1 week old 15 gallon tank questions

[THEnick]

Hey all,

It's been about 5 years since my first small tank (maybe 5 gallons?) crashed on me and I'm back in the game and have a few questions for my new tank. I dropped a lot of cash on my last go around and I admit, I didn't look after it nearly as well as I should have.

Full disclosure, I found a used tank sitting by my dumpster, which is now lovingly called "dumpster tank" by my wife. It has an Eclipse 1 hood with working filter and light. I bought a new 50/50 bulb that fits the fixture and gives the nice blue lighting touch I was looking for. It's been up and running for a week now. I got live sand to start with and (forgive my ignorance) the "live rock" that didn't seem all too alive on day one. Today I bought some treated live rock with coraline algae, maybe 7 lbs. and the guy tossed in some hermit crabs and snails. The snails haven't moved so I think they're dead and only one crab seems to be active. I got a damsel on day 4 and it seems happy to me.

I've tested the water and the ammonia is 0, but nitrite is around 3 which, according to what I've read, is normal at this early stage.

OK, so now that you've read the back story, here come my questions...

1. Coraline algae: I've heard it spreads well once it is introduced into the tank. True or false?

2. CUC: Should I be worried that they don't seem to be active? I remember with my last go around that snails seemed super active pretty much immediately. Are they probably dead?

3. Salinity: I bought a hydrometer that seems cheap and innacurate. I get different readings pretty much every time I check. Normal?

4. Shrimp: I really love shrimp and want to get one ASAP but I'm not going to rush it. How long should I wait before introducing one, and how many would be the max I could put in a tank this size? I don't plan on getting too many fish since it's a small tank, plus, my damsel is pretty enough for now!

Alright, that's enough for now. Any and all input is appreciated!

-Nick

 

[shifty51008]

well 1st off please remove the fish till the cycle is complete all your doing is harming the fish.

now for your questions
1. yes it will spread well if you keep the parameters in check. mainly cal, alk, and mag.

2. my guess is that they may have died due to your tank still cycling.

3. hydrometers are constantly inaccurate I would deff. look into buying a refractometer, you can get a decent one for around 35.00

4. I would go with 2-4 shrimp, but I would wait another 3-4 weeks when all your parameters get stable.

[welcome]

 

[AaronM]

I might take the (if they are) dead snails out now. Too early, but in theory the same as throwing in a peice of shrimp to cause a robust cycle.

Yeah coraline spreads, esp. if you ca and mg are optimal.

Mmm maybe the cleanup crew isn't happy about nitrite. Should have introduced after nitrite = 0.

IMO hydrometers suck. They work fine, as long as you thoroughly clean it and expel all salt after each use. Effort! Buy a refractometer

Re. shrimp, certainly wait until your nitrite = 0, probably a few weeks after that, once your bio filter has sorted itself out. I have lot's, but not sure whats right for nano. This link may help, i find the info good: http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/aquarium-fish-supplies.cfm?c=497+525

 

[AaronM]

Hm. Great minds...

 

[IridescentLily]

I was going to post the same thing as the above posters. They're absolutely right. And i was only going to add is that once you fill your hydrometer you have to flick the hydrometer with your fingers in order to get the bubbles off of the part that goes up and down. Because most of the time the bubbles on the tip of the white marker will not let the marker sink down all the way, giving you a false reading of a higher salinity reading then it really is.
Don't put anything else in until you're sure your ammonia AND nitrates are 0.
And that your using RO water, and not feeding your damsel but once a day, no matter how much you want to feed him more.