@Matt I do have plants in the tank, but not enough to make a difference to the nitrate levels because the water flow doesn't really allow for it. Due to my water quality from the tap (hard & with high nitrates), I'll be using a mix on tap & RO to bring both down a bit and bring my tank water more into the range that the fish are comfortable with. I'll be doing this when I do the big water change before getting the fish, and from then on.
@Sue with an external filter in the CC I have a stock level of 64%. To be honest, with an external filter & river manifold, I'm comfortable with the filtration. The tank is a fair size and is quite open, with lots of sand & rocks for the bottom dwellers, and lots of wood & branches towards the back for fishy hidey holes and to get out of the high flow for a rest if necessary. The river manifold covers the front 3/4 of the tank, so the back part has extra air stones to maintain circulation around the wood at a more sedate pace.
Originally I was going to quarantine fish from different shops in different tanks, but the suggestion from
@marquismirage for putting them all in one tank and treating them all at the same time with preventative medication interested me, as it would mean not having to have 4 quarantine tanks running at the same time. I've not bought fish from different shops without separate quarantine before, but it would be great to have them all in the same tank. I've still got quarantine tanks available if anything needs to be removed for stronger or more targeted treatments.
I already have the eSHa 2000, but will get some more, along with the exit, gdex, and ndx to cover the range.
The other meds I had in the cupboard were ones I'd bought from stores before I read about the eSHa products here, so they are no longer needed. I will make the effort to write on the bottles/boxes from now on though.
Is there any particular order you'd suggest using the treatments in? I have plenty of carbon, etc. in the cupboard to help remove meds after treatment & before water change, prior to using another one.
I can't believe how excited I am about this river tank.
Thanks all for the help so far. Please keep posting advice as I'm finding this all really useful.