Poll: quarantine or hospital tank

How many of you have quarantine or hospital tanks

  • quarantine tank

    Votes: 5 83.3%
  • hospital tank

    Votes: 4 66.7%

  • Total voters
    6
Joined
Sep 14, 2013
Messages
6,214
Reaction score
4,968
Location
Cincinnati, Ohio
Hardiness Zone
6 A
Country
United States
I don't have either....probably shouldn't admit that, but it's the truth. If one of my five koi became ill or injured, I'd set up a hospital tank.
 
Joined
Nov 2, 2012
Messages
2,395
Reaction score
987
Location
near Kalamazoo, Michigan
I have a spare 10, 75, and 90 gallon I can use for whatever.
That said, can you explain the difference? Obviously hospital is for sick fish and quarantine is generally used to observe new fish before adding to an existing population. Could they both be the same tank? Is one always up and ready.... As in cycled? Etc?
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2009
Messages
1,679
Reaction score
373
Location
Pacific NW
Hardiness Zone
8b
Country
United States
I have both but haven't used the hospital tank(150 gallons) in years. I use the quarantine (700 gallons) about once a year.
Our club is having a grow-out contest and I'm ordering about 30 Goshiki koi for them. They will be in the tank for at least 3 weeks.
 

crsublette

coyotes call me Charles
Joined
Oct 23, 2011
Messages
2,678
Reaction score
1,100
Location
Dalhart Texas
Hardiness Zone
6a
I have a spare 10, 75, and 90 gallon I can use for whatever.
That said, can you explain the difference? Obviously hospital is for sick fish and quarantine is generally used to observe new fish before adding to an existing population. Could they both be the same tank? Is one always up and ready.... As in cycled? Etc?

Yep, those were my thoughts as well..

My understanding of a quarantine tank is a place of treatment like a hospital, not a place to see whether your fish will die or stay alive. A quarantine tank is a place to see if any ailments occur in the new fish due to the new fish being introduced to an "old pond" fish and "old pond" water. Also, for new fish and new plants, it is a place to kill any parasite, disease, fungi, snails, or other organisms that can potentially be transferred into your pond. For sick fish, it is a place to help medicate them and heal them. I think containment is more about the controlled environment. It is easier to control the environment of a 80 gallon pond instead of trying to control the environment of a 8000 gallon pond.


Although, I do see the difference...

The "quarantine" tank is a tank for mainly observation and long term medications and it has its own cycled filtration system.

The "hospital" tank would be the tank that does not have filtration and is only used for highly concentrated, short medicated dips or to put a fish to sleep so to prep them for an injection.


I think it would be smart to have both, but, since I have never needed to do medicated dips nor to prep fish for injections, I never had a need for a "hospital" tank.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Apr 29, 2009
Messages
1,679
Reaction score
373
Location
Pacific NW
Hardiness Zone
8b
Country
United States
When I used my hospital tank. I bypass the biological filters while using meds that would effect it.I have big ponds and to just treat a fish and put it back in the pond and then have to get it back out to retreat it puts a lot of stress on a fish that's already sick and stressed. For dips I have big show bowls that I use. This way I can dip and then back to the hospital tank with a friend
 
Joined
Aug 2, 2013
Messages
3,211
Reaction score
2,192
Location
North East Ohio-Zone 5
Country
United States
I have several different sized aquariums and a rubbermaid bin to use for quarantine/hospital use. I also have spare heaters, airpumps and filters. Its amazing how much you aquire over the years :rolleyes:

I keep an extra sponge filter bubbling in an aquarium so I can pull it and use it in a quarantine situation. Or I use an extra HOB filter and just pull some matured media from one of the tanks that is using the same type of filter.
 
Joined
Oct 9, 2012
Messages
6,275
Reaction score
2,818
Location
Plymouth
Hardiness Zone
7a
Country
United Kingdom
We have a purpose built QT Pond with bottom drain filter and 15 watt UV-C ventrurie etc(y)
But I beg to differ with you on the amount of water Charles having too little in a QT setup can be detramental to a fishes health, look at our own 550 gallons imperial as you can see it gives us lots of room,for all of the above and more such as breeding , we also have a spare air pump for the setup should we need it :cool:
The filter media is Japanese matting , bio balls as well as quilt batting and the pump a Blagdon 2000 which sits in the filter itself.:)
Here it is known as a shorham QT pond they are very well made and are £590.00 brand new , we bought ours for £260.00 used once so you could say we got a bargin there :D

Dave;)
 
Last edited:

Mmathis

TurtleMommy
Joined
Apr 28, 2011
Messages
13,918
Reaction score
8,097
Location
NW Louisiana -- zone 8b
Hardiness Zone
8b
Country
United States
I have a QT (small one, but about to set up a 300 gal), but not a hospital tank, as such. If I had a sick fish, I could/would convert whatever I had available.
 
Joined
Jun 5, 2013
Messages
2,189
Reaction score
1,328
Location
NC, US
Showcase(s):
1
Hardiness Zone
7a
Country
United States
I used a small bucket to hold them when I suspect one is sick. Hoping to never have to quarantine any more fish ever again (I have babies now so I should not need to buy new fish, but it's so darn tempting!!!)

But when the fish gets bigger i'll have to find a bigger bucket or a tub.

i just use airstone and water change to maintain water quality. well, I have only 6 big goldfish ;) the rest are 2 inches long fish.
 
Joined
Jan 17, 2014
Messages
1,162
Reaction score
833
Location
Cayman Islands
I don't have either. I have a small 10 gall tank with a few guppies in it now, I suppose I would throw those in the pond and pull out the sick fish if I had one. I don't plan on buying any new fish any time soon.

Charles, you mentioned above on snails. Are they a good or bad thing in the pond? Before I was 'experienced' (I have a whole 4 months experience now), I bought a bunch of water hyacinths, they had a bunch of snails on them. I don't see/find many in the actual pond, but tons are in the filters. I pretty much chuck them out when I clean the filters.
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2009
Messages
1,679
Reaction score
373
Location
Pacific NW
Hardiness Zone
8b
Country
United States
Determining Tank Volumes
I have a 100 gallon oval Rubbermaid stock tank I have been using for a quarantine tank. While handy, well made with sturdy sides and bottoms, they are not easy to determine volume. They are smaller at the bottom and angle out so that the standard formula for figuring volume does not work. You can estimate but if you need the specific gallons when dosing fish with medications that need to be exact, that could be scary.
I called the Rubbermaid manufacturers and after explaining my dilemma, got the following info for a 100 gallon black (WT100 HTC) stock tank :
7” deep equals 25 gallons, 13” deep is 50 gallons, 18” deep is 75 gallons, and 23.5” is 100 gallons.
If you have a larger tank and have the same concerns, call 1-800-347-9800 option #3 (east coast time) and ask for the measurements of your sized tank. Great company, helpful and friendly. Now you can feel comfortable dosing your fish.
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
30,871
Messages
509,582
Members
13,096
Latest member
bikmann

Latest Threads

Top