Greg's 75g

[gregzz4]

Walter, I was thinking about a few things when I decided to cut the QT time short
I've lost fish in QT before and wanted to avoid it for their benefits
Why risk healthy fish due to paranoia ?

Top of my list was a bunch of wrasses that may not do well in a small tank with no LR etc. I use a tray of sand, but only 2 of the 7 fish were using it, so the rest were 'hiding' behind stuff at night. I felt they could be happier

Next thought was they look good, are eating very well and if they had MI, now it's in the QT so I'll get them out before it hatches and jumps back on them. And if they had MI at the time, they would have shown signs, which they weren't. No flashing, rapid breathing etc. And by 2 weeks, if there were any other nasty diseases it (hopefully) would have shown by then. As I stated, they were all perfectly healthy with no marks, worms etc

Third thought was I couldn't feed them as much as I wanted to without doing more than one WC per week as the AC50 couldn't keep up and I wasn't about to lose another wrasse due to high NO3. I wanted to ensure they stayed fat without risking their health

And as I also stated, they were eating everything I threw at them, so they had to be in good shape

There was no point in hypo, and waiting 6 weeks was going to be a risk of their lives
That's about it

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by gregzz4

I've lost fish in QT before and wanted to avoid it for their benefits
Why risk healthy fish due to paranoia ?
.
.
.
There was no point in hypo, and waiting 6 weeks was going to be a risk of their lives
That's about it

Well, I can certainly understand your thinking, and I'm sure is popular opinion with many on canreef. But consider this.

Fish can be carriers, and have some MI that will not be visible, as I described with my experience.

If a fish dies in QT, then either your QT was inadequate, or the fish was sick and would have likely died anyway (good that it happened in QT and not your DT). I have a very, very mature QT, using DT water for W/C's. It is running all the time with a canister filter and some live rock. I also use it to house some frags from time to time.

Water quality stays high in QT, first because of frequent initial changes to get the salinity down, and then later more changes with DT water to bring it up. I actually extended that time even further, and the fish looked even stronger and healthier as time went on.

The extended time allowed the fish to get feeding with the foods they will be receiving in the DT. Your wrasses may have been OK early with this, but some fish need a lot more time to adjust to the new food.

And with wrasses, you can put in some sand (maybe use a container), but not sure if that is even necessary.

Here is a good article about all the benefits of a hypo routine. Not sure if you have read this one.
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007/6/fish

What it comes down to, I think, is patience. And that, I think, is the hardest thing. But it my case, I add fish so infrequently now, it is definitely worth the while, considering what may happen if I don't. From a risk standpoint (cost of risk = probability or frequency X cost of bad outcome), the cost of mitigation is very small compared to the cost of risk. Like I said, I gambled once, and lost... And not to mention my early hard lessons learned when I didn't QT.

Greg, you have taken a very methodical and cover all bases approach with much of your tank and sump design. And IIRC, you got burned in the past with not QTing. So that is why I was surprised when you took this shortcut.

Anyway. your tank and inhabitants are looking very good. So I do wish you continued success, and look forward to more great pics.

[Coralgurl]

Ultimately, you know your system, routines and practices best, so your decision on when to move fish.

No qt debate here, I don't and understand the risks. But stuff can get introduced to your tank by other means as well, qt-ing just reduces the risk.

Everyone looks great and the tank has matured very nicely!!! Sorry about losing Levi!!!

[gregzz4]

Thanks for the nice thoughts Sheena

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

And IIRC, you got burned in the past with not QTing. So that is why I was surprised when you took this shortcut

Thanks for the wishes and thoughts bud
Not sure who you're thinking of, but I've never added any fish to my system that weren't first put through QT, and this is the only time I've cut it to 2 weeks
My kole was in qt for 10 !
I've read that article, and many others, about hypo and understand the benefits. But thanks for the link. Maybe someone else hasn't read it yet

Sometime soon we're looking at getting some more fish, not too many more, but a couple. And some more mini gobies
I'm keeping the QT running with DT WCs and the odd bit of ghost feeding
Plus I've put sponges in the sump again just for giggles
I never know what I'll find at J&L so best to be prepared

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by gregzz4

Not sure who you're thinking of, but I've never added any fish to my system that weren't first put through QT, and this is the only time I've cut it to 2 weeks
My kole was in qt for 10 !
I've read that article, and many others, about hypo and understand the benefits. But thanks for the link. Maybe someone else hasn't read it yet

OK, sorry, I was wrong then. But I do know you are very deliberate and conscientious with your tank, and that made me wonder, too.

And I guess I had been reading so many Ich threads lately, didn't want others getting the wrong idea about not having to QT new fish.

Again, glad it worked out for you, and want to see more pics!

[gregzz4]

More new guys in the QT. Good thing I kept it running
I went to J&L today to buy a couple reactors, and came home with fish too
Tonight they ate mysis, fortified brine and some frenzy stuff

Filamented Flasher - Levi


Yellow Fin Flasher - Chevy


Scooter Blenny - Chico


Chico has a great appetite and a nice fat belly. He'll do well in the DT
And, currently in the QT there are piles of copepods crawling around due to me putting the 'for sale frags' in there, so He's having a field day

[gregzz4]

I'll be posting once I get my new pair of Aqua FX single media reactors setup, so stay tuned ... I just need to figure out where to mount them so they are not only out of the way, but also over the sump in case of leaks
This is what I bought

[gregzz4]

Here's what our new wrasses could look like