reefer0714
New member
I just received a tank and fish from my brother in law. He had to move and could not bring the tank to his new place. He originally had a 120 gallon tank(which he kept), but he gave me a 40 gallon tank, all of his fish, his bio balls, his artificial coral, and most of his water from that tank.
When we first set it up, we did not have time to properly cycle the tank, so we added live sand and put the fish in the same day. I bought a sump, hooked it all up and the fish survived and were doing well for a while.
I have been doing water changes, watching the levels, and they seemed to be doing well until recently. My PH is a little low(like 7.8-8.0), and the Nitrates were very high for the first month, but have come down to around 40-60ppm. I think my fish have "hole-in-the-head" disease, and maybe ich as well. I have noticed see through ulcers around their head, erosion on their fins, white stringy puffy looking stuff attached, etc. My Blue Tang had the white spots (ich) for a few days, but after water changes, it seemed to go away. They are swimming sideways sometimes, rubbing against rocks, and darting back and forth.
My current stock is: 1 Blue tang, 1 Watchmen Gobi, 1 Sailfin Tang, 2 Clowns, and 2 Cardinals. My sump has: White Poly Pads + Black carbon pads, bio-balls, carbon pillow, and ceramic cylindars - 700gph. Tank is 40 gallon, live sand, artificial coral.
I am new at this, and I am unsure what or how many problems I have going on! I want to try and save these fish! I know my tank is probably overcrowded(overstocked). What can I do?! I heard good and bad things about "melafix", "pimafix", aquarium salt, copper, etc. I am afraid to try any of those products, unless it is necessary.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance.
When we first set it up, we did not have time to properly cycle the tank, so we added live sand and put the fish in the same day. I bought a sump, hooked it all up and the fish survived and were doing well for a while.
I have been doing water changes, watching the levels, and they seemed to be doing well until recently. My PH is a little low(like 7.8-8.0), and the Nitrates were very high for the first month, but have come down to around 40-60ppm. I think my fish have "hole-in-the-head" disease, and maybe ich as well. I have noticed see through ulcers around their head, erosion on their fins, white stringy puffy looking stuff attached, etc. My Blue Tang had the white spots (ich) for a few days, but after water changes, it seemed to go away. They are swimming sideways sometimes, rubbing against rocks, and darting back and forth.
My current stock is: 1 Blue tang, 1 Watchmen Gobi, 1 Sailfin Tang, 2 Clowns, and 2 Cardinals. My sump has: White Poly Pads + Black carbon pads, bio-balls, carbon pillow, and ceramic cylindars - 700gph. Tank is 40 gallon, live sand, artificial coral.
I am new at this, and I am unsure what or how many problems I have going on! I want to try and save these fish! I know my tank is probably overcrowded(overstocked). What can I do?! I heard good and bad things about "melafix", "pimafix", aquarium salt, copper, etc. I am afraid to try any of those products, unless it is necessary.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance.
I am not sure what to do about the overcrowding/tank size problem. Thanks for your help!
