FRESHWATER DIP WITH METHYLENE BLUE
INTRODUCTION
I totally support the use of a quarantine process for newly acquired marine specimens. My quarantine process and its benefits are written here:
The matter isn't where the fish came from or how it was acquired. I don’t care how reliable the source (a best friend who guarantees his tanks and fishes have no disease; an LFS who says he did the quarantine for you; etc.) or how healthy you think the fish is (you watched it for days at your LFS and could see nothing wrong with it), it needs to be quarantined and before that quarantine, a freshwater dip.
Fish are always stressed. But a proper quarantine process doesn't have to be extra stressful to the new fish. The quarantine process can be made to be less stressful, if it is done properly with forethought. But, this post is not about the quarantine process. It is about what to do before the fish gets into your quarantine tank.
IMHO
All fish need to have a freshwater dip/bath before getting into your quarantine tank. It is essential for all fishes. There are just too many flukes, external parasites, gill parasites and things on and in newly acquired marine fishes that (especially to the eye of the excited aquarist who just bought the fish) are not readily visible. It is the greatest prophylactic step the aquarist can take to further protect their investment and the health of the newly acquired fish. Read this post to see where the FW dip falls in with the proper acclimation of a newly acquired fish: Fish Acclimation Procedure
Let's get over some terminology. A 'dip' is meant to be a short immersion of the marine specimen into prepared water. A 'bath' is meant to be a lengthy immersion of the marine specimen into prepared water. Since my 'dips' are 30 minutes long (that's right!
), I'll be referring to it as a 'bath' more than a 'dip.'
So here, I've provided as much (too much?) detail as possible about performing a good general freshwater dip/bath for newly acquired marine fish.
THINGS YOU NEED
TWO identically sized plastic (non-clear) bowls such that (when equipped with the colander insert if you choose to use one) it is no less than 2 inches over the height of the fish and enough room for the fish to swim around in (or at least be able to easily turn around in).
ONE cover for the above bowls that is open or has holes in it, like a plastic latticed cover or flat colander.
Methylene Blue (a solution sold for fish medication that is about 2.0 to 2.2% Methylene Blue)
Sodium Bicarbonate (Food Grade Arm & Hammer Baking Soda) to adjust pH up
Vinegar (pure without additives) to adjust pH down BUT avoid the use of this -- don't overshoot pH and prefer to dump the bath and start over rather than adding vinegar to the bath
Timer (stove, microwave, portable timer, watch, etc.)
Net(s) (preferably, use a colander (see below) to transfer and dip fish to avoid injury from a net)
Long plastic kitchen spoon (either solid or with holes) for mixing the bath
pH tester
Temperature tester
OPTIONAL THINGS YOU MAY WANT
A third plastic bowl (non-clear) exactly like the two from THINGS YOU NEED
Plastic Colander (that fits snugly into the above required plastic bowls; the fish will be inside this and it still needs to give the fish the 2" minimum water over the fish and swimming around room)
pH meter (Hanna handheld or similar model that measures to 0.05 pH units (or better) reliably)
Thermometer (easily portable digital that reads to 0.2 degrees F reliably)
PREPARATIONS
Prepare equipment:
There must be no sharp edges to the colander and plastic bowls (use fine sand paper then Emery Cloth to remove sharp edges)
There must be no labels or glue left from removed labels, on the equipment and tools.
Clean everything and rinse well with RO/DI or distilled water. (NOTE: Especially if you use a dishwasher for your household, you must rinse in hot tap water to remove any dishwasher soap/rinse residue, then thoroughly rinse again in RO/DI).
Although it isn't necessary, if you haven't recently calibrated the pH meter (if you'll be using one) I suggest doing that before this process.
Prepare the freshwater bath:
1. Use RO/DI water or distilled water for the bath water. Measure how much water you are using in gallons or liters.
2. Adjust bath water to about 3F above the temperature of the quarantine tank water (some cooling will occur). Stir with spoon.
3. Using Sodium Bicarbonate in small increments, adjust bath water to a pH just about 0.10 pH units below the pH of the quarantine tank water. Stir with spoon.
4. Add drops of Methylene Blue to the bath water as follows: 2 drops per liter of water; 8 drops (0.4 ml) per gallon of water. (NOTE: dispense drops holding the dropping bottle or dropper exactly vertical (not at an angle).)
5. Stir bath with clean spoon.
6. Finish adjusting the pH to match that of the quarantine tank water pH while stirring the bath.
NOTE: It is possible for the QT water to change pH in a short time. Be sure to verify that the bath pH still matches the pH of the QT water JUST BEFORE the fish is to enter the bath. Adjust pH just prior to use, if necessary.
7. Check temperature. If it is up to 2F above the quarantine tank water, that will be okay. If the bath water temperature is lower than the quarantine tank water, it must be raised. A lower bath water temperature than the quarantine tank water, is not acceptable. (You can use a microwave to heat a small portion of the bath water, then mix with the whole bath to raise the bath water temperature).
Prepare rinse dip water:
Fill one of the bowls with quarantine tank water to use as a rinse, just before you need it (see DIP PROCESS)
----------------
So you have two (or three if using the colander method) identical sized bowls;
1 with the freshwater bath water in it, properly adjusted for pH and temperature
1 empty (to be filled when needed with quarantine water for the rinse off)
1 empty with the colander inside of it (if you're using nets, these two pieces aren't needed)
The colander will fit snugly into each of the three identical bowls
DIP PROCESS
Process directions are given as if you are using the colander suggested equipment.
1. Acclimate the fish in its bag, to the quarantine tank water according to the proper procedure.
2. After this acclimation and while fish is still in its transport bag: Gently pour the fish and water into the empty bowl with the colander insert in it. Cover the colander. (Now the fish is inside the plastic colander, which is inside the bowl, which now contains the bag water).
3. Lift the covered colander and let the water drain away out of the colander (and away from the fish). Hold for two seconds.
4. Insert covered colander into bowl with freshwater bath in it, and sink it.
5. Set timer for 5 minutes and start the timer.
6. For the first 5 minutes watch how the fish is doing through the lid or by peaking under the lid. Tangs often pretend to be dead. Don’t be fooled! If the fish is in legitimate danger, stop the bath and proceed to number 9.
7. After 5 minutes, check the fish again and start the timer again (for another 5 minutes).
8. Repeat 7. until the fish has been in the bath for 30 minutes or until the fish is in legitimate danger (see below: Signs of a fish in trouble).
9. Fill the still empty dry (third) bowl with quarantine tank water.
10 When time has come to stop the bath, raise the covered colander out of the bath, sink it into the rinse container of quarantine tank water to rinse off excess bath water. Pause just a few seconds.
11. Raise colander and sink it slowly into the quarantine tank so that the fish can quietly swim out.
Look closely at the freshwater bath water in the container. Do you see anything that came off the fish? It is maybe hard to see through the blue (so pour some off (decant it); dilute it with distilled water), but spend some time and look closely to see if anything came off. Look for anything the size and shape of a sesame seed (fluke); look for tiny specs the size of powdered sugar (Marine Velvet (Amyloodinium ocellatum)). This will help you with a diagnosis, should the fish end up being sick, infected or ?
TIME IN THE BATH
A freshwater bath experience is more stressful to the novice aquarist that it is to the fish. Most fishes can handle an hour in this bath, but 30 minutes is plenty. With experience you can tell the difference between a fish faking stress and one that is really in trouble. Hard to explain in writing, but I’ll try.
Signs of a fish in trouble. Often tangs (and a few other fishes) sink to the bottom of the bath and play dead laying on their side. It is okay to prod it gently with a clean plastic rod or the long spoon handle, with no sharp edges. If it flops about or swims or swims then falls over "dead" again, it is okay. Once some time goes by the tang will probably swim around. You’re mostly interested in how it's breathing. Watch the gills.
Some fish will go into their defensive mode by erecting all spines, changing colors, changing patterns, or any combo of these. :shock: What the aquarist wants to do is don't read too much into such antics, but to look closely at the fish to see how it is breathing. Rapid or normal breathing is okay for the first few minutes, but the methylene blue should calm the fish down shortly after the first few minutes (see below). If the fish is breathing very fast or not at all, with any one or more of those 'defensive' signs, the bath should stop.
BACKGROUND INFO
Without getting technical, the methylene blue helps calm the fish and provides the fish an easier time to breath. At the same time, the methylene blue will actually make life difficult for some external and gill parasites. It has a very nice dual use in this process so take advantage of it. DO NOT overdose the bath water with methylene blue. More is not better!
I found you can find/buy inexpensive colanders and bowls from your 99 cent store, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, etc. You want a plastic colander that fits tightly into the bowls and gives the fish the most swimming/moving around room inside the colander. You can even buy such plastic containers from suppliers of aqua culture products through the Internet. Alternatively you can use nets, but as we all know, nets can harm the fish (and by the time you get the fish, the fish is totally afraid of nets!). Buy the bowl sizes that are right for the size fishes you will be dipping.
If you use nets rather than the colander method, then you don’t need one of those bowls and the colander. You'll make the transfers using the net to move the fish from bath to rinse to QT.
SUMMARY
A lot of grief later on can be spared if all newly acquired marine fishes are given a FW 'dip' right after acclimation.
In the case of anemonefish: After they are in the QT they need to begin a treatment for Brooklynella. The freshwater dip will not clear them of Brooklynella and most ciliated protozoan. ALL ANEMONEFISH need to be treated for Brooklynella and ciliated protozoan. It’s just that these fishes attract these pathogens too readily to not perform Formalin dips.
Similarly, after the fish is in the QT, all tangs of the Acanthurus genus should be treated with Cupramine copper treatment to rid them of both Marine Ich (Cryptocaryon irritans) and Marine Velvet (Amyloodinium ocellatum. These fish are so often infected with one, the other or both that treatment should be considered part of the QT process. I like the use of hyposalinity, but hyposalinity doesn't kill Marine Velvet. Copper kills both these parasites.
A fine quarantine article:
An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure: A Quarantine Tank for Everything by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com
Lee's Quarantine Process:
A Quarantine Procedure
Now that the fish is in the QT, start feeding it right:
Fish Health Through Proper Nutrition
Lastly, if you find any 'things' in the dip water you are unsure about, post in this Forum (preferably with a photo and/or detailed description). If you need any help with the QT process or a condition, injury or disease of your fish, post in the Marine Fish Discussion Forum here on Reef Frontiers.
Good luck!
INTRODUCTION
I totally support the use of a quarantine process for newly acquired marine specimens. My quarantine process and its benefits are written here:
The matter isn't where the fish came from or how it was acquired. I don’t care how reliable the source (a best friend who guarantees his tanks and fishes have no disease; an LFS who says he did the quarantine for you; etc.) or how healthy you think the fish is (you watched it for days at your LFS and could see nothing wrong with it), it needs to be quarantined and before that quarantine, a freshwater dip.
Fish are always stressed. But a proper quarantine process doesn't have to be extra stressful to the new fish. The quarantine process can be made to be less stressful, if it is done properly with forethought. But, this post is not about the quarantine process. It is about what to do before the fish gets into your quarantine tank.
IMHO
All fish need to have a freshwater dip/bath before getting into your quarantine tank. It is essential for all fishes. There are just too many flukes, external parasites, gill parasites and things on and in newly acquired marine fishes that (especially to the eye of the excited aquarist who just bought the fish) are not readily visible. It is the greatest prophylactic step the aquarist can take to further protect their investment and the health of the newly acquired fish. Read this post to see where the FW dip falls in with the proper acclimation of a newly acquired fish: Fish Acclimation Procedure
Let's get over some terminology. A 'dip' is meant to be a short immersion of the marine specimen into prepared water. A 'bath' is meant to be a lengthy immersion of the marine specimen into prepared water. Since my 'dips' are 30 minutes long (that's right!
), I'll be referring to it as a 'bath' more than a 'dip.'So here, I've provided as much (too much?) detail as possible about performing a good general freshwater dip/bath for newly acquired marine fish.
THINGS YOU NEED
TWO identically sized plastic (non-clear) bowls such that (when equipped with the colander insert if you choose to use one) it is no less than 2 inches over the height of the fish and enough room for the fish to swim around in (or at least be able to easily turn around in).
ONE cover for the above bowls that is open or has holes in it, like a plastic latticed cover or flat colander.
Methylene Blue (a solution sold for fish medication that is about 2.0 to 2.2% Methylene Blue)
Sodium Bicarbonate (Food Grade Arm & Hammer Baking Soda) to adjust pH up
Vinegar (pure without additives) to adjust pH down BUT avoid the use of this -- don't overshoot pH and prefer to dump the bath and start over rather than adding vinegar to the bath
Timer (stove, microwave, portable timer, watch, etc.)
Net(s) (preferably, use a colander (see below) to transfer and dip fish to avoid injury from a net)
Long plastic kitchen spoon (either solid or with holes) for mixing the bath
pH tester
Temperature tester
OPTIONAL THINGS YOU MAY WANT
A third plastic bowl (non-clear) exactly like the two from THINGS YOU NEED
Plastic Colander (that fits snugly into the above required plastic bowls; the fish will be inside this and it still needs to give the fish the 2" minimum water over the fish and swimming around room)
pH meter (Hanna handheld or similar model that measures to 0.05 pH units (or better) reliably)
Thermometer (easily portable digital that reads to 0.2 degrees F reliably)
PREPARATIONS
Prepare equipment:
There must be no sharp edges to the colander and plastic bowls (use fine sand paper then Emery Cloth to remove sharp edges)
There must be no labels or glue left from removed labels, on the equipment and tools.
Clean everything and rinse well with RO/DI or distilled water. (NOTE: Especially if you use a dishwasher for your household, you must rinse in hot tap water to remove any dishwasher soap/rinse residue, then thoroughly rinse again in RO/DI).
Although it isn't necessary, if you haven't recently calibrated the pH meter (if you'll be using one) I suggest doing that before this process.
Prepare the freshwater bath:
1. Use RO/DI water or distilled water for the bath water. Measure how much water you are using in gallons or liters.
2. Adjust bath water to about 3F above the temperature of the quarantine tank water (some cooling will occur). Stir with spoon.
3. Using Sodium Bicarbonate in small increments, adjust bath water to a pH just about 0.10 pH units below the pH of the quarantine tank water. Stir with spoon.
4. Add drops of Methylene Blue to the bath water as follows: 2 drops per liter of water; 8 drops (0.4 ml) per gallon of water. (NOTE: dispense drops holding the dropping bottle or dropper exactly vertical (not at an angle).)
5. Stir bath with clean spoon.
6. Finish adjusting the pH to match that of the quarantine tank water pH while stirring the bath.
NOTE: It is possible for the QT water to change pH in a short time. Be sure to verify that the bath pH still matches the pH of the QT water JUST BEFORE the fish is to enter the bath. Adjust pH just prior to use, if necessary.
7. Check temperature. If it is up to 2F above the quarantine tank water, that will be okay. If the bath water temperature is lower than the quarantine tank water, it must be raised. A lower bath water temperature than the quarantine tank water, is not acceptable. (You can use a microwave to heat a small portion of the bath water, then mix with the whole bath to raise the bath water temperature).
Prepare rinse dip water:
Fill one of the bowls with quarantine tank water to use as a rinse, just before you need it (see DIP PROCESS)
----------------
So you have two (or three if using the colander method) identical sized bowls;
1 with the freshwater bath water in it, properly adjusted for pH and temperature
1 empty (to be filled when needed with quarantine water for the rinse off)
1 empty with the colander inside of it (if you're using nets, these two pieces aren't needed)
The colander will fit snugly into each of the three identical bowls
DIP PROCESS
Process directions are given as if you are using the colander suggested equipment.
1. Acclimate the fish in its bag, to the quarantine tank water according to the proper procedure.
2. After this acclimation and while fish is still in its transport bag: Gently pour the fish and water into the empty bowl with the colander insert in it. Cover the colander. (Now the fish is inside the plastic colander, which is inside the bowl, which now contains the bag water).
3. Lift the covered colander and let the water drain away out of the colander (and away from the fish). Hold for two seconds.
4. Insert covered colander into bowl with freshwater bath in it, and sink it.
5. Set timer for 5 minutes and start the timer.
6. For the first 5 minutes watch how the fish is doing through the lid or by peaking under the lid. Tangs often pretend to be dead. Don’t be fooled! If the fish is in legitimate danger, stop the bath and proceed to number 9.
7. After 5 minutes, check the fish again and start the timer again (for another 5 minutes).
8. Repeat 7. until the fish has been in the bath for 30 minutes or until the fish is in legitimate danger (see below: Signs of a fish in trouble).
9. Fill the still empty dry (third) bowl with quarantine tank water.
10 When time has come to stop the bath, raise the covered colander out of the bath, sink it into the rinse container of quarantine tank water to rinse off excess bath water. Pause just a few seconds.
11. Raise colander and sink it slowly into the quarantine tank so that the fish can quietly swim out.
Look closely at the freshwater bath water in the container. Do you see anything that came off the fish? It is maybe hard to see through the blue (so pour some off (decant it); dilute it with distilled water), but spend some time and look closely to see if anything came off. Look for anything the size and shape of a sesame seed (fluke); look for tiny specs the size of powdered sugar (Marine Velvet (Amyloodinium ocellatum)). This will help you with a diagnosis, should the fish end up being sick, infected or ?
TIME IN THE BATH
A freshwater bath experience is more stressful to the novice aquarist that it is to the fish.
Most fishes can handle an hour in this bath, but 30 minutes is plenty. With experience you can tell the difference between a fish faking stress and one that is really in trouble. Hard to explain in writing, but I’ll try. Signs of a fish in trouble. Often tangs (and a few other fishes) sink to the bottom of the bath and play dead laying on their side. It is okay to prod it gently with a clean plastic rod or the long spoon handle, with no sharp edges. If it flops about or swims or swims then falls over "dead" again, it is okay. Once some time goes by the tang will probably swim around. You’re mostly interested in how it's breathing. Watch the gills.
Some fish will go into their defensive mode by erecting all spines, changing colors, changing patterns, or any combo of these. :shock: What the aquarist wants to do is don't read too much into such antics, but to look closely at the fish to see how it is breathing. Rapid or normal breathing is okay for the first few minutes, but the methylene blue should calm the fish down shortly after the first few minutes (see below). If the fish is breathing very fast or not at all, with any one or more of those 'defensive' signs, the bath should stop.
BACKGROUND INFO
Without getting technical, the methylene blue helps calm the fish and provides the fish an easier time to breath. At the same time, the methylene blue will actually make life difficult for some external and gill parasites. It has a very nice dual use in this process so take advantage of it. DO NOT overdose the bath water with methylene blue. More is not better!
I found you can find/buy inexpensive colanders and bowls from your 99 cent store, K-Mart, Wal-Mart, etc. You want a plastic colander that fits tightly into the bowls and gives the fish the most swimming/moving around room inside the colander. You can even buy such plastic containers from suppliers of aqua culture products through the Internet. Alternatively you can use nets, but as we all know, nets can harm the fish (and by the time you get the fish, the fish is totally afraid of nets!). Buy the bowl sizes that are right for the size fishes you will be dipping.
If you use nets rather than the colander method, then you don’t need one of those bowls and the colander. You'll make the transfers using the net to move the fish from bath to rinse to QT.
SUMMARY
A lot of grief later on can be spared if all newly acquired marine fishes are given a FW 'dip' right after acclimation.
In the case of anemonefish: After they are in the QT they need to begin a treatment for Brooklynella. The freshwater dip will not clear them of Brooklynella and most ciliated protozoan. ALL ANEMONEFISH need to be treated for Brooklynella and ciliated protozoan. It’s just that these fishes attract these pathogens too readily to not perform Formalin dips.
Similarly, after the fish is in the QT, all tangs of the Acanthurus genus should be treated with Cupramine copper treatment to rid them of both Marine Ich (Cryptocaryon irritans) and Marine Velvet (Amyloodinium ocellatum. These fish are so often infected with one, the other or both that treatment should be considered part of the QT process. I like the use of hyposalinity, but hyposalinity doesn't kill Marine Velvet. Copper kills both these parasites.
A fine quarantine article:
An Ounce of Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure: A Quarantine Tank for Everything by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com
Lee's Quarantine Process:
A Quarantine Procedure
Now that the fish is in the QT, start feeding it right:
Fish Health Through Proper Nutrition
Lastly, if you find any 'things' in the dip water you are unsure about, post in this Forum (preferably with a photo and/or detailed description). If you need any help with the QT process or a condition, injury or disease of your fish, post in the Marine Fish Discussion Forum here on Reef Frontiers.
Good luck!
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