question ???

[Johnny d.]

Hi everyone, now that my filter has cycled and my water has been perfect for two weeks, I'm ready to add new fish.I want to buy a tote from wal mart and set up with air and keep the new fish in there 3-4 weeks before I put In pond. What do the higher powers think??

 

[Lisak1]

If you're adding a bunch of new fish to an empty pond, then there is no need to quarantine. The idea of QT is to keep healthy fish from suspect fish. At this point they're all suspect, so I would just put them in the pond and hope for the best.

 

[sissy]

but you do want to look at each fish just to make sure that they are all indeed healthy

 

[Johnny d.]

If you're adding a bunch of new fish to an empty pond, then there is no need to quarantine. The idea of QT is to keep healthy fish from suspect fish. At this point they're all suspect, so I would just put them in the pond and hope for the best.

Not an empty pond, I have 3 med goldfish and a small koi.

 

[Lisak1]

Not an empty pond, I have 3 med goldfish and a small koi.

Ah! My mistake. Then yes, QT is a good idea.

 

[CometKeith]

I would just add one or two fish at a time. This way if your pond is not 100% cycled it will still probably be okay. Re qt not everyone does it but it is probably smart. I have stopped adding anything new to my pond for a few years now and the amount of disease has gone to zero. Good luck!

 

[MitchM]

...I want to buy a tote from wal mart and set up with air and keep the new fish in there 3-4 weeks before I put In pond. What do the higher powers think??

A new container will be just as hazardous for fish as a newly "uncycled" pond. You still need an established bacteria population to process the waste that fish produce.

 

[Lisak1]

@Johnny d. If I remember correctly you have a rather small pond - under 300 gallons, correct? If that's the case I would suggest that you are already fully stocked with three goldfish and a small koi... which will very quickly turn into multiple goldfish and a not at all small koi. In fact, I would recommend you find a new home for your koi before it overgrows your pond and throws you into another kill-off situation.

These small ponds are best suited for a few colorful goldfish. And yes, 300 gallons could hold more goldfish than 3, but like I said - give nature time and you will soon have many more than that.

Just an opinion... again, the only goal is to lead you to happy pond ownership without the problems you have experienced recently.