Quick Start - Aquarium Advice

pph_2ppr · 01-02-2008, 11:08 PM

Today was the only chance I had to get to a petstore and get fish, so i set up my tank pretty quick. One day to be exact

i am acclimating the fish on 1 day old saltwater. is there anything i can do besides add the water very slowly?? what other acclimation advice do you have?

Lecithin · 01-02-2008, 11:12 PM

wait, you set up the entire tank, substrate, LR, skimmer, light, etc (or whatever you're using for equipment) in one day and put a fish in in the same day?

Is this your main tank or QT?

Whats in the tank?

Has it cycled?

pph_2ppr · 01-02-2008, 11:42 PM

this is the QT my main tank has been setup for quite some time. if they are only in there a couple days does it really need to have cycled?

i have everything in the tank( substrate, rock, heater, powerheads, hydrometer, just need lighting)

Kurt_Nelson · 01-03-2008, 12:44 AM

First... has your main tank been cycled? Not just "setup", but has it gone through the whole ammonia/nitrite/nitrate cycle? It needs to have a population of bacteria built up and the only way to do this is to supply it with an ammonia source to start things off. There used to be a bunch of good member written articles here about acclimation, cycling, etc... but I've lost track of where they went during the recent upgrade. If I can find them, I'll point you towards them.

OK... your other question has a couple issues. A 2-day quarantine is really not going to do anything for you. If you're going to quarantine, a minimum 4 weeks is recommended so that any diseases/parasites will become obvious and "show themselves" so you can treat them before infecting your main tank. Two days isn't long enough for the fish to really show you any symptoms.

In two days, you will start showing some ammonia if you haven't cycled the tank. Do you need to cycle it? No... just be prepared to do daily (or twice daily if need be) 30% water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down. In the end, it really should've been cycled, but there's not much you can do about it now. Mix up a fair amount of salt water and be ready with the test kits.

Or take the fish back to the LFS until you're ready.

Kurt_Nelson · 01-03-2008, 01:12 AM

Strange... guess I can't edit my own post...

I tried to find those articles, but no luck. Here's a good one on Quarantine Tanks though...

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/20...ture/index.php

**roka64** · 01-03-2008, 11:55 AM

I agree with Kurt. On a somewhat side note, the articles will be moved over soon.

**melosu58** · 01-03-2008, 12:48 PM

Remember that nothing ever happens fast in this hobby. Care planning and patience must be done.

pph_2ppr · 01-03-2008, 04:20 PM

i have realized how slow this process can be. I have had my 55 gallon tank se tup and running for over a year now, but just never had the time to fill with fish. Living in the boonies it is only a couple times a year i get to a petstore with marine fish. The 2 damsels I bought yesterday look fine and one is swimming around. The yellowtail found a place to hide and only comes out when the other fish swims by. How long should i wait to feed them(as soon as possible?) This is my first time with saltwater fish and would like to recieve all information on things i might not be aware of.

Lecithin · 01-03-2008, 05:17 PM

wait a day

pph_2ppr · 01-03-2008, 05:30 PM

i have plenty of rock in the tank, but i was wondering if i boil rock/shells i found at the ocean would they be able to go in the tank?

01-02-2008, 11:08 PM	#1
pph_2ppr Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Nebraska Posts: 164	Quick Start Today was the only chance I had to get to a petstore and get fish, so i set up my tank pretty quick. One day to be exact i am acclimating the fish on 1 day old saltwater. is there anything i can do besides add the water very slowly?? what other acclimation advice do you have?

01-02-2008, 11:42 PM	#3
pph_2ppr Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Nebraska Posts: 164	this is the QT my main tank has been setup for quite some time. if they are only in there a couple days does it really need to have cycled? i have everything in the tank( substrate, rock, heater, powerheads, hydrometer, just need lighting) Last edited by pph_2ppr; 01-02-2008 at 11:47 PM..

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01-02-2008, 11:12 PM	#2
Lecithin Aquarium Advice Regular Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 62	wait, you set up the entire tank, substrate, LR, skimmer, light, etc (or whatever you're using for equipment) in one day and put a fish in in the same day? Is this your main tank or QT? Whats in the tank? Has it cycled?

01-03-2008, 04:20 PM	#8
pph_2ppr Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Nebraska Posts: 164	i have realized how slow this process can be. I have had my 55 gallon tank se tup and running for over a year now, but just never had the time to fill with fish. Living in the boonies it is only a couple times a year i get to a petstore with marine fish. The 2 damsels I bought yesterday look fine and one is swimming around. The yellowtail found a place to hide and only comes out when the other fish swims by. How long should i wait to feed them(as soon as possible?) This is my first time with saltwater fish and would like to recieve all information on things i might not be aware of.

01-03-2008, 05:17 PM	#9
Lecithin Aquarium Advice Regular Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 62	wait a day

01-03-2008, 05:30 PM	#10
pph_2ppr Aquarium Advice Activist Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Nebraska Posts: 164	i have plenty of rock in the tank, but i was wondering if i boil rock/shells i found at the ocean would they be able to go in the tank?