What do you think of this idea??

Mik_101 · #1 07-12-2007, 06:26 AM

Well my idea is to buy a 10 gallon system and make it into a quarantine tank as well as a refugeum. Do you guys think this will work out. What kind of equipment would I need? Would reguler hang on the back filter work and a regular heater and Power compact lights, do I need a skimmer?

Slick Fork · #2 07-12-2007, 06:39 AM

So you want your Q-tank hooked up to your main system to double as a refugium? The big issue I see is that the whole point of the quarantine tank is that it's physically seperated from the display. You may as well put fish directly in the display if your hooked up.

That being said, I wonder if you had it hooked up with a uv sterilizer on the return if it would work. You wouldn't get any pod's out of the refugium but it would be a good place to grow algae.

Mik_101 · #3 07-12-2007, 06:43 AM

No im not having it hooked up to the main system at all its going to be seperate but im gona fil it abou 50% of the quarantine tank with water from my main tank.

Moogled · #4 07-12-2007, 02:15 PM

...How would it be a refugium if it's separate from the main tank?

Jason McK · #5 07-12-2007, 02:15 PM

I think it would be easier to just make 2 seperate tanks. one for your Q and the other as a fuge.

dogboy · #6 07-12-2007, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mik_101

Well my idea is to buy a 10 gallon system and make it into a quarantine tank as well as a refugeum. Do you guys think this will work out.

If you ended up having to treat anything in your quarantine tank the treatment would would kill off anything you were trying to grow in your fuge (ie pods and other inverts etc).... best keep a QT seperate from everything.... Fuges and QT's dont mix well....

Mik_101 · #7 07-12-2007, 06:54 PM

I'm going have a separate "hospital" tanks and a in tank refugeun. Do you think a 5 gallon hospital tank is big enough?

kadaytar · #8 07-12-2007, 07:57 PM

IMO a 5 gal tank will be too small for a big fish. You will stress out the fish also you have to feed the fish in a quarantine tank as well so it will also be very difficult to keep acceptable water parameters in a 5 gal. If i were you I would go with a 20 gal. I don't know your tank size but if you have a large tank with a big bioload 5 or 10 gal refugium will be small too.

Mik_101 · #9 07-12-2007, 08:07 PM

The biggest hospital tank I can go with is a 10 or 15 g

michika · #10 07-12-2007, 08:17 PM

What about this:
Plumbing two tanks into your existing system, a refugium, and a QT/time out tank. Plumb the QT system so that you can take it offline from the main system, and include a HOB filter etc. for water movement. This way you have the option to make a true QT system, as well you can take out any fish that may need separating from the tank, but don't need to be in an independant system.

I would say go for the biggest QT & 'fug. that you can, it will increase your total water volume, and that in turn will go a long ways to help stabalize any chemistry etc.