Blue Tank

[crxman]

well my blue tang has ich i setup a 20 qt tank and put crushed coral on the bottom, come live rock, a mj 1200 power head that is pointing to the top of the water, put a hangon filter on the back (theres no filter in it) and set the temp to 80 then i put copper in it. is there anything else i should do?

 

[soyadrink]

I'm not 100% sure but I dont think you should have any Live sand or rock in a qt tank

 

[crxman]

its just rock that doesnt have anything on it so im not worried about it and the crushed coral i had to put in there cuz he was freakin out and when i put it in there he was alot better

 

[returnofsid]

Just keep in mind that ANYTHING at all that's ever been in this tank or will ever go in it can never go in your display tank now...other than the fish. I would have suggested a hypo-salinity treatment instead, but since you've already started the copper treatment, I'd keep with it. Just make sure you monitor your fish and your copper levels carefully.

 

[crxman]

ok i will go to the lfs to get a copper test if they are not to much because right now we dont have alot of money because the wife is pregnant and we should have a kid in the next few days. what should the copper levels be? and i was also told that i need a air stone in there because the bubbles that the hang on filter isnt going to cut it

 

[james734]

Not sure what copper treatment you've started but I'd recommend Seachem Cupramine

 

[crxman]

ya thats the one im usin

 

[leebca]

Carbonates interfere with a copper treatment. Hence no rock or substrate that is carbonate based can be used during a copper treatment. You will need copper test equipment appropriate to the medication you are using. Since you indicated you are using Cupramine, you should be testing the water for copper using a Salifert Copper Test Kit or a Seachem Copper Test Kit to hold the copper concentration in the correct zone for effective treatment, without harming the fish.

I would suggest you quickly read more on this topic, then begin again: Copper Medications - Good, Bad, and Ugly

A Quarantine Procedure

 

[crxman]

ok so i should go get some pvc or soemthing to put in the tank right and what should i do with the rock that is i there now. the reason i put the crushed coral on the bottom is because the fish was stressed and kept trying to swim through the bottom because he didnt know that was the bottom.

 

[returnofsid]

Your live rock and your crushed coral are both carbonate based. Unfortunately, neither will be safe for reef systems so will probably have to be thrown away. You could try painting the bottom of the tank, on the outside of course, a darker color, or just place the tank on a darker piece of construction paper or something similar.

 

[Snowboarda42]

Your live rock and your crushed coral are both carbonate based. Unfortunately, neither will be safe for reef systems so will probably have to be thrown away. You could try painting the bottom of the tank, on the outside of course, a darker color, or just place the tank on a darker piece of construction paper or something similar.

Reason for that is to help keep the reflection down from the bottom of the tank. I also paint 3 sides of the tank with black if its in a "high traffic" area, since QT's can be somewhat stressful to fish.

 

[leebca]

For most marine fish, a bare-bottom QT is best. Suggestions for painting the outside bottom are good. I have also gone out and bought black paper to put underneath a QT.

PVC and plastic decorations are okay. The PVC piping will provide a hiding place, assuming you buy piping that is a little larger in diameter than the fish. Just one or two short pieces are good enough -- you don't want the fish to disappear from your view altogether.

Dispose of the rock and substrate -- it now has copper attached to it.

 

[crxman]

well the fish seems to be doing better, he is hiding in a cup i put in there for him, he does seem to be eating (ive only seen him eat 1 flake

 

[crxman]

ok i got a copper test but the seachem bottle doesnt say what the copper should be it juse says how many drops to put in the tank. does any1 know what the copper should be in the tank?

 

[leebca]

Using Cupramine and the Seachem or Salifert Copper Test kit, the copper reading should be held between 0.3 ppm copper and 0.6 ppm copper. I would recommend holding it between 0.4 and 0.5 to provide some comfort. It has been shown to still be effective as low as 0.3 ppm.