Hello All " Please Read "

[SaltyDude]

hello ALL!!

i'm happy to say i'm a new saltwater tank owner, and i'm starting to pile up alot of questions. lol

i'm woundering if someone would read over what all i have done, and kinda decypher how i am doing.

i have had my tank since jan. 7th. i'm at about 2 weeks

its a 30gal tank. i baught from Petco. came with a heater, and a full filter set up. " Bio Filter "
I baught 2 bags of fish tank sand " said it had all the bacteria " that i would need.
i mixed up my own salt water. " worked out great "
i baught a few items like some fake anniamies and a few rocks. little things.

i have 3 fish
1. four Stripped Damsel
2. Yellow Tailed Damsel
3. 2 stripped damsel/cloudy damsel

inexspiensive fish i though would be good for my first tank.

today i went and baught a " Medium size Fiji " rock ( to help "Jump Start" the system )
and a small Spider crab to start cleaning up the left overs and help cycle my tank.

i also baught some of the " Biozyme " to help keep that " New tank syndrome " away.

my tank reading are pritty normal for a new tank , i think i'm about half way through the cycle.

Ph. 8.2
water temp. 76 F
Nitrate i think around 5 or 6 its not on the chart in my test kit....
nitrite. 0.2
saliticy. 1.023 it spikes sometimes to around 1.026 sometimes. i just add some distilled water to fix it.

ammonia. yesterday i noticed that the amonia was suddenly really high, reading .03, so i went and got two 5 gal. Ocean sea water from petco and did a 20% water change " 20% of my tank is 5gal. "

unfortunately i did another ammonia test today and its still reading 0.2

and thats about all i can think of right now.....


can any one kinda tell me if i'm doing what needs to be done????

 

[epond83]

I’m not an expert but I think you are on a rough start. The best thing to do is read through the stickles in this section they should help you get a better start.

 

[SaltyDude]

help

i cant get the amonnia level down......

will more water changes fix the problem or is that just going to cause more problems i cant really find much info on the subject and the nearest book store is super far away....help.....

 

[Dr.Gonzo]

Oh Christ...

Okay. First get the fish out and take them back to the store. They will prolly survive but who knows. If they die it will only make things worse and take longer.

Next, how much rock did you put in? How many pounds? You’ll need about 30 pounds or rock for your tank.

The ammonia is going to rise steadily then recede and nitrates will build up then recede and finally you’ll be left with nitrites which will need to be flushed. Try to find a local fish store (not petco/petsmart) to get your water tests done at. They will be able to tell you how your water parameters are doing and when you can put a fish in. then add slowly. One a week till you have 3-4 small ones. Don’t get a huge fish or a bunch because your water will get dirty fast.

I’m at work right now so if this is a real post and not a troll then I’ll give you more advice soon.

 

[SaltyDude]

no this is not a troll. lol

i'm in dire need of assistance.

i will be on later waiting for more information.

as far as live rock i only baught one medium sized rock that is about 4 lb.s maybe more.

i have photo's posted.



My Fish*SUNSMILE* *thumbsup2 *PEACE!* *SUNSMILE*

1. a four Stripped Damsel.

2. a two Stripped Damsel.


3. a Yellow Tailed Damsel.

4. a Juvenile Damsel " Race Unknown "
( Photo Coming soon )


5. a ( Decorator ) Spider Crab.

and here is a good picture of the tank its self.

 

[TRe]

your defintily not going about it the right way ... a good place to start is by reading the stickies at the top of the forum.... next get a couple of good books and read some more

for starters not only do u not want to cycle your tank with damsels because its cruel but they also become very territorial and will harass any future additions... on the live rock like was already said you want a minimum of 30 lbs.. that along with a few good powerheads and a protien skimmer will be your filtration ..go ahead and toss that filter that came with the tank or u can use it for extra circulation...the fake anemones and stuff IMO is tacky hope that helps a little

 

[SaltyDude]

i looked up the live rock, and found a good site for my price range

Welcome to International Marine Fish - Premium Live Rock

30lb.s is like 104.00$ i think

do i have to get that much live rock?

 

[FreshwaterJeff]

I don't know the first thing about saltwater tanks, but I do know this:

Read the stickies. They'll tell you everything you need to know about setting up your first saltwater tank. I've read them and although I've never done it myself, even I can tell you're going about it all the wrong way.

Particularly read the sticky about cycling a sw tank...

Also, not to be the spelling police, but it's "bought" not "baught."

 

[eric h]

you need to slow down it takes lots of time and money to get a tank up and running the way it needs to be, to be healthy. These guys are going to be tough on you but if you listen to them they will make sure you do it right.

 

[Lorna]

The very first thing that struck me was "i mixed up my own salt water. " worked out great "
Did you use a salt mix such as Instant Ocean or other marine aquarium salt or did you god forbid use regular salt? If you used Instant Ocean or other marine blends then good, but when I read the rest of your post I think you may have used table salt which is not the same thing at all. I second Gonzo and suggest you get those damsels out and back to the store unless this is all you ever want to have.......but even if they are you are not ready yet regardless of what you may be told.......

Start by reading and then come back with questions. We hate to be so harsh but really..... a bit of forethought will make up for regrets later.

 

[SaltyDude]

no i did not use regular salt......

i used the kit that came with the tank i purchased. its was very simple to mix.

 

[Lorna]

Well that's a relief....though some of your other actions are somewhat scary... have you done any research into this hobby before jumping in?

Okay to start. The cycle...... after adding the water etc.....you should use something to jumpstart your cycle and not by adding livestock...such as damsels which you will regret for many reasons later provided they survive. (I still think you should get them out of there now). Some people start the cycle by adding a cocktail shrimp and letting it create the ammonia needed as it decomposes. This ammonia will feed the beneficial bacteria who will convert the ammonia to nitrite and then into nitrate which should be removed through a dilligent water change schedule. You should see your ammonia spike....then start to drop and the nitrites will rise....these will then drop and you should see a rise in nitrates.......which are basically harmless to fish but you want to keep them under control if housing inverts and corals....

Once all your readings, ammonia, nitrites come to zero you can call your tank cycled and ready for a clean up crew which may consist of a few snails. I am reluctant to recommend hermits as I think they are opportunistic little beggars who can't be trusted. At this time you should start to see some diatoms or other algae types start to show up.......hence the need for some snails etc. You may at this time also begin to add your fish slowly....adding the most docile first and working up to the most aggressive at the end.....

I suggest you do some reading.