Newbie Questions........Please help.

[hann01]

Hello everyone,

I am an extreme novice in saltwater aquaria, I have a 55 gallon tank that has been running now for three weeks with 3 clownfish. My filtration consists of an undergravel filter w/2 powerheads, 1 Fluval 304 canister, and one seaclone 100 protein skimmer (which by the way, Im not sure if I am using it correctly). I have a few questions, and I would exteremey appreciate any pointers that anyone may have for me.

1. I have been reading quite a bit and have decided I do not want to use an undergravel filter anymore, since it has been running for 3 weeks, would it be ok for me to completely take it out of my tank without harming the fish? Will my fluval be ok by itself?

2. I am definitely considering another type of filter, at the moment a Magnum 350 with Biowheel or an Eheim wet/dry. I do not have too much money to spare, but at the same time I want something decent. Any suggestions would be helpful.

3. I purchased a Coral-Banded Shrimp today, it died within 5 minutes of introducing it into my tank . My fish have been in the tank since I set it up and they are fine, so I am not too sure what killed it. Again, any ideas helpful.

4. Last but not least, can I use any of the neat looking rocks that are abundant where I live? If so, can I mix them with live rock? Not sure what kind of rocks they are, I just know that they would look pretty in an aquarium.

If anyone can suggest anything that may help me on my journey, please do. I know I have much to learn, but I am willing to give it my best shot.

Hannah.

 

[TCTFish]

Go ahead and take out the UGF.

Instead of investing in another filter (you already have the Fluval), you could invest in more substrate like aragonite. Have you thought about making a DSB?

To find out what killed the coral banded shrimp, test results of the water would help determine if the water quality had anything to do with it. It's only a three week old tank. It is very possible to have ammonia and nitrites in the system. Animals can acclimate to slow rising levels of toxins in their environments. Animals going into a system with these toxins can die and most do...especially inverts. Test ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, and SG. Let us know the results.

Careful with things you find outside to put in the tank. Pesticide and other chemical residues will kill your tank. I always suggest using rock that's already deemed safe. What kind of rocks are they?

 

[RMPD109]

1- I would agree about removing the ugf. The fluval will be OK with some lr in the tank to help with the biological filtration.

2- If you decide to go with another filter I would stay away from the biowheel. It will collect detritus and turn into nitrates unless cleaned often. I have a Magnum 250(HOT magnum) and like it a lot. I use that filterr with just over 35lbs LR in my 28 gal tank.

3- The loss of the shrimp is unfortunate. It can be as stated above by tctfish or can be a matter of improper acclimation. How did you acclimate the shrimp?
Inverts are very sensitive to acclimation.

4- I would be careful about adding rocks from the local environment. This is not to say that it cant be done. Just be careful about adding rock that may have metals within that can leach into your system later.