another step by step account

[wayne]

Some notes here - your salinity went up to 1.032, but now it's back to 1.022. Careless, but won't kill everything.
You've had ammonia to 5? Too high, should have done a big water change. Forget all this freshwater rubbish about letting it go down by itself, you need to keep that under control if you have to do this again in the future and avoid killing a bunch of good stuff on the rock.
But keep on going

 

[dbacksrat]

the ammonia was @ 5 w/ the live rock--i guess i should have changed the water (*smacks himself in the forehead*)
i've begun to notice little pinkish red "things" growing in the lower front rocks of my tank--also i noticed what appears to be a tiny sps coral for the first time...which cannot be possible because i have nowhere near enough light for it
as of now, there is algae beginning to appear on the panes of glass

 

[dbacksrat]

okay--the current conditions
ammonia- ~.15 ppm
nitrite- still around 5.0 ppm
pH- 8.1 or so
specific gravity- 1.023

i performed a water change today, along with cleaning the glass free of the increasing algae

bright red "things" have started to appear on certain parts of the rock...still not able to post pictures

 

[1979camaro]

are the things fuzzy? or hairy? or...what?

 

[S.Reef]

Sounds interesting.

 

[dbacksrat]

the "things" are like tiny bumps with a sharp point--they appear to have an interesting texture, almost like hairy
is it bad that my nitrite levels are that high? at what point should i begin to see those go down--i'm in week #3 of cycling, and barely hanging onto my patience

 

[S.Reef]

Hang in there...should start going down soon.

 

[1979camaro]

yes be patient......and then you will reap the benefits of a cycled tanks

 

[dbacksrat]

okay, i tested tonight (sunday, october 3)--all systems are go
nitrite- 0 ppm
ammonia- 0 ppm
it took only 3 weeks and 3 days to cycle (24 days)

i also discovered life!!! a small drab brown crab and a tiny tiny snail on the highest rock--soooo exciting

i might set up my quarantine tank tonight or tomorrow--then when things look good, i'll probably go out and buy an ocellaris clownfish

one more thing--do i need to be feeding anything yet? i'm pretty sure the crab can do fine on whatever is in the tank already--and any attempt at feeding might in fact be overfeeding

 

[1979camaro]

you do not need to feed...the crab and snail will survive on whatever theyve been eating...if you can ever get some pics online i would like to see the critters

have you tested for nitrates just to make sure?

good plan on the QT, that will give the display a couple more weeks to settle down before its first inhabitants move in!

aren't you glad you waited

 

[S.Reef]

Well, you don't need to be feeding anything because the crab is getting stuff off the live rock. Nitrates should start to go down pretty soon, if not already.

 

[dbacksrat]

well--i purchased a small percula clown yesterday from petco and acclimated him to my 10 gallon quarantine tank...
the crab has not moved an inch from where i first saw him...

i want to know how long the clown needs to be in the quarantine tank--he is the first fish, so i've been wondering if he seems to be doing well, i might be able to add him to the main tank today...my quarantine tank is very very bare with only a plastic flower pot with a handful of gravel to weigh it down

 

[aresgod]

he should remain in the tank for ideally 3-4 weeks, since if you know anything about how diseases work esp.. ick, they can go dormant for periods of about 2 weeks where you wouldnt be able to notice them, and if they are dormant and u put him in the main tank and you have an out break you will need to remove the clown from the tank and the tank will be set back for 3-4 weeks because the eggs from lets just say ick hatch and reside on the sand bed and LR and can live a few weeks with no food(fish). So the question is " do you feel lucky punk?" just kidding just such a good movie, hope this helped
Brahm

 

[dbacksrat]

wow--thats exactly what i needed to know
thanks

 

[wayne]

I'd go further and say 4 to 6 weeks to be really sure. I don't like the argument 'you don't have to QT your first fish' as it might be the first fish that puts ick in, dies, and then you have to wait another 6 weeks anyway.

 

[S.Reef]

Yeah4-6 weeks is a better idea. Never buy fish from PEtco they are irresponsible and unkowledgable.

 

[dbacksrat]

yeah--thats the closest and most conveinient sw fish store to me
the guy that netted my clownfish was very knowledgeable though
there were quite a few sw fish w/ ich in the store, and i'm sure they're using central filtration...petco is really my only option, unless i want to drive 25 miles (with gas prices this high) to a really good store downtown...

hey, did u know that you can order live rock through petco? once you order it, you must buy it because they cant put it in their display tanks

 

[aresgod]

i drive close to 30 to my LPS, there are ones closer, but frankly if i am going to spend 100$ on a coral, it had better be a great one that has been properly cared for, same thing with fish, here is my LFS website, they have an aweasome coral collection, and they really know their ****
www.aqua-dreams.com

 

[dbacksrat]

i would order online, but the shipping costs are what kill me...this hobby has already made a huge impact on my social life--i wish i would have believed everybody before i made the plunge

 

[dbacksrat]

the closest lfs that you can order livestock online from is probably in LA or San Diego