell sponge filters, I have read a power filter (aquaclear or something) will be fine, so in the next week I will buy a 10 gallon and a hang-on filter for it. So i can do it right, but for now I have to use the 3 gallon.

 

I really just wanted to know how to make what I have the best it could be. I already know what I don't have....