Hey guys. My Cardinal died

[Guy Fawkes]

I had a cardinal and it died over night. The only fish in my new tank to die? I have a yellow tail damsel, clown, engineer gobi and a six line. No clue why. Also two snails have died. I don't know my parameters because I don't have a testing kit. Il bring my water to the LFS and have it checked.

Do snails die easily?

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Sorry. Rushed post. Had the fish for two weeks. Didn't seems to move around the tank much. It didn't seem to eat much either.

 

[ThRoewer]

Do snails die easily?

That really depends on the species.
The ones you usually have for algae control and detritus cleanup are usually pretty hardy and not easy to kill.
But there are others that are difficult to keep alive.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Turbos. That's what they told me. Il take a pic

 

[Deinonych]

Recommend you pick up some test kits and start monitoring your water quality. How old is the tank?

 

[Guy Fawkes]

That's the plan. I work shift work so can't get to the LFS for the next few days. Tank is 1.5 months.

 

[reeferstace]

How big is your tank?

You need to be testing your water chemistry. How can you provide a proper aquatic environment when you don't know your basic water parameters?

What is your quarantine procedure for livestock?

What kind of cardinal was it? There is a good chance that the six-line killed it. They are overly aggressive and commonly harass their tankmates to death.

Since your tank is so new there may be insufficient aglae to feed grazing herbivores like the turbos.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Well I can bring water to my LFS and have them check it. As I have. I will get a testing kit when I have the money. Last time (month ago) all was good accept my nitrates.

Not sure about the cardinal. My damsel was more aggressive towards it. He didn't get along.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

My tank is 28gallon. I made some rookie mistakes like improper water changes. I got my info from a bad source. I bought a vacuum for the debris at the bottom of my tank and for water changes. I also have got some treatment stuff for a red algae. And vitamins for the coral and tank. Think I'm on a better path to a healthy tank

 

[Puffyluv]

Yes, most likely the damsel killed your cardinal....no one should have ever sold you these two fish to live in a 28 gallom together...

 

[ThRoewer]

A damsel as one of the first fish is always a bad choice, especially in a small tank and if you plan to add more delicate fish later.

Water testing beyond temperature and pH is highly recommended but not necessary if you can read the signs of your tank (algae, corals,...). Ammonia and Nitrite should never be present in a well cycled reef tank with live rock. If they are present something is horribly wrong.
Nitrate and phosphate are of most concern if you plan to keep corals but most fish can tolerate elevated levels.