Fish advice

[Jpaul]

Ok, I have a few questions after my fish dying of ich. I set up a quarentine tank and am going to let it cycle for a month while I leave the main tank empty(2 months?) to kill whatever ich is in the system. Is is ok to let the quarentine cycle and then drop it to hyposalinity? Will this kill the good bacteria? When I get a new fish is it ok to put it right into hyposalinity to kill parisites before I see them? How long do I leave them there and how do I gradually bring the salinity back up without causing problems? Is it ok to still add corals to my main tank during the fishless period? And finally can anyone suggest what kind of fishes I can add when the time comes, that will get along. I have a 50 gallon tank probably at least 150 pounds of live rock, some mushrooms, leather, and zoas. How many fish should be the top number that I add? I know it's alot of questions but I want to get it right this time. Oh and I have acan lighting. 1 more thing, do mandarines and dart fish get ich? They are the only ones left and pretty damn hard to get out of the tank!

 

[marrone]

First, you want to leave the main tank empty of fish for 8 weeks. Second, you don't need to cycle the QT, your setup should be very basic, bare bottom tank, an air pump, power head or hang on filter for water movement and a heater. Some PVC, where fish can hide in, and you're done. Some people will also use come bacteria from the main tank, like a sponge filter.

As for Hypo, you just don't want to drop a fish that is coming from a SG of say 1.024 to 1.009, that can shock them and cause them to die. If you plan on using Hypo in the QT you need to slowly bring the fish down to that level, which can take over a full day to do so, and then you need to bring the fish back up slowly too, which is another day. It's better to leave the SG at 1.021-1.0027 and see if the fish has something first before you start to treat it, then treat it with the correct medication or cure.

As for adding corals, that shouldn't be a problem. What fish to keep, well since you have a 50gal tank, with a good amount of LR, that limits the amount and type of fish you can keep. There are a lot of smaller wrasse, pygmy angels, gobies, basslets and clowns fish that will do very well in a tank that size. What you want to do it pick the fish that you really want, and make sure the tank that you have is the right size for it, and then build around it with other fish that will get along with it.

 

[Jpaul]

Thanks!

 

[lfsmarineguy]

Do you have a pic of the tank? 150lbs in a 50 gal is way more than you would need and might be the reason why you had ich in the first place.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Yes, Pics please.

 

[Jpaul]

http://www.manhattanreefs.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=33250&c=member&imageuser=4505

http://www.manhattanreefs.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=33249&c=member&imageuser=4505

Hope this will do.

 

[Jpaul]

I say 150 because the two bottom pieces are very large and I figure they are about 40 to 50 pounds apiece, got them for free when someone was breaking down there tank a few yrs ago. Its hard for me to estimate how much all the rock weighs.