hello all, couple of questions.

[wils0n]

hi i'm new around here. i stumbled to this forum through google.

i have few questions:
a) i have a 60 gal tank with a bio-filter crushed coral/ gravel substrate and 3 power heads. i do water changes about every 2-3 weeks to get some of the solids out of the substrate.. i have a high nitrate level while nitirate, buffers, and ph is good. how do i go about lowering the nitrate levels without doing water changes everyday? should i use the nitrate exchange crystals? i added 60 gals. worth of Zym-Bac last week and my nitrate levels is just slightly lower but still very high.
b) my tank has been running for about 2 years now. do i have enough pods in there for my mandarin fish to survive? how can i tell if he's starving?
c) i'm thinking of getting a filter that goes inside the cabinet. any recommendations?

any advice is much appreciated! thanks in advance

 

[Kohan Bros.]

a. the only good way to bring nitartes IMO is to do weekly water changes at least.

b. Its hard to say weather u have enough pods or not for a mandarin, ive been hearing a lot about mandarins and most people say u need at least 100pounds of lr and a refuge/fuge.

c. No quite sure what ur asking about.

 

[wils0n]

i'm looking for a filter which the main part goes underneath the tank with hoses that go into the tank.

i was looking at internal filters but the biggest one i found was for a 40g tank. i cant use the hang on the back of the tank types because of the way my fish tank is made- i would have nowhere to hang the filter.

which leaves me to the last option of under tank filters.


i'm gonna get some more live rock this weekend.
is there a way i can have pods without the refuge?

thanks again

 

[SeriousDude5]

I believe cheto helps bring down nitrate or is it nitrite? Double Check
If you can look in your tank and see pods running around then you should have enough but it is advised to have 80+ pounds of LR and a fuge for them to breed
You really dont need to have a filter on a SW tank. I protien skimmer and hang on back fuge tanks running better than ever yes you can have pods w/o a fuge but it is recomened you have one as a breeding ground

 

[lando]

a) i have a 60 gal tank with a bio-filter crushed coral/ gravel substrate and 3 power heads. i do water changes about every 2-3 weeks to get some of the solids out of the substrate.. i have a high nitrate level while nitirate, buffers, and ph is good. how do i go about lowering the nitrate levels without doing water changes everyday? should i use the nitrate exchange crystals? i added 60 gals. worth of Zym-Bac last week and my nitrate levels is just slightly lower but still very high.

As mentioned, regular and frequent water changes are the best way to get rid of NO3. The two main contributors to high NO3 are over-stocking and over-feeding. What is your current feeding schedule? Livestock list looks borderline but okay.

b) my tank has been running for about 2 years now. do i have enough pods in there for my mandarin fish to survive? how can i tell if he's starving?

How much LR do you have? You will need well over 100lbs and some type of sump/fuge in order to keep a manderin long-term. Without that it will eat the pod population faster then it can reproduce. Look for sunken sides on the fish as a sign of starvation. I would bring it back to the LFS before it dies so you can maybe get something for it.

c) i'm thinking of getting a filter that goes inside the cabinet. any recommendations?

This could be a sump, wet/dry or fuge. Can you explain a bit more about what you are wanting?
Welcome to AquariumAdvice.com

 

[wils0n]

Thanks for all the advice!!!

i went down to the LFS this past weekend and picked up about 15 lbs of LR, a bottle of frozon pods(Marine Plankton), 2 more cleaner shrimps, 5 snails, and 2 hermit crabs.
my mandarin fish's sides are nice and round so i guess i did have a decent pod population in my tank.

i feed my tank about 2-3 times daily. either 1/4 to a 1/3 of a teaspoon of tetra marine flakes, or a cube of the formula1 frozen food, or live brine shrimp. and now 2 squirts of the (MP) along with the other food.

i also picked up a fluval 404 filter system for my tank this weekend since one of my powerheads stopped working.

i probably have a total of about 40-50 lbs of LR. so i'll go get more next weekend.

i forgot to mention (since i barely see him) that i also have a purple lobster.


and thanks for the warm welcome. this forum is most informative.

 

[lando]

my mandarin fish's sides are nice and round so i guess i did have a decent pod population in my tank.

For now. You simply do not have enough LR to maintain a pod population for your manderin. Like many, it will slowly starve to death. Attempts at getting these fish to eat froozen food and sketchy at best.

i feed my tank about 2-3 times daily

This is likely the source of your high NO3. You need to cut way back on the feedings. Feed lightly once every other day.

i forgot to mention (since i barely see him) that i also have a purple lobster.

Bye, bye shrimp. They will become luch for the lobster. Most lobsters available in the aquarium industry are oportunistic feeders. They will eat whatever they can catch, including other fish and inverts. I would take this back to the LFS.

 

[wils0n]

This is likely the source of your high NO3. You need to cut way back on the feedings. Feed lightly once every other day.

the fish wont get too hungry? wouldn't want them to eat stuff they're not supposed to. will once a day still be too much?

Bye, bye shrimp. They will become luch for the lobster. Most lobsters available in the aquarium industry are oportunistic feeders. They will eat whatever they can catch, including other fish and inverts. I would take this back to the LFS.

will he still eat my shrimp even if i put like a 1/4 cube of formula1 in front of his hole?

For now. You simply do not have enough LR to maintain a pod population for your manderin. Like many, it will slowly starve to death. Attempts at getting these fish to eat froozen food and sketchy at best.

the mandarin seems to like the (MP) i turn off the fluval 404 when i squirt that stuff in so it can settle on the LR. but then again, its only been 2 days.

thanks lando

 

[lando]

the fish wont get too hungry? wouldn't want them to eat stuff they're not supposed to. will once a day still be too much?

Your fish will not get too hungry. I only feed like three times a week. VERY small amounts if you want to feed once a day.

will he still eat my shrimp even if i put like a 1/4 cube of formula1 in front of his hole?

Yup...it WILL eat WHATEVER it can catch.

the mandarin seems to like the (MP) i turn off the fluval 404 when i squirt that stuff in so it can settle on the LR. but then again, its only been 2 days.

Be very careful with the frozen pods. The liquid you are squirting into your tank can foul your water in no time. This will not help with your NO3 issue and is likely to produce unwanted algea via the addition of PO4 from the liquid.

thanks lando

My pleasure!