Sick fish....QT tanks and the headaches... how do you cope?

[Reef Pilot]

I feel really bad when I keep reading about this over and over with SW newbies. That's because I got sucked in, too, by some of the long time SW "experts" here who claim quarantine is not necessary, and garlic is the best remedy. And if your livestock still dies, well, you are just a bad fish keeper with stressing your fish, and your water quality must not be good enough. At least that is the implied message. Might be good for their egos, but sure doesn't help people who are new to SW.

I learned my lesson just over a year and now quarantine everything, incl corals. I did a lot more research outside of Canreef, and no doubt in my mind, that is the only safe practice with new livestock. As others have stated, though, be sure your QT is cycled, too, so you don't have any ammonia problems. I keep my 30 g QT running all the time, with a canister filter, so don't even need any live rock.

I do the hyposalinity routine and take a full 2 months and use that time also to get my fish feeding well, so they are strong and ready before going into my display tank. I have done this twice now, with 100% success rate.

I think the best advice for newbies should be to set up a QT. After many years, and once you become a SW "expert", then maybe you can get away without it, if you really know your fish, and exactly where they came from prior to your purchase. But the only really safe practice, IMO, is quarantine.