Please Advise On My New Tank.

[Dr. Dai Phan]

Hello all,

I just set up a brand new tank with a sump with Caulerpa plants at the bottom. The tank is 3 weeks old and algae is starting to grow. At this time my tank data is as follows:

1. 125 gallon with sump/refrigium (24 hour a day light).
2. Two 36" T5 lights.
3. A fluid propulsion pump.
4. Live rocks and live sands (both in tank and sump)
5. 5 pieces of rocks that have false corals on them (clumps)- (brown and green)
6. 3 feather dusters (came with rocks and are growing).
7. Three mushrooms (all are opening up).
8. A clean up crew rated for 100-150 gallon tank.
9. One Yellow Tang.
10. One canary blenny.

Nitrate and Nitrite all zero. PH and specific gravity is within normal range.

I put in the blenny last night and after it was investigated by the Tang, it went nosedive into the sandbed (4" deep) and never came out since then.

My questions now are:

1. Did I put the fish in too early?
2. Is my clean up crew too many too soon?
3. Is the blenny dead?

Thanks ! DP

 

[amkelly]

your tank is young and when a tank is first started it goes through different algae phases and eventually the algae will go away or be eaten by your clean up crew.

1. Starting with your tank size. its a good size to start off on, a 125 will allow you to have many different species.
2. the lighting seems like you said it is on for 24 hours, maybe im reading it wrong? but only do 10-12 hrs of lighting at most. it will reduce the algae and work out better for your fish.

to answer your other questions:

Yes you put the fish in to early. its a bad habit for all of us and in this hobby you need to practice patience. Patience is key to success otherwise you will find yourself in a mess. Luckily for you its only two fish but there is a chance that your new tank will spike and the fish could die.

your clean up crew should be fine for now. just gradually add as you think you need them.

Your blenny is not necessarily dead. a lot of blennies and wrasses hide in the substrate and can stay there for many days without eating. it may resurface in a few days.

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

your tank is young and when a tank is first started it goes through different algae phases and eventually the algae will go away or be eaten by your clean up crew.

1. Starting with your tank size. its a good size to start off on, a 125 will allow you to have many different species.
2. the lighting seems like you said it is on for 24 hours, maybe im reading it wrong? but only do 10-12 hrs of lighting at most. it will reduce the algae and work out better for your fish.

to answer your other questions:

Yes you put the fish in to early. its a bad habit for all of us and in this hobby you need to practice patience. Patience is key to success otherwise you will find yourself in a mess. Luckily for you its only two fish but there is a chance that your new tank will spike and the fish could die.

your clean up crew should be fine for now. just gradually add as you think you need them.

Your blenny is not necessarily dead. a lot of blennies and wrasses hide in the substrate and can stay there for many days without eating. it may resurface in a few days.

Hi,

The sump light runs 24 hour a day. I only run my aquarium lights 8 hours. I will watch the amonia and nitrite/ate level very carefully. If it splikes I will remove the fish right away. Dai

 

[dskidmore]

What are your goals for this tank? Fish? Mushrooms/feather dusters/ other low-light inverts? Corals?

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

What are your goals for this tank? Fish? Mushrooms/feather dusters/ other low-light inverts? Corals?

My goal is to have a school of green chromis (10), a yellow Tang, a Powdered Blue Tang, a flame angel, a canary blenny, a few feather dusters ,easy to keep corals and anemones. At the current stage I should not add anymore fish until when? Dai

 

[dskidmore]

Nitrate and Nitrite all zero.

Ammonia also?

 

[dskidmore]

At the current stage I should not add anymore fish until when? Dai

Ammonia and NitrIte need to be 0 for a couple weeks, and then add a few fish. Keep an eye on water parameters again, and add a few more in a couple more weeks.

If that algae is absorbing all your nitrates, do what you can to physically remove some of it when you clean the tank, to permenantly export those nutrients.

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

Ammonia also?

I measure ammonia by the hang on indicator. The circle is yellow which the reading says "safe". I put my fish in after 2 weeks of set up. I bought the live sand in the bags and the ad says " No Waiting Period! Just add fish" Ready in Seconds! ". I wonder if the aquarium can be ready in "seconds" or just an advertisement gimmick. It is like the charcoal bag that says "Ready in 10 minutes" so I started cooking my steak in 10 minutes. Guess what? I ended up with black charcoal steak so I learned not to trust the ad too much. DP

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

What to do with growing Caulerpa in the sump?

After three weeks I noticed that the plants have grown to a big bush so do I just clip them and throw away the yellowing plants? I am afraid I will take away the nitrate absorbing power from these plants. Dai

 

[Ziggy953]

I wouldn't rely on those hang on ammonia readers. You should have some basic test kits to monitor your tank. PH, Ammonia, NitrAte, NitrIte, CA and MG are nice also.

With your tank being young as it is you will see fluctuations in your water chemistry as things mature.

What kind of macro algae (your plants) do you have in your fuge? Most if not all of us cut our macro back every so often. That is how the nutrients are actually taken completely out of your system. I trim mine ever couple of weeks.

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

No More Waiting! Ready In Seconds!

Hi all,

Is it possible that the tank can be ready in "seconds" and not having to go through the normal cycling? Is that an advertisement gimmick? BTW, I added some Calcium as I was told that the corals will die if I don't. How often should I do this as I really hate the fact that the aquarium turns so cloudy for a few hours when I add the CA. Dai

 

[CaptainAhab]

Short answer is NO. The bacteria is aerobic and needs oxygen to survive which is highly unlikely packed in a plastic bag and thrown on a self. If you bought/got the sand from an established setup maybe. If you also added fully cured LR at the same time then even more likely.

In this hobby, fast anything is typically a red flag. Except for fish dying.

 

[dskidmore]

After three weeks I noticed that the plants have grown to a big bush so do I just clip them and throw away the yellowing plants? I am afraid I will take away the nitrate absorbing power from these plants. Dai

If they're yellowing, they may be dying and start breaking down. That would return the nutrients to the water.

Trimming is a bit of an art. You don't want your plants so thick that they shade each other and reduce growth. You don't want any old growth that may die soon. You do want to leave enough mass behind to keep absorbing nutrients.

 

[Ziggy953]

Hi all,

Is it possible that the tank can be ready in "seconds" and not having to go through the normal cycling? Is that an advertisement gimmick? BTW, I added some Calcium as I was told that the corals will die if I don't. How often should I do this as I really hate the fact that the aquarium turns so cloudy for a few hours when I add the CA. Dai

If you are dosing CA then you better be testing your water to see how much CA you have. With a new system and very few corals I don't expect you need to be dosing. I only dose my tank 3 times a week and I have large mature SPS colonies and a frag tank on my system. I would stop dosing now and get some test kits.

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

When to use Skimmer in Sump?

Hi all,

I have conflicting advices on skimmers. Some people told me that skimmer is not needed in the sump but I know many have this installed along on their sumps. I look at the Marineland Seaclone that I can hang in the pump are but it is only rated for 100 gallon. Do I need a skimmer and if yes, when would I put it in and at what rating? Another question, do I need UV sterilizer also? All of you have been so helpful and I thank you with all my heart. DP

 

[dskidmore]

Skimmers do aid in water quality. If you're keeping sensitive invertabrates you need one. For a mostly fish tank, it's something you could get by without. A high quality salt mix and pure water for water changes and topoffs are worth more.

UV: Most people get by without one, but if you have re-occuring problems with ick, it could be worth it.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

...
UV: Most people get by without one, but if you have re-occuring problems with ick, it could be worth it.

I'm gonna have to express a different opinion here... if you end up having reoccuring issues with ick, then you need to look at your quarantine procedures or how you're treating it once the outbreak happens to start with. UV only kills what goes through it, and will not rid a tank of ich.

Dai... my suggestion is to slow down and start doing a fair amount of research. Dosing Ca just because someone said so isn't really putting YOU in charge of your own tank. It concerns me that the tank turns "cloudy" when you do it... properly done, it should be clear. What exactly are you dosing it with? If you're using kalkwasser (which is cloudy) it should NOT be added all at once and should be dripped slowly. The only other "cloudy" think associated with Ca would be the alkalinity portion of a 2-part calcium/alkalinity additive. Dosing your tank with anything and not having test kits to measure what you're putting in, is a recipe for frustration down the road - and potentially major problems.

A couple great books to start with are Michael Paletta's "The New Marine Aquarium" and Robert Fenner's "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist". They're both "must reads" in my book if you want to be in charge of your own tank.

And welcome to AquariumAdvice!

 

[dskidmore]

I'm gonna have to express a different opinion here... if you end up having reoccuring issues with ick, then you need to look at your quarantine procedures or how you're treating it once the outbreak happens to start with. UV only kills what goes through it, and will not rid a tank of ich.

Don't worry, I'm not trying to promote the UV, that's just the only reason I've ever heard for installing one that made sense. Most folks get by quite well without one.

 

[Ziggy953]

My suggestion to you is to read through the article section of this site and pick up the books that Kurt talked about. There is a lot of information that will help you in those sources.

Take a step back from your tank and do some research. Most of the questions you have asked are basic starting out questions. Reading some of the articles here will answer those questions and point you in the right direction.

As for dosing CA because someone told you to, that worries me. Was it your LFS??? Anytime someone tells you you need to do something with your tank. Search for what ever that suggestions was on google and do some reading on it. After you have read about what suggestion has been made then decide if you should do it or not.

 

[Dr. Dai Phan]

Hi all,

First, let me say that stumbling on this Web is the best thing that has ever happened to me. No more conflicting LFS advices. My questions are:

1. I bought some finger corals after getting the approval from my LFS. I noticed that they do not open all the way but is getting a little bit more inflated as time goes by. Is that normal?

2. I bought an in sump skimmer and when I adjusted the air intake dial to get the "storm" in the chamber, the fine bubbles appeared in the tank through the return pumps. That makes the tank ugly and how do I prevent this?

3. I was advised to dose the CA 3 times a week for coral health as well as using the "Fuel" bottle to accelerate its growth. Is that advisable?

4. I bought a feather duster and the worm is trying to extend its body out of the tube (1 inch) but then it went back. It is still doing it. Is it trying to catch the food or does it want out of the tube?

4. Most of my snails huddle together in a corner of the tank. Is that normal?

My LFS tested the water and was advised that my tank is ready for any kind of corals and fish. I checked my water last night (Nitrite/ate=0, Ammonia=0, Ph is 8.0 and Salinity is 1.025). DP