We’ve Reached Our Destination
It took 20 doses at 0.75mL, but I’m finally at 2.5ppm copper in the quarantine tank. The fish don’t seem stressed at all. Everyone is eating fine and acting normally. I am noticing Ammonia is starting to creep up. That’s expected with the high copper levels. I did a 10% water change today with water already at 2.5ppm copper. I’ll probably do another one tomorrow with the same to try and get the levels down.
The plan is to keep the fish in here at this level for 14 days. On February 23 they will get transferred in to a sterile QT with completely separate equipment and with no copper. This is sort of a hybrid between the Tank Transfer Method and straight copper treatment. If you keep them at therapeutic levels for 14 days and then move them to a clean tank it has the same effect as TTM. The fish have no parasites on them after 14 days and none are able to get to them due to the copper. Transferring them keeps them away from the parasites.
Once they’re in the second QT, I’ll observe them for another week (maybe 2) and then they will join Jaws in the DT.
How much flow can my plumbing handle?
The question comes up quite a bit on the forums, “Can my drain line handle the flow from my return pump?” Then come the usual questions about what type of drain setup is being used, how many tees and elbows, how far the drop is, etc. Really what most people want to know is if they’re in the right ballpark or if they’re way out of bounds. I’ve frequently used this excellent calculator over at Melev’s Reef. Just a few simple questions and it tells you roughly what the flow rate you can expect is for your plumbing.
Melev also talks a bit about the theory behind how the calculations are made, if you’re a big ole nerd like me you’ll enjoy that part too.