How to close tank for awhile???

I have a 6g Nano that I want to close down for at least 8 weeks so I can guarantee that there is no ick, flukes or other parasites living in there as I recently lost several fish in there recently (not at one time...one fish, get another fish, etc).

How would I go about doing that and still maintain proper beneficial bacteria and water chemistry. Do I turn lights on, should I still "feed" tank occasionally. I do have some red algea right now growing and just found a gigantic aptasia on a rock. Do I still do water changes, etc. At end of 8 weeks, what do I need to do to bring it back up to speed.

I have never done this before and any help anybody can give me would be greatly appreciated

 

I have never done with before, but I would just let the tank run by itself. Leave out all fish and other livestock. For the red algae, Im guessing is cyanobacteria, leave the lights out for maybe a day or two. Change your water while siphoning the algae out. Or you can do hyposalinity, but I also have never done that before either, so someone else can help you on this. Just make sure you dont use any kind of chemicals, use those as a last resort. Good Luck!

 

well if you have ich, you could take all the sand out, replace the sand, keep the live rock in, and do a 100% water change, wait like a week checking the water every other day or so, make sure it doesnt cycle (which it doesnt if you have enough live rock, and then go for it.

 

if any one else has any ideas, please tell me if that was stupid, but thats what i would do.

 

is there any livestock in the tank at all? fish, corals or inverts?

 

^^ prob. should have asked that.

 

Yes,

You want to throw a pinch of flake food in once or twice a week. It's fine for most bacteria to go into stasis but you don't want all of them to. When you get to week 7, increase to daily feedings.

I would use very little lighting.....just enough to keep the coralline alive.

I wouldn't bother with waterchanges until week 6 or 7 and only do that if your Nitrate levels are too high.

 

thank you!
Now back to the decision of what to do with this tank once everything is settled...QT tank, awful small....seahorse tank....frog fish tank???
Well, have some time to decide.