Beneficial bacteria for quarantine tank

[WiccaFish]

Sorry for the bad experience...where did you order the fish from? There was no heat pack in the box?
How long were they in the mail?

There was a heat pack but it was cold. I ordered from Imperial Tropicals

 

[WiccaFish]

Good news! I think they are going to send me new fish ?
We are emailing back and forth so I hope that's the final outcome. The first thing they asked is if the heat pack was still warm (which it wasn't). So I'm thinking the cold temp just stressed them too much ?

 

[SeaAngel]

Note: I always keep extra sponges in my filters. Then, when I need a quarantine tank, I just pop one of the sponges in the QT filter. I usually achieve an instant cycle this way but continue to check parameters because it is a new cycle. Absolutely no need for bottled bacteria.

 

[WiccaFish]

How long before you put the new fish in the quarantine tank do you put the sponges in? Right before, hours before, the day before?

 

[SeaAngel]

How long before you put the new fish in the quarantine tank do you put the sponges in? Right before, hours before, the day before?

The longer the better. If I know I have fish coming in a few days to a week, I’ll go ahead and set it all up when I order the fish. However, I have also had to do it in an emergency and set it up then add a sick fish immediately. I use Prime to protect the fish while bacteria grows. Testing the parameters with an API Master Freshwater test kit is crucial to be sure ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate are safe. If I test and get nitrates right away, I know the beneficial bacteria is growing in new tank. I have even done this for fish eggs that I have found in tank and hatched fry are fine. Hope this helps.

 

[Slaphppy7]

Ah, but then I have several bare bottom grow out tanks where all BB lives in the filter bio-sponges.
But yes, in a typical established aquarium (6 months or longer) there typically is far more beneficial bacteria in the substrate than in any filter...however, that doesn't mean that there is none in the filter, just that it's significance is reduced (which counters the hobby lore that all BB lives in the bio-media in the filter).

Got it, thanks for the clarification.

 

[Slaphppy7]

Good news! I think they are going to send me new fish ?
We are emailing back and forth so I hope that's the final outcome. The first thing they asked is if the heat pack was still warm (which it wasn't). So I'm thinking the cold temp just stressed them too much ?

That IS good news...let us know how it turns out....next time, give these guys a try, I've always had good results with them, no DOA's

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[SeaAngel]

One more tip in seeding a tank. If you take some of your substrate (works best with gravel) and put it in a panty hose and then lay it on the bottom of tank, it will be full of bb and will get it going in substrate of new tank. Forgot to mention that yesterday. Sorry.

 

[WiccaFish]

Hey guys ?
First off I wanted to thank EVERYONE for their helpful advice and concerns. The good news is Imperial Tropicals is sending me 6 new fish in two weeks at no charge. I think we've come to the conclusion that the previous 6 died within hours of putting in the quarantine tank because the water they were shipped in became too cold during shipping. I took apart my quarantine tank, cleaned it out real good and set it back up. I put filter floss and ceramic balls from my existing canister, a live plant, heater and bubbler. Everything looks good so I tested the water today and all the parameters are in normal range except for my PH. My PH in my display tank stays at a steady 7.6 but the quarantine tank is way above that. Can't really give you a number because the chart only goes to 7.6
Any recommendations as to what to do in the next two weeks to get the water as perfect as possible before the new fish arrive. After this last fiasco I really want to make sure everything is perfect for the newbies.