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I have to agree with all of you about going fast. This was the recommendation of the lfs. They are quite reputable however. I thought the 6 chromis was a little much, however the lfs said that some of the fish would die and thats a good thing. He also told me to leave the dead fish in there to let nature take its course. The salinity may be a little low, but its at the min. level that its supposed to be. Is that a bad thing? I also have room for putting about 5 gallons in, could I just add the saltwater without taking any out? I figure if my chromis die its not that big of a deal, even though its sad. But it will help jumpstart the cycle right? I fed them some mysis shrimp last night and they seem to be doing just fine this morning. I know thats not how its going to stay though. Please help me out if you can. Also, my skimmer has not started collecting foam yet, just a little wet stuff in the bottom of the cup. I raised it this morning, I think it might take about a week to get going. Thanks.

You have comments and suggestions but if you insist...good luck.

But one thing for sure is that your lfs is a piece of shxt....we keep fish to keep fish alive. How can it be good to have dead fish? And to leave them in the tank...biggest joke ever.

If you want fast ammonia why not just put a rotten egg instead fish..much cheaper..and you are not killing any fish.

Here is a link of my tank. One is the filters and the other 2 are before fish and after fish. Hope this gives a general idea of what I have. Hope this works.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/pdlovesdd/album?.dir=9dcf&.src=ph&store=&prodid=&.done=http%3a//pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph//my_photos

Well, I have to say that I'm sorry for making it seem as if I don't know what I'm doing here. Marine tanks are a new but challenging experiance. I also have been recommended by many other sources to keep what I have. The 6 chromis may be a little much, but the more fish to create small amounts of ammonia will help cycle the tank more quickly. If one fish happens to die, it may be a tragedy but just like darwins theory, aquariums become "survival of the fitest". I know that sounds cruel and I have no intentions of killing my fish, and if one seems to be on hurt I'll do my best to get him out of there. However, there are similarities between fresh/salt tanks. I believe that I'm going about this the right way and that I'm not "nitpicking". My fish are in a stable environment for now, which will change soon, but for the most part they should be okay after the cycle is completed. I'll keep you all posted. Thank you very much for the help.

I agree with Rob, you are making the same mistakes I made. You need to slow down, take a chill pill, otherwise this will cost you allot of money with out having anything to show for it. I have made my own rule, 1 add and 1 change per month on my tank. You should maybe try this as well. If the lfs theory is that the dead fish will speed up the cycle, why not buy 6 mollys for a 1/10 of the price? I also recommend LR, This also gives the tank some colour, and hiding places. Stay away from tangs till at least 4 months, otherwise you will have a ick outbreak!! And when you do have a ick outbreak do not ever use coper based meds. This has a very bad effect on corals and it stays in the tank for long after the meds has warn out, some say the coper never leaves your tank.Just incase you have an outbreak, and if you where considering corals, long term.
Best of luck.

OMG!

You've gone about this completely the wrong way. First of all you start asking questions about setting up a Marine tank... that's good, but then you go ahead and do it without getting any Answers!

You should have never added any fish in there for at least 2 weeks, if not longer to wait for the water to cycle and tank to mature slightly. And even then it should have been 1 or 2 fish, not 6.

You should really, use live rock to cycle the tank rather than a fish, as they are not as hardy as FW. If you cant afford live rock, then use a bottle of cycle, though you may have to wait for longer.

How can the LFS you went to be reputable when they claim it's ok for fish to die, in fact it's a good thing! With a few dead fish floating around in your tank it would cause the Ammonia to go off the scale!!

Anyway, what i would suggest is you take your 6 chromis back to the LFS (if they're not dead yet) get some live rock and wait another 4 weeks at least. You can't expect an instant ocean inside your tank, i know its very hard and i've made mistakes by rushing in the past but you really have to be patient.

I wouldnt reccomend Dori either, if it was a longer tank maybe as they need a bit of Swimming room and i wouldnt add it in till the very last and would also quarantine them as they are White Spot Magnets!!

Anyway, sorry to rant but i think it needed saying.

Cheers
Rob

Hmmmmm, no one can answer my ?. I can't understand whats going on either. It was explained to me that some kind of chemical has to break down in order for the ammonia test kit to work properly. Right now I have other readings as:nitrites 0,nitrates 0, ph 8.2. I guess I should wait 10 days before testing for ammonia. Thats a little weird though that the test would come out totally inacurate with no explanation. Its too soon for ammonia to spike that high,(unless my water supply had ammonia in it, which it doesn't). There had to be something decomposing in there for a while for it to reach that high.
One other thing, my cousin grew soft coral for 4 years in a 65 gallon tank with only 2 lights of a total of 80 watts. It has to be possible, he did it. He said he used the highest light spectrum for a flouresent light. Has anyone had this experiance?

I'm guessing your off the scale.



Dan

Actually, I just went to another lfs and asked a few questions. He also agreed that things were going a little quick. However, he said 6 chromis in my 70 gallon tank will survive the cycle. Heres the crazy part. Last night I tested for ammonia. It read over 5.0ppm 3 times in a row. When the lfs tested it, it came out a blue color which isn't even on the scale for ammonia. There were only green and yellow, not blue. Something about there being some kind of chemical that needs to be broken down before I can even test for ammonia. He didn't explain, cause he said he's only seen this one time before. Anyone have an explanation?

I would have to say if I got that advice, I would walk out after telling them how I felt. They are simply tring to make the sale. Find a different LFS. Live rock will cycle the tank, or you can get a bottle of cycle. The problem you will have is not present yet. The ammonia levels will rise, once over 1.2 your fish will start to die. With that many fish in a tank that size, you will more then likly go off the scale.




Dan

They are quite reputable however. I thought the 6 chromis was a little much, however the lfs said that some of the fish would die and thats a good thing. He also told me to leave the dead fish in there to let nature take its course.

Or instead of using those dead chromis to cycle the tank, you could just use a prawn or something
I mean lfs saying dead fish are good is kind of suspicious, no?

edit: well i know you can use prawn for fw tanks

[span class="edited"][Edited by 2004-09-06 15:28][/span]

I have just got this great idea to try and start a reef tank. I currently have a 35g hex freshwater tank which is in fine working condition, but am ready for a bigger, more rewarding challenge. I have my eyes set on a 37g tall glass tank with 2 power compacts and a stand. It also comes with a ugf (which I'm not fond of). I really want to do this, but I want to do the right thing. I know I've got to buy a skimmer, don't know which one. I've made the choice to start out with sand and no live rocks. My plan is to set everything up and run it for 2-3 days and buy 2 damsels. Please give me advice, if I need it. I am really afraid of reef tanks, likely cause I'm afraid and lost. Is it much different than freshwater, or am I just nuking it?

I have never kept saltwater but I definatley know your going way to fast! Slow down and give the tank a few more months to settle and then add the fish that you want (and are compatible) as SW takes longer than FW

Um, skimmers don't need any media...

Your tank is too small for a Hippo Tang, and even moreso since it's a tall tank. It'd be okay for a few months but eventually their active swimming behavior can't be met inside such a tank.

I'll have to agree you're going a little fast. My tank has been set up for 2 months and still has no fish in it... I'm finally planning on getting some fish now.

--------------------------------------------
The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

you are rushing it too much....even for freshwater you know that it won't work

plus your salinty is incorrect...need a raise..but you cannot just add the sae salt into your tank...you will need to do that through water changes

your fish seems to be okay because it's only the first day...problems will come sooner or later

And for your aim to get Dori into a brand new tank in one week is a really bad plan...Blue tangs isn't as easy as damsels and clownfish..better to let the tank establish before u add them

You shoudl try to get your salt level to about 1.024. Also, it's to early to add fish. You need to cycle the tank for a few weeks before adding fish. As a general rule, you add about 1" of adult fish per 5gals of water.



Dan

Alright, it is complete. Now all I need is a good cycle right? I've got the skimmer, hob, sand with aragonite, heater, and fake coral and rocks. My salinity reads 1.021.5. I decided to purchase 6 green chromis earlier today, they seem to be fine. I plan on feeding them some mysis shrimp a little later. Anything that I'm forgetting? Any thoughts, advice or comments please feel free. I'm a rookie at salt water. I'm almost taking this approach as if it were a freshwater tank. Thanks for comments in advance.

Okay, this seawater stuff is a pain. Its been 5 hours (and 6 beers) since I started. I'm not even half way through. Salt doesn't dissolve like I thought. I really can't figure out my skimmer, I thought there was some kind of media, apperantly I forgot to get that one. Well, 35 gallons left to go and I hope to be okay.

Well, I just went through the same thing... fresh to salt. It is a BIG difference, but it seems like you are going about it in the right way (lots of research!). Do you know what levels to look for during and after a sw cycles? It will take, imho, about a week with 4 damsels to cycle your tank. Fish limit for the tank? DRO said it best. See what works for your setup, but about 1" per 2-4 gal is the general idea. I am still a beginner, so if you want more answers I cannot help. Good luck, and I think you will find it very interesting.

Oh, a ? I forgot to ask. When the tank is fully cycled, roughly how many fish could I have in there. I know this sounds like a beginner question but I'd like to have Marlon, Nemo, and Dori for my son to see when he gets back from vacation in a week. Thanks