Quarantine tank - is this right?

[fishmommie]

I'm buying some new fishies today for my 30 gal. so excited.
I have set up a 5.5 gal QT this morning.
Water treated, 78 degrees.
I have a seeded HOB filter rated for a 10 gallon that I've been running (along side another submersible filter) in my other 5.5 gal fully cycled tank.

So, I'll move that HOB filter to the QT and I'm good to go, right?

Do I move the filter to the QT now? It will be several hours before I will bring the fish home. Or do I wait until I come home with the fish and move the filter then? I'm afraid I'll lose my bb in a few hours if I put the filter in a tank that has no fish in it.

Thanks!!!

[Brhino]

sounds about right. Nobody's quite sure how long BB lasts but it's definitely more than a few hours, so you're good either way. I tend to move biomedia into the QT tank once I start acclimating the fish.

One question though - how much are you going to have in the QT tank at once? Remember that filters only grow enough BB to support whatever bioload they're currently exposed to... if you seed a filter in a tank with a light bioload and then move it to a tank with a heavy bioload, you're going to have a mini-cycle.

[fishmommie]

thanks for the reply. the tank the filter was in had a betta and 8 neons - too much for the tank, I know, but I plan to move the neons soon and am monitoring water perimeters daily. so far, so good..
I don't anticipate bringing home more than 3 fish ... maybe some cherry barbs or skirt tetras. Want something that will get along with my 30 gal community tank
thanks so much for the speedy reply!

[Lady Hobbs]

I don't even acclimate fish much anymore if I buy them where I live. I know the pH is the same and the temp is the same so I just dump them (not the water) in the QT and shut the lights off and leave them alone for a day.

[fishmommie]

thanks guys
I bought a cory to my little brood - when he gets out of QT I'll have 6 total.

Also bought a gorgeous male paradise gourami.
Did some reading and they are suppose to be peaceful and do well as a single in a community tank. If anyone has some other advice for keeping this guy happy, let me know.
Fingers crossed and thanks again.