A quarantine fish tank serves two purposes in any aquarium setup. Firstly it acts as a buffer tank when you want to add new fish to the existing fish tank and secondly it acts as a hospital tank if fish in your existing tank get sick.

When you buy fish from a pet store it’s possible that they are already carrying diseases in their body and if you introduce these in your existing tank, then this can be really dangerous in some cases life threatening to your existing fish. In such cases having a quarantine fish tank like a buffer will greatly help.

A quarantine fish tank is also like a hospital for aquarium fish. If you find that your fish are developing any kind of contagious disease then it helps to have a hospital tank so that your diseased fish can be shifted to their own safe place. This will save other fish from getting the infection.

The other use of having a quarantine fish tank is when you want to breed fish. If your fish tank has pairs of male and females fish species then they will produce babies or lay eggs quite often and sometimes the number is in thousands. Just imagine your beautiful fish tank getting filled with hundreds of babies swimming around.

Though this seems a good idea sometimes other fish and even their own parents will eat babies if kept in the same tank. That is why having a separate quarantine fish tank will definitely help if you want to breed fishes. The moment you notice any particular female fish is pregnant, you can shift her to new tank and give birth to babies or lay eggs there. Once she lays eggs, you can quietly move her to the original tank and save the babies.

Many fish owners earn money this way by selling exotic fish species to aquarium stores in their local area. If you have the passion and desire to get into fish breeding business, then this can be a great source of income in the long run.

If you are going to use quarantine tank only as a hospital tank then you can even buy a used one with acrylic sides and use that whenever necessary. You don’t have to set it up always and accommodate extra space in your room. The only precaution you must take is that sterilize well before and after it’s use.

What’s the ideal size of quarantine fish tank to start with?

How big should be your quarantine tank is a matter of personal choice because it will require all the things that your main tank has as far as equipment and facilities are concerned? Since it a hospital tank for fish you’ll need to be extra careful while providing and creating the ideal environment for the sick fish.

However one thing you must keep in mind that fish don’t get sick everyday and spending too much money on a quarantine tank just because one day your fish will become sick is not a very practical thought.

However if you are serious about getting into fish breeding business, then it’s an altogether different game. In that case you must think like a businessman and plan everything from day one. You must write down every aspect of fish breeding business in detail and allot money accordingly. The size of tank for fish breeding will depend on the type of fish species you want to breed.

For example a female guppy fish will typically give birth to 2 to 200 babies at one time depending upon her size. In that case a breeding fish tank too small will not help. Read this article if you want to read tank capacities in gallons and their sizes in inches.

Facilities and equipment required for hospital tank.

  1. The quarantine tank that you’ll be setting up must have all the same equipment that your main tank has. If yours is a tropical fish tank then you’ll need a heater to take care of water temperature and a good quality hang on filter that takes care of water quality. One thing you must always remember is that a quarantine tank must have it’s own new equipment that cannot be used anywhere else in any other tank no matter what happens.
  2. Apart from these you can have a LED light at the top with dimming facility and most importantly a cover lid. The cover lid is necessary because when you buy new fish from the pet store and put it in the quarantine tank, sometimes they have a tendency to jump out of tank to avoid too must stress.
  3. Already the fish that you buy at the fish store are under stress because of a lot of factors and when you change their environment and water, they tend to resist sometimes and try to jump out of the water. To prevent any loss of life it’s better to have a cover lid at the top of the quarantine tank.
  4. Your quarantine tank need not have substrate or decorations in the tank. If you are going to use it for the female to lay eggs or give birth to new fry than it’s better not to have any decorations at all because you’ll be able to observe what’s really happening in the tank. If you are going to use this as a hospital tank then you can have some creative decorations such as hollow pipes (because these are inexpensive) that act like hiding spaces for the sick fish.
  5. Apart from these equipments what you MUST have is a water testing kit, medication kit, a first aid kit and water conditioner (prime brand recommended) for aquarium fish. Both these are inexpensive and available on a variety of pet stores and even online. Testing water quality frequently will keep you updated on what’s really happening in the quarantine tank and if you find any unusual reading then a first aid kit will be handy to cure that immediately to save life of precious fish.

Introduce new fish in the quarantine fish first.

Introducing new fish you buy from the pet store into your existing tank is a bad idea because you don’t know from where they have come to pet store. Many times local hobbyists sell these to pet store and you are totally unaware of the kind of environment they were living in the first place

It’s possible that new fish is already carrying diseases in their body. In a pet store it’s possible that the same net is used to transfer fish to plastic bag that has been used in various tanks in the store and this can transfer diseases from one tank to another on a micro level and finally into the plastic bag that you are carrying home. That is why always introduce new fish in the quarantine tank first and then into your original tank.

Let the new fish get settled to the new water conditions, light levels, tank size, water temperatures, water ph qualities and even surroundings for at least 30 days. If the pet store from where you bought the fish is crowded then it’s a possibility that the fish are already stressed because of the constant human movement around the tank.

Sometimes kids have a habit of tapping on the fish tank glass just for fun and this can easily stress the fish out. All these distractions greatly reduce immunity of these delicate fish and they are open to invite diseases easily.

By introducing the new fish in the quarantine tank you can give them some buffer time to get used to the new environment and get used to the surrounding a bit. If you buy different species from two different tanks then again the pair of these two new species will have to get used to each other as well because in a pet store each species has it’s own fish tank separately.

How long should I keep fish in the quarantine tank?

Ideally speaking you should keep fish in the quarantine tank for 15 to 30 days because it takes time to see any visible parasite or bacterial infection etc. During this period you can closely observe the changes taking place in new fish when you buy them from store.

Since water conditions in the store are different from yours fish can get used to the new water conditions and surrounding and 15 days is a good period for this. If you have bought fish from two different stores then getting adopted to new fish in the tank can also take time. Getting used to new water, surroundings and new species is absolutely necessary because fish are very sensitive to surrounding environment.

During the 15 to 30 days buffer time zone you can observe your fish for diseases like itches, bad behavior such as over aggression, sluggishness or spots on the skin etc and start medication in the quarantine tank itself. Instead of doing all this in your main tank you can treat them in the quarantine tank and keep your existing fish safe all the time.

What’s the best location for a quarantine fish tank?

The best location for a quarantine tank will be near your main tank but not directly adjacent to it. It should not happen that fish from your quarantine tank splash water that enters in your main tank. It is very unlikely that water from quarantine tank will splash and fall into main tank because your main tank will be covered from top.

Sometimes if you keep main tank and quarantine tank side by side fish will try to jump from one tank to another which will be a disaster if it really happens. Of course I’m considering this as an extreme case but must be considered.

To be in safer side keep your quarantine tank just below your main tank so that it’s easier to transfer fish to and from the quarantine tank easily. With this arrangement you can easily provide electrical supply to all the necessary equipment from just one place and everything will be organized easily,
What are some of the diseases that will require a quarantine fish tank to cure?

Since it is clear that your main fish tank when backed up by a quarantine tank will be a complete set up in itself, let’s have a look at some of the common diseases that will need a quarantine tank so that your existing fish will not get sick because of them.

The types of diseases may include things like

Injuries, internal parasites, external parasites, bacterial and fungus diseases, ich.

Injuries – Fish get injured because of lots of reasons but the most common is fighting with other tank mates. Sometimes they bang against decorations such as rocks, branches, glass, top lid if they happen to jump around etc. When they get injured you’ll see fins getting damaged and these damaged fins can get stuck in decorating ornaments, filer fins and other fish may bite these as well. To cure injuries you can try a product called API MELAFIX Fish remedy For Bacterial Infection in Freshwater Aquarium 8-Ounce Bottle (paidlink)

The Melafix product can be used if the fish injuries are moderate but if you find that the wound have got infections then you’ll need antibiotics to cure them and just melafix won’t work in that case.

How to identify if your fish tank is infected with parasites?

Some symptoms of diseases caused by parasites are fish get white patches on their body, eyes get cloudy and even if you have sufficient aeration going inside the tank they are gasping for some fresh air. If you find these symptoms then probably this is because of parasites present in the tank.

One good product to prevent fish tank from getting infected by parasites is Paraguard by seachem (paidlink). You can use this fish quarantine medication to cure your tank from external parasites, bacterias and possible funguses.

One of the best uses of this product is to use this in a quarantine fish tank when used as a buffer tank between your main tank and the store tank. Which means when you buy new fish from a pet store put them in a tank with the paraguard mixed in the water to ensure that your new fish gets free of any parasites, funguses or bacteria they might be already carrying on their body and get cleared before you move them into new tank.

However it is necessary to do proper research before you treat or use these products in your tank. Every product comes with a manual that clearly explains how to use them and for what kind of fish it is safe for. So before you use such products make sure to do a thorough research and then proceed.

Ich – The scientific name of Ich is “Ichthyophthirius”. If you find that your fish behaviors is somewhat similar to loss of appetite, they are rubbing body to decorating items, stones etc, have white spots on them and are constantly hiding themselves, then probably that’s ich. Ich is a contagious disease and you’ll need a quarantine tank to cure them and prevent other fish for catching up the infection.

Internal parasites – Internal parasites are diseases that are inside of the fish body and if not treated they can kill your fish by eating them internally.

One of the first symptoms of fish having internal parasites is that they don’t act like normal and lack in energy. This is the same with any animals including humans and fish are not different than that. If they are infected internally from parasites they will eat less, hide more often behind plants, decorating accessories, stones etc and will be lethargic to movements.

One of the surest symptom that your fish is infected with parasites internally is they will throw white color poop instead of the normal one. This will be hanging down their body like a string and if you see this then it is high time that you must do something about it.

Another symptom of fish infected with internal parasites is sunken belly and must be treated.

What kind of fish quarantine medication and equipment I must have with me?

Here are some of the most important tools you must have as a fish keeper with you if you are serious about this hobby.

  1. Water test kit – This test kit will help you to measures water pH, ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Having ideal levels of all these is absolutely necessary for healthy living and survival of your aquarium fish.
  2. Water conditioner – Prime – This is used to dechlorinate the water as well as detoxicate ammonia, nitrates and nitrites from fish tank water. However even if you use this you must find what made the water levels out of control in the first place. Using a water conditioner will only make the water tolerable for fish till you find the primary reason that is making the water conditions out of control.
  3. The four medication products by API. You can cover most of the disease that are likely to occur in any fish tank aquarium whether it’s brand new or even an old one. You can safely use these medications in cases when the disease are in primary stage where you just happen to see symptoms of disease just building up and start curing your fish by removing them from your main fish tank and moving them to the quarantine tank.

Just make sure to read all the instructions that come with these medication about dosage and on what kind of fish species you can use them safely.

(paidlinks)

You should not use these medications if the fish disease has developed beyond a certain point and can not be cured with these. In a developed disease you’ll need antibiotics to cure your fish. These 4 medications are NOT antibiotics and can be used for disease that are still in primary stage.

Aquarium Salt – API AQUARIUM SALT Freshwater Aquarium Salt 65-Ounce Box (paidlink)

This aquarium salt is different from what we use in kitchen etc. This works as a tonic for your fish and keeps the overall system in equilibrium. This is great for minor illnesses in a fish tank.

Step by step procedure to cure fish diseases using a quarantine tank

  1. The first step is to add epsom salt to the quarantine tank water which acts as a laxative for sick fish. You can use a tablespoon of quantity per 10 gallons of water capacity of your tank. Sometimes the fish will try to eat the salt you just added. To avoid this you can first mix and dissolve the salt in a cup of aquarium water and then mix the water into the tank.
  2.  If disease of your fish is just starting out then you can add chemical called Paraguard by seachem which helps to remove parasites, fungus and bad bacteria from fish tank water. If disease of your fish is in primary stage then this itself will help a lot in curing it.
  3.  If you are unsure about how severe the disease is you can simply use one of the best medications available for aquarium fish which is “general Cure by API” (paidlink) which is available at online stores.This will take care of the funguses, bacteria’s and parasites that have caused the illness in the first place. All the instruction on how to use these medications and in how much quantities will be available when you buy these stores.
  4. One of the best technique expert use to treat fish with all these medications is to simply add them to the fish food and let fish eat to ensure that the medicines are correctly being fed and not going wasted.
  5. However there is one big problem with this is that when you add medications to the food the taste of the food changes and fish may not eat it because of the smell. One killer way to get round with this problem is to add a solution two solutions call Focus by seachem (paidlink) and another one is “Garlic Gurad by seachem” (paidlink)

The Focus product helps to bind the medication and the food together so that when they eat it medicines also enter their body and they get treated. The Garlic guard eliminates the nasty smell that the food might get when medications are mixed with the food. Fish love garlic smell and by adding this solution to the mix you enhance the overall food quality and possibility that fish will actually eat all of it along with the bound medicines. When you buy these products you’ll find all the necessary directions and the quantity of using them on the packet so that you are not totally confused about how to use them.

So here is the process to summarize

  1. Take a cup of water from the quarantine tank and add Epson salt to this water. Let the salt completely dissolve in this cup.
  2. Take your fish food that you regularly use in a different cup. Add General Cure Mix to this food. You can even add it directly into fish tank if you want to.
  3. Add the Focus powder as per instructions to this food,
  4. Then add Garlic Guard liquid as per instructions and then mix well using a small spoon to form a single mix.

Some experts add the epsom salt in the food cup but there is no correct way to go about this. The food cup already has two other chemicals added to it so it’s better if you add epsom salt first to the tank and then feed the fish separately from the second cup.

One of the best ways to do this is to have a minimum of decorations in your quarantine tank so that your fish get the chance to eat all the food that is mixed with medicines. If you have substrate at the bottom then some food will disappear beneath it and fish will get the chance to eat just a part of it. Have as much less decoration in there and you are good to go.

What is a Quarantine Fish Tank? And Why You Should Have One?

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