AM I an idiot or what?

[diverdan6996]

Thought about it and realized LR mistake...64lbs of which 23 was base rock. Understand what has been said but I'll see what happens in the next few weeks, as I said the tangs are in qt for ich at least for another week. yesterday PO4 was 0.25 and today is going to be a 20+ water change with reef crystals,and tomorrow I'll clean canister sponges been 3 weeks, my fault memory not what it used to be. All other numbers are good, except the low Ca & Mg. corals & fish appear fine. One concern I have is the 1050 powerheads, are on wavemaker & alternating every 1 min, may be to strong? what are the thoughts on that?!?

 

[kismetsh]

Even if the tangs shake off their illness they are completely inappropriate stock for that size tank.

Good luck as you go forward!

 

[Deinonych]

Definitely slow down. I added water to my tank about the time you did, and I haven't added fish yet. Still waiting for the tank to establish a good biological filter. I can understand wanting to add fish quickly (believe me, I am eager to do it), but nothing good happens fast in this hobby. You just have to be patient and make sure you are building a good home for your inhabitants.

 

[Cymonous]

Base rock will become Live Rock. You don't need to worry about shells for hermits deteriorating. They don't need them to live, just survive from predators. If you have not done already, buy some extra shells that are larger than the ones your hermits are in and place a few in the tank. The hermit will find a new shell on its own.

 

[MrClam]

Not going against the advice given already, but to answer the OP's question yes shells will deteriorate if Ca levels are low in the tank. If the water level of Ca is too low the shell will dissolve over time. Do some water changes will Reef Crystals or a similar mix and bump your salinity up and that should get the Ca levels high enough to prevent any shell problems.

 

[EDJFA]

Why do you have 4 emerald crabs? I've had trouble keeping one in my 55g tank. Make sure you're getting lots of algae to those guys. You can feed them by hand. If not, tie some nori strips to some rocks and drop them in. They'll find them.

You should probably do some research on that LTA also. You probably rushed that purchase also.

And you need to talk more to the guys at the LFS. Tell them the size of your tank. Take water samples in for them to test. Tell them what you're trying to do with your tank. Remind them that it's not even a month old yet. If you do all of that and they agree to sell you more fish, find a new fish store. BTW, Petco doesn't count as a LFS.

 

[TheSacrifice]

As many have mentioned you're not an idiot just an uninformed new hobbiest. Read up like crazy and slow down. Your current setup is WAY overstocked and some things may survive while others will die and destroy your params.

Best of luck to you, as many have mentioned you should've waited at least a good month to add anything. Keep us posted.