redsea's 125g Build (Again)

[erichm20]

Sorry about the tang, they are fickle little beasts. I think I read this was the first fish going in, I would be wary about a YT being the first inhabitant, they are known to be very territorial and aggressive to fish added after them- unless of course you go with bigger and more aggressive fish. Just my .02.


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[parsons328]

No not the first one. I had my yellow tang for approx 13 yrs. gotta try and figure what to replace him with.


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[erichm20]

No not the first one. I had my yellow tang for approx 13 yrs. gotta try and figure what to replace him with.


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I was responding to redsea, but sorry to hear about your loss as well, 13 years is a long time.


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[parsons328]

No worries.


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[redsea]

Hi all, thanks for all the support. The tank has been sitting empty since the Tang died. I have been adding ammonia to keep the tank cycled however. I am now at the point where I am doing water changes to get the nitrates down from all the adding of ammonia. Once that is done I can begin stocking again.

 

[Autumnsky]

There is always something to deal with. Hope stocking day comes soon!

 

[redsea]

There is always something to deal with. Hope stocking day comes soon!

Hey Autumn! That is indeed so true! I hope stocking day comes soon too, as I don't really want to keep on adding ammonia. It feels counterproductive to be doing these 30g water changes (as much as I can do at a time) and then add more ammonia to worsen the water. how long do you think it can go without dosing? I would do water changes quicker but the RODI is sooooo sloooowwwww, lol.

Thanks.

 

[Bdonaldson]

Sorry to hear about the Tang red. Hope all goes well and you can restock soon.

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[redsea]

Hey guys, I have a quick question. So you know how I am doing tons of water changes to get the nitrate level down (I have done about 90 gallons so far over the past week or so and have barely noticed a difference )...how long do you think it is acceptable to not add ammonia to the tank? I just feel like I am taking steps backwards when I do it, as I am trying to get the nitrates down. Thanks.

EDIT: Oops, just realized I already basically posted this above...the question on ammonia, sorry! Been a crazy week I guess...I'm being very forgetful.

Sorry to hear about the Tang red. Hope all goes well and you can restock soon.

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Thank you so much for the support.

 

[Bdonaldson]

Are you cycling the tank? Is that why you are adding the amonia?

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[Bdonaldson]

I think 90 gallons is to much of a water change for a 125 gallon tank. What are the other parameters? How much ammonia are you adding? The tank may be trying to recycle if you are adding ammonia and did a 90 gallon water change.

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[redsea]

Ooops, I am so sorry I mis-spoke. I have been doing 30 gallon water changes over the course of the past two weeks or so, not all at once. The tank was cycled, but since my only fish died a few weeks ago, I was adding ammonia to keep the tank cycled. However, that drove the nitrates up very high...and as of now they are around the 80 mark.

 

[paul87]

If the tank is already cycled you shouldn't keep adding ammonia to it. The live rock and sand should keep things going with no fish present. That's really high on the nitrates. Hopefully someone else will chime in to help, it's been a very long time since I cycled a tank.

 

[paul87]

Has the tank already been cycled? What's in the tank now?

 

[redsea]

Yes the tank is cycled. There is currently nothing in the tank other than rock and sand, however I though I had to keep adding ammonia so the bacteria wouldn't die off, which in turn made the nitrates high.
Thanks!

 

[Sand dollar]

I would stop dosing ammonia and keep up with water changes. In the future if you are only going to be fishless a short time I wouldn't do anything, if you are going fishless longer (like 8 weeks to rid ich or something) then you may have to add a little food a couple times a week or something that will breakdown for the bacteria.


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[Bdonaldson]

I agree with Sand dollar. Stop the ammonia dosing and keep doing your water changes. Keep checking the nitrate levels and when they are in the normal range then you can add fish. Here is a article that I found that talks about nitrate levels in a saltwater tank.

http://animals.mom.me/should-nitrate-readings-saltwater-4856.html

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[redsea]

Thanks guys! I'll keep you updated! Still working water changes, but hopefully will be done soon. I will to add anymore ammonia.

 

[redsea]

So I have some exciting news I have not posted yet! I have had my first two fish for a while now! I have two Bangaii Cardinals! I am going to attach a picture soon. They have been doing great; super healthy, and love their frozen Mysis Shrimp.

 

[redsea]

Tada!