How to introduce fish to new aquarium?

[redgold54]

Excuse my ignorance, but what's the process for introducing fish to an aquarium after the tank is done cycling?

like from the petstore to the tank.

[MissColonel]

We highly recommend QT before any new fish go into the main tank unless that fish is the first fish in the tank then we can QT and treat for flukes in there.

Once you go and get your fish get a 10-15gallon sterlite container or 10gallon aquarium. It doesn't need to be cycled since it is better to do 100% water changes daily durning QT if possible. You should though have at least a air stone though.

We usually salt the tank and treat for flukes and do 4 to 6 rounds of prazi. This is about 4-5 week process and should be enough to see if the fish is healthy enough to join your crew.

[redgold54]

So the first fish can just be put in the tank?

[MissColonel]

So the first fish can just be put in the tank?

Yes and can be treated for flukes in there. We highly recommend treating for flukes since it is almost a garentee that it will have them and it always better to treat before symptoms occur when it comes to flukes.

[tithra]

So the first fish can just be put in the tank?

When you bring your fish home float it in the tank water to match the temp of the LFS water to the tank water for 15-30 min (don't open the bag until you're done floating it). Then you can go ahead and scoop the fish out of the bag with your hand and place him in the tank (try not to dump the bag water into your tank). Don't feed your new fish for 24 hours. And as Karen said, it's recommended to treat new fish with salt + prazi during QT.

[redgold54]

We highly recommend QT before any new fish go into the main tank unless that fish is the first fish in the tank then we can QT and treat for flukes in there.

Once you go and get your fish get a 10-15gallon sterlite container or 10gallon aquarium. It doesn't need to be cycled since it is better to do 100% water changes daily durning QT if possible. You should though have at least a air stone though.

We usually salt the tank and treat for flukes and do 4 to 6 rounds of prazi. This is about 4-5 week process and should be enough to see if the fish is healthy enough to join your crew.

Wow. So I have to wait 4-5 weeks in between every new fish?

[koko]

Great Advice I would also like to say... Please test the Ph and Kh in your tank and the water that your fish came in.... Just to make sure the ph from the LFS isnt way off and cause Ph shock

[tithra]

We highly recommend QT before any new fish go into the main tank unless that fish is the first fish in the tank then we can QT and treat for flukes in there.

Once you go and get your fish get a 10-15gallon sterlite container or 10gallon aquarium. It doesn't need to be cycled since it is better to do 100% water changes daily durning QT if possible. You should though have at least a air stone though.

We usually salt the tank and treat for flukes and do 4 to 6 rounds of prazi. This is about 4-5 week process and should be enough to see if the fish is healthy enough to join your crew.

Wow. So I have to wait 4-5 weeks in between every new fish?

If you buy more than one fish from the same place you can QT them together (if you have a large enough QT).

[redgold54]

We highly recommend QT before any new fish go into the main tank unless that fish is the first fish in the tank then we can QT and treat for flukes in there.

Once you go and get your fish get a 10-15gallon sterlite container or 10gallon aquarium. It doesn't need to be cycled since it is better to do 100% water changes daily durning QT if possible. You should though have at least a air stone though.

We usually salt the tank and treat for flukes and do 4 to 6 rounds of prazi. This is about 4-5 week process and should be enough to see if the fish is healthy enough to join your crew.

Wow. So I have to wait 4-5 weeks in between every new fish?

If you buy more than one fish from the same place you can QT them together (if you have a large enough QT).

ah ha. So what would be an appropriate number of fish to introduce to a new tank (after it's done cyling)?

[koko]

We highly recommend QT before any new fish go into the main tank unless that fish is the first fish in the tank then we can QT and treat for flukes in there.

Once you go and get your fish get a 10-15gallon sterlite container or 10gallon aquarium. It doesn't need to be cycled since it is better to do 100% water changes daily durning QT if possible. You should though have at least a air stone though.

We usually salt the tank and treat for flukes and do 4 to 6 rounds of prazi. This is about 4-5 week process and should be enough to see if the fish is healthy enough to join your crew.

Wow. So I have to wait 4-5 weeks in between every new fish?

If you buy more than one fish from the same place you can QT them together (if you have a large enough QT).

ah ha. So what would be an appropriate number of fish to introduce to a new tank (after it's done cyling)?

I generally would say two is the max. Other wise you could have ammonia spikes really high... Everytime you add a fish the ammonia will bump up a bit. Then you need to let the cycle adjust it self.

[Ms.Jenny]

When I bring home a new fish I always use the bucket method to acclimate them and have had great results so far. The way I do this is I setup a couple of two gallon buckets filled with water to the one gallon mark, and add in a double dose of Prime and a tablespoon of dissolved salt. I also make sure my quarantine tank is completely setup as well. I do this in my bathroom, with the lights dimmed. I put an airstone in the first bucket, and then set the fish's bag inside the bucket with the airstone. I leave it for about 20-30 minutes, then open the bag and carefully scoop the fish up and slowly down into the clean water, where the fish will hang out for at least another 20-30 minutes. The salt helps knock off nasty bugs and the fresh water and airstone should begin to perk him up. I then move the airstone to the second bucket, and then carefully scoop the fish up and place in the second bucket with the airstone. I leave him there for another 20-30 minutes, and then scoop and place in QT where he will be for at least another 4-6 weeks along with salt and prazi treatment. The idea is to knock off some external parasites and nasties before placing in QT, and you can just dump the water in the buckets after. It does give the sense that you're starting off with a cleaner fish and environment. Koko does bring up a good point about the PH and making sure there aren't huge differences, but I just prefer to get them out of the toxic water as quickly as possible. It's worked for me so far, and I've used this method 5 times now with good results.

Edit: I also got this method off of this forum. I can't find the old post, but if anyone can please link it since I found it really useful and I'm sure others will as well.

Edited September 20, 2012 by Ms.Jenny