!help! a newbie

[firsttimer]

Hi, I have a Nano-Cube that was my birthday gift last year. 8 gallon. Built up my inverti. community very slowly, lost an anemone due to high temperatures until I got a chiller/heater, successful invert tank with coral, mussel, and a couple of things I can't identify. Finally (six months later) bought several fish, researched for non-aggressives, and got a royal gramma, a yellow-tailed damselfish, and (for my nephew) of course, a Nemo. I tested water quality repeatedly to see that it matched my TF store. (it did) gramma and damselfish seem fine, other than hiding a lot because they are new. Clownfish seems to be swimming in a way that reminds me of bloat in regular aquarium fish. Is this their normal swimming pattern or do I have an acclimatization problem here?

P.S. Saline levels and temps were identical also.

Thanks for any input!!

Ter

 

[neilanh]

Welcome to AA!

Sorry, I'm not good with sick fish, but the people that are will want to know specifics of your system. Water parameters, particularly, they'll want to see the levels.

What acclimation method did you use?

Also, can you better describe what you mean by swimming like a bloat?

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Are you testing for ammonia and nitrites?

If the tank has been fishless for 6 months, then you could be cycling. Even if you were feeding the tank for the corals and mussels, it might not have been enough to build up a good bacterial population. And with adding 3 fish all at once... that's going to take the bacteria a while to build up to catch up with the new bioload.

Clownfish *do* swim weird at times, but you could also be seeing an effect of ammonia poisoning.

[Edit: Just reread your post and noticed that this was an 8 gallon tank. If you don't have problems now, you most likely will in the near future. That's far too many fish for a 8 gallon. I'd say pick one and take the other two back.]

 

[mike47517]

FW person here but welcome to the sight

 

[HoCkEyGmC]

agree with all thats been stated; we need specific parameters, too many fish for an 8 gal, u may have shocked the bacteria populations, welcome =], and how did u acclimate?

 

[firsttimer]

Hi, thanks for all the replies. Nitrate 0ppm, nitrite 0ppm, phosphate somewhere between 0ppm and .25ppm, salinity betwen 1.021 and 1.022, ammonia did go up to .50ppm several days after fish were introduced but I used I think it's called AmQuel that the shop also recommended and now it is at 0ppm. All three fish are very small. The shop I frequent has a similar 10-gallon nanocube set up with two perculas, a larger but similar damselfish, and a coral banded shrimp that have been fine for at least a year, and they assured me that with frequent monitoring mine should be okay. AND change the charcoal filters frequently. Oh, and I emptied most of the water in the bags, floated them, and slowly let a little of my tank's water into the bags a couple of times, and then let fish out. I think it's just getting used to the way the percula swims, it's more "fluttery" than the others. I'll keep you posted with my progress and certainly let you all know how the fish fare. Is there anywhere on this site where you can post pics and see other members' pics? Terry (sorry for the book)

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Regarding the pictures... go to the "Gallery" link at the top of the page and you can post pictures there and see others.

Regardless of what the fish store told you, 3 fish in a 10g is too many.