Help!

[Bishopsnet]

My tank has been up since November 1. I have API test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrates. Tank has never cycled. I have a clown that was added 2 weeks ago and added a few hermits and snails last week. My tank looks super cloudy and 2 snails have died. My clown looks like it's struggling and the hermits are acting weird. What's happening?

 

[farfromsea]

Did you test for ammonia already?


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[Bishopsnet]

Yes. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate

 

[farfromsea]

Help!

Why didn't the tank cycle? Sometimes cloudy water can be a bacterial bloom in an early tank.

Temp and salinity of tank are? Are you using GFCI? Anything shorting should shut off the circuit which is great. Happened to me and alerted me to garbage pumps in the tank


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[Bishopsnet]

My salinity seemed to drop even though the tank has lost water. 1.024 before adding ro water. Temp is a little low. 76f

 

[LQT]

What are you using to measure salinity? If a refractometer, is it properly calibrated?

I'm sorry, but I have to ask... why did you add livestock to an uncycled tank?

 

[juniorrocketdad]

I would test again it is not possible for your parameters to be that perfect in An uncycled tank

 

[mcgyvr]

Come on..
You mention cycling in some form yet you put animals right into the brand spanking new tank and are wondering why things are dying..

"Cycling" is a process that ensures that you have sufficient bacterial populations to quickly convert any "ammonia" to nitrites and then to nitrates.. This can take up to 4 weeks or more and NOTHING should be put into the tank during that time..
Why because ammonia levels can quickly kill things...

I assume you have some "live rock" and some dry rock.. The "live rock" will have dead/decaying material on it which will show up as ammonia and if you don't have sufficient bacteria to process it quick enough then stuff WILL die from it..

Take the fish and any other living things back to the store or just flush them down the toilet..
Then learn to start a saltwater tank properly by reading all the sticky posts in the newbie section..

This is not as simple as a freshwater system.. saltwater requires more work/knowledge,etc... You cannot just jump right in and throw stuff in a tank and expect life to take over magically..

You also mention test kits yet are you actually using them? If so what are the results right now?

 

[Bishopsnet]

I've been testing ammonia, nitrite and nitrates with API test kits every other day. Always 0 on all readings.

 

[Spiffy]

You should wait AT LEAST 6 weeks before adding anything to that tank. Saltwater is the opposite of freshwater. Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. Read some of the stickies like mcgyvr said. Check this out.

 

[LQT]

I would suggest either retesting, getting new test kits (non API) or bringing a sample of water to an LFS and have them test your parameters. Then get back to us as to what your parameters really are.

You've had two snail deaths and a clown that is producing waste. By your own admission, you did not cycle your tank. If this is the case, the dead snails and fish poo should register ammonia on your test kit. If you used live rock in your start up (not specified in your OP) and the rock gave you an instant cycle, then you should be registering nitrate. There wouldn't be any plausible way for you to get zeros across the board...

 

[farfromsea]

I've been testing ammonia, nitrite and nitrates with API test kits every other day. Always 0 on all readings.

Reading on your previous thread about cycling confusion I think you weren't clear on the advice given.

To cycle the tank you needed to either

1) ghost feed / place a dead shrimp that humans eat in the tank to decompose a little

2) add a little bit of pure ammonia to the tank I believe most people here say get the ammonia up to 2 ppm but some people like to say 4 ppm then wait for the bacteria to do its work to bring that ammonia down. This is what takes time. You have to use a bottle of ammonia like this (http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=1307957 to ensure you have pure ammonia, shake to make sure there are no soapy bubbles which indicates strange additives---don't buy one with a scent)

What anthony51 told you in his thread, that he thinks the ghost feeding is a terrible idea.... he waits 3 months before adding fish with his method. I have never done his method so I cannot say anything about it, but I would suggest you use one of the other methods instead.

however, whatever you do, take that fish back to the store before adding dead shrimp or ammonia or it will definitely die a sad death. 10 years ago when I was looking at starting SW, and even a few months ago when I went to the store, the salespeople were telling me to put Chromis in the tank to cycle it. Fortunately we don't do that anymore!

 

[Walla2GSP]

Test ammonia, and if it says zero get another kit and test again. In my experience, a saltwater tank takes forever to cycle properly. You can get it to cycle quickly with ammonia dosing, dead shrimp, adding bottled bacteria, etc, but really the tank is touch and go for the first year. If the tank had already cycled I would say you could have added the clown, but there is no way for your tank to have cycled properly since the 1st. Get everything still alive out of the tank and into a Hospital tank with FRESH saltwater, and either leave them in there doing 25% water changes twice daily or find them a temporary home in a safe established tank. then cycle your tank.