Keeping your new fish alive...and healthy

Sk8r · 02/06/2010, 10:30 AM

A few basic facts.
A peculiar chemistry starts operating when you open a fish-bag. PH in that water starts changing.
Chemistry also operates when you put a fish or invertebrate, including snails, into a different salinity: cell walls can explode. You can kill a creature this way.
Fish and inverts tend to be wild-caught. They have come in from environments where parasites exist. Parasites that get into your tank will infest your fish.
Fish that have just come in from shipping have often been shipped days from the point of capture, not fed, rebagged and shipped out again: the fish is under extreme stress and has not eaten in as long as a week or two. I personally will not buy a fish that has just landed in the store. I will let the store keep it several weeks to be sure it is eating and that it is healthy. If you 'miss' a fish that way, fine: life is long and there will be another.

So...you've made your purchase, and got your bagged fish in hand. How to proceed?
First of all, don't put the fish straight into your tank. I make two exceptions: inverts and mandarins, because they are speciality eaters and because their slime coat is so very thick it really takes something to infest them with ich. I DO however give them a triple dip in bowls of tank water, holding them in my hand, so if there should be a parasite, it gets washed off. I don't know if it works, but it makes me feel better.

Say you've got a fish other than a mandy. Ideally, you've asked your source two days ago what salinity their water is, and you've got a small bare tank set up with a carbon filter at that precise salinity. You take your refractometer and test the little tank's water to be sure ( 1 day's evaporation changes things) and you test the bag water the same way. If they match perfectly or as close as .001 salinity, great: just use your hand (except with a poisonous species) and transfer your new fish into this tank. Test the water daily for ammonia, test the water daily for salinity, and over the next 4 weeks edge that salinity toward the salinity of your tank. Topping off with salt water or withdrawing cupfuls of tank water and adding ro/di will do it. After four weeks, gently transfer your fish into your tank in the confidence it has not broken out in spots and it will be fine.

Your new fish may want a PVC elbow to hide in; it DOESN'T need a light, but may need a heater. And don't be sorry you don't have several plastic corals and a fake treasure chest to entertain it: where most fish live is out in the deep blue where you don't have much scenery but a grey blur; and if they want topography to feel secure, an easily sterilized PVC elbow is the best. It's clean. Sand and rock AREN'T, and it's the natural growth place of parasites. So the last thing you want to provide is a place for parasites to grow. For a quarantine tank, you're going back to 1950's tank keeping with just carbon, floss, and an air pump, but it'll do fine, as long as it's changed out every few days. Wrap a tablespoon of loose carbon in floss and shove it into the water stream in the filter and it'll do fine: use, and toss when it gets stained.

I hope this takes some of the mystery out of acclimation and the reasons for it.

Your alternative to that salinity adjustment above is dripping water into the bag, but I don't like that method when you're going to quarantine. It's the PH change that starts when the bag opens. People have lost fish taking an extravagantly long slow time to adjust the salinity, trying to be careful---but the ph gets them. If you've got a delicate fish, particularly, forget dripping: just be sure the qt tank is pre-set to the salinity you're sure that fish is going to come in with; and dealers online will happily tell you their standard salinity, so you can be prepared: just call them and ask. But always test it. Better a belt AND suspenders, when it comes to salinity, because in all of acclimation procedures, THAT is the most important thing.

Aquarist007 · 02/06/2010, 11:24 AM

the start of a well needed thread Sk8r

To add, another way to help with initial stress is to keep your fish in the dark for about 48 hours and gradually add light. The darkness has a calming affect on the fish and they won't spend useless energy on trying to cope with completely new surroundings

02/06/2010, 10:30 AM	#1
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Keeping your new fish alive...and healthy A few basic facts. A peculiar chemistry starts operating when you open a fish-bag. PH in that water starts changing. Chemistry also operates when you put a fish or invertebrate, including snails, into a different salinity: cell walls can explode. You can kill a creature this way. Fish and inverts tend to be wild-caught. They have come in from environments where parasites exist. Parasites that get into your tank will infest your fish. Fish that have just come in from shipping have often been shipped days from the point of capture, not fed, rebagged and shipped out again: the fish is under extreme stress and has not eaten in as long as a week or two. I personally will not buy a fish that has just landed in the store. I will let the store keep it several weeks to be sure it is eating and that it is healthy. If you 'miss' a fish that way, fine: life is long and there will be another. So...you've made your purchase, and got your bagged fish in hand. How to proceed? First of all, don't put the fish straight into your tank. I make two exceptions: inverts and mandarins, because they are speciality eaters and because their slime coat is so very thick it really takes something to infest them with ich. I DO however give them a triple dip in bowls of tank water, holding them in my hand, so if there should be a parasite, it gets washed off. I don't know if it works, but it makes me feel better. Say you've got a fish other than a mandy. Ideally, you've asked your source two days ago what salinity their water is, and you've got a small bare tank set up with a carbon filter at that precise salinity. You take your refractometer and test the little tank's water to be sure ( 1 day's evaporation changes things) and you test the bag water the same way. If they match perfectly or as close as .001 salinity, great: just use your hand (except with a poisonous species) and transfer your new fish into this tank. Test the water daily for ammonia, test the water daily for salinity, and over the next 4 weeks edge that salinity toward the salinity of your tank. Topping off with salt water or withdrawing cupfuls of tank water and adding ro/di will do it. After four weeks, gently transfer your fish into your tank in the confidence it has not broken out in spots and it will be fine. Your new fish may want a PVC elbow to hide in; it DOESN'T need a light, but may need a heater. And don't be sorry you don't have several plastic corals and a fake treasure chest to entertain it: where most fish live is out in the deep blue where you don't have much scenery but a grey blur; and if they want topography to feel secure, an easily sterilized PVC elbow is the best. It's clean. Sand and rock AREN'T, and it's the natural growth place of parasites. So the last thing you want to provide is a place for parasites to grow. For a quarantine tank, you're going back to 1950's tank keeping with just carbon, floss, and an air pump, but it'll do fine, as long as it's changed out every few days. Wrap a tablespoon of loose carbon in floss and shove it into the water stream in the filter and it'll do fine: use, and toss when it gets stained. I hope this takes some of the mystery out of acclimation and the reasons for it. Your alternative to that salinity adjustment above is dripping water into the bag, but I don't like that method when you're going to quarantine. It's the PH change that starts when the bag opens. People have lost fish taking an extravagantly long slow time to adjust the salinity, trying to be careful---but the ph gets them. If you've got a delicate fish, particularly, forget dripping: just be sure the qt tank is pre-set to the salinity you're sure that fish is going to come in with; and dealers online will happily tell you their standard salinity, so you can be prepared: just call them and ask. But always test it. Better a belt AND suspenders, when it comes to salinity, because in all of acclimation procedures, THAT is the most important thing. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

02/06/2010, 11:24 AM	#2
Aquarist007 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Hamilton, Canada Posts: 28,240 Blog Entries: 1	the start of a well needed thread Sk8r To add, another way to help with initial stress is to keep your fish in the dark for about 48 hours and gradually add light. The darkness has a calming affect on the fish and they won't spend useless energy on trying to cope with completely new surroundings __________________ I prefer my substrates stirred but not shaken Current Tank Info: 150gal long mixed reef, 90gal sump, 60 gal refugium with 200 lbs live rock