Salt Tank Woes.... :(

[digi691]

Ok so I have had this 12G Nano Cube for the last 6 months. So far i have killed a Dwarf Angel and 2 Clowns. The first 2 clowns i bought was more my mistake of putting them in only after a month after the setup of the tank. In my tank I have about 1-2 lbs of live sand, 5-10 lbs of live rock, about 4 black turbo snails, and 3 i believe they are called cortez hermit crabs. After my Clown disaster i let the tank sit for like 3 months basically because i was broke(college student). I kept up on the water maintenance making sure the water level is good and the salinity was good so my crabs and snails would be fine. So I finally was like lets try the whole fish thing again because my snails were not that entertaining. So i did a 25% water change, changed out the carbon. I then let the tank sit a week. I checked the phosphates, amonia, nitrate, nitrite. Everything was at zero besides a very litte little bit of phosphates registered. My temp was around 78 degrees. Salinity was 1.021. So the dwarf angel really was cool for about 2 weeks. I fed him like 2-3 pellets of Formula One pellets a day. He was always shy when I fed him but the last couple of days he seemed not to care. Yesterday when I fed him it was the first time he did not eat and when i came home from work he was dead. I have no clue what I am doing wrong. I have kept Freshwater fish for years without dieing. I am about just to leave the dwarf angel in my tank and let it cycle again. I really don't care if it will kills my snails i just want a tank that will keep a fish longer than 2 weeks. These things are not cheap. Any advice would be helpful. Just to note i am using Coralife Salt. I used water(reverse osmosis mubo jumbo) from my local grocery store to do the 25% water change but I refill the tank with tap water with a little of prime to take out chlorine and stuff like that. Like I said any help and i will be greatful. Tired of having a a cube full of water, sand, and rock on my dresser.

--Broke college student that kills beautiful fish--

 

[RLG2182]

If you left your tank empty for 3 months, then most of the beneficial bacteria was lost w/o a source of ammonia. When you tested and everything came out to 0, that meant that your tank was still fresh. If you introduced your angel into a basically uncycled tank, he most likely died of ammonia poisoning due to the natural course of the cycle as the ammonia increased.

Did you test your water after the angel died? What about after the clowns died? Two clowns in a 12G tank is overkill... possibly even the Angel. The proper way to do that would be to add in some more rocks, maybe an extra 5-10 pounds, and cycle with a shrimp. That way, your cycle can finish, and you can throw in a very small nano fish. HTH

Don't get too frustrated... Patience is always the way to success.

 

[Phyl]

I don't run a nano, but I'm thinking you've got too much fish in there. Most dwarf angels need tanks of at least 30g (not to mention specialized diets including sponge, etc). I would think a 12g nano could hold one clownfish (I think 2 is too many). Try cycling your tank again and then you should be good to go.

Good luck!

 

[pearsont74]

no offense but a 12gal anything saltwater is just doomed to begin with if you want to keep fish....maybe one fish at the most. I have always been recommended to start with at least a 30 gla or bigger. Of course space and money is a huge factor...I completely understand...that why I didnt even try this SW tank until I had a house and enough time and money to do it right.
I have thought about gettin my 30 gal a whirr while my 80 gal is goin but gezz...I can barely keep up with the one LOL while working 40 hrs and 2 small kids....

suggestions.....cycle it with ur dead angle again....get about 5 more pounds of LR and then try again with just one fish...small....then you can move into little coral (do research as to what will work with what u have)
good luck and sorry for ur lost

 

[digi691]

I did not test the water after the dwarf angel died... I left him in there because I was going to start the cycle with him. I am guessing that my amonia is pretty high considering he has been there a little over 12 hours dead. But maybe I should take him out and go get a fresh shrimp from the local Dominick's. When I cycle like this will my snails die? How long does this cycle take? I don't want to let it go to long and lose my beneficial bacteria. Another question about cycling... Should I not do a water change until the cycle is done?? My plans were to make this into mini reaf tank but i have not even tried to consider it yet before I have a fish live in the tank for at least 2-3 months. I have read on other forums that 1-2 fish is the max. Does anyone recommend any type of fish or clowns? I really like the clowns. But i don't know... if i get them i would want an anomity for them... is to much for a 12G? What about corals and stuff like that how does that effect the bioload?

 

[digi691]

Pearson is there a certain time i should take out the angel or should I just leave him in there and let nature take his coarse?

 

[pearsont74]

leave him in there....unforantely it will affect everything u have alive in there...you many want to take the snails out or something...

 

[klam]

After 2 hours or so after feeding how did the fish stomach look? Did it look like it just ate or starving?

Cynaid caught fish will also die within a months time. They eat but their stomachs are jacked and it can't process the food for nutrients and they evently starve, but they still eat.

You can keep a pair of clowns in a 10g just fine, I have. Joyce Wilkerson also says that is fine also. Clowns fishes occupies very small territory and rarely they leave their host anemones. I got a pair of percs that barely travel more than 4 inches away from their anemones.

I would take the fish out, might be an ammonia overkill if you dont got a clean up crew that cant mow that dead fish down. I've got a 6g tank that's about 2yrs old that doesn't have any fish in it. But I do have pods and bristle worms which I feed 1 pellet every week or so. This helps ensure that there is some ammonia and my critters get fed also.

 

[digi691]

What kind big of clean up crew are you talking about? I have like 3 cortez hermits and 3 turbo black snails. I don't know if that counts as anything... So do corals and anemones add to the bioload?

 

[mjvincent]

I don't run a nano, but I'm thinking you've got too much fish in there. Most dwarf angels need tanks of at least 30g (not to mention specialized diets including sponge, etc). I would think a 12g nano could hold one clownfish (I think 2 is too many). Try cycling your tank again and then you should be good to go.

Good luck!

Agreed. You need a small fish here is a link for live aquaria so you know what fish you can put in your nano.http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/scateg.cfm?pCatId=2124 Nanos are harder to keep because they are smaller and the chemistry can go out of whack so much faster... Good luck.

 

[malkore]

take the fish out. if he died of disease and not ammonia or cyanide poisoning, then he's only extending the time the virus/parasite stays in your tank.

There's nothing wrong with a 12gallon SW tank, heck there's a whole 'nano' following out there. It is, however, much harder to maintain a 12g nano than a 55gallon setup. 2 clowns was way too much. You can have 1 clownfish, or maybe two tiny watchman goby's, but that's it.