New and having problems

graprilapril

graprilapril

New member
Hello, I've only had my tank set up a few months and at first everything seemed to be going well but now I'm having some issues and I'm not sure why. Any insight would be helpful. First of all everything is testing fine except the ammonia is just a tad high but I wouldn't think enough to cause a problem. I have a 65 gallon tank with two small black clowns, a lawn mower blenny, coral banded shrimp, a damsel and 5 small hermit crabs. My fish are healthy but my coral/plants aren't doing so well suddenly. I have a few groups of polyps that aren't looking to good and an anemone that is acting weird. However I have xenia that's flourishing. Any advice on what's wrong? Thank you
 
How are your calc levels? Has the tank fully cycled properly without the fish or anenomes? Sounds like it's still going through the cycle.
 
Ph is between 8.2 and 8.4. Ammonia is .25. Nitrite is 0 and so is nitrate. Calcium I had tested at a store about a week ago and I think she said like 500 something. I could be wrong about the 500 but she said it was good. The tank should be fully cycled but I suppose that's an option. If that's the case how long before it settles out?
 
Suggest you get some of your own test kits for Calcium,Alkalinity, and Magnesium. Don't take the word of a LFS.
 
There shouldn't be any ammonia in your tank if it is cycled. The test kit could be wrong I only use salifert test kits but I never really test for ammonia nitrite or nitrate once the tank cycles you dont really need to unless your corals look like the are doing bad. Xenia like dirty water so it makes sense they would be doing good of course nothing likes ammonia. How does your water look is it cloudy? How old are the bulbs in your fixture? What corals are doing bad is it just zoas and the anemone. hard to say without pictures. Have you checked phosphate? Have you seen an increase in algae in your tank? Zoas like low to mid flow and anemones like about the same flow are they getting blasted by a powerhead? Have you been dosing any new products or chemicals. With the corals you have you dont need to dose for alk or calcium yet they dont use much and water changes should make up the difference. Have you checked temperature. 500 calcium is high might not be the right number 425 to 450 is where you should be.
 
how often do you do water changes and what volume of water do you change 10 percent a week once you tank cycles or 20 bi weekly no more than 20 except for emergencies. how long did you wait to do your first water change? If you do a water change to soon often or to much at a time you tank will not completely cycle.
 
Well I have an API test kit. Apparently that's one problem. My lighting fixture is brand new and so are my bulbs. All my heart kit is good for is ph, nitrite, nitrate and ammonia. I was told to start dosing calcium but I've been told so many things its hard to know what's right. Everyone seems to do things differently. As far as water changes I haven't done any yet but the water is evaporating I guess because I have to add about a gallon every few days to keep my sump submerged which is annoying to say the least. That could be one of my problems.
 
If the tank has been running for two months or more a 10 percent water change is a good start make sure that the salinity and temp is the same as your tank water I mix my water in a brute trash can i got from walmart just make sure it has not been used for anything else before that it must be clean rise it out with water and wipe it out water only. or a 5 gallon bucket will work if its a small tank let the water mix with a small pump and a heater along with an airstone it is a good idea to let it mix over night wait then ck salinity if you dont wait long enough the salinity could end up being to high because it has not all mixed yet only use ro water for best results even conditioned tap water has a lot of nutrients and phosphate you dont want in your tank if you dont have a ro unit walmart sell ro water for 88c a gallon it is labeled drinking water and has a green cap and the label will tell you that it is processed by reverse osmosis. I dont know why people are telling you to dose calcium since you are not really sure where you are at and dont have any coral that uses a lot never dose something you cant ck especially calcium and alk and mag you can really mess up your tank there are a lot of people that are to new and dont give the best advise on here adding to much calcium will cause you tank to precipitate and your tank will start to look like its snowing and will keep doing it till it levels out and it is bad for your tank and coral to much alk will wipe out your coral as well calcium and alk balance is really important i keep my alk at 9 and calcium at 425 i suggest you do research on calcium and alk balance it is reall important and dosing one effects the other using a balanced formula is easier to use i use tech cb a and b. dosing mag will affect salinity raising mag raises salinity so keep an eye on salinity if you have to dose for mag. I think with a tank that new all your levels are fine as far as mag calcium and alk salifert makes the best kits in my opinion and they are easy to use but dont dose anything till you know where they are at. google the reef calculator when you do decide to dose alk cal and mag you can put in the product you are using how many gallons your system and what level you are at and what you want the level to be it it will give you the exact dose to use just remember to dose in thrds dont put it all in at once split it up over 3 days and dose at night with the lights off dosing alk will raise ph slightly so it is best to do when the lights are off and your ph is lower unless your using reverse lighting in a fuge then break up the dose more like 6 doses twice a day.
 
I think a water change you could even do as much as 20 percent but no more than that would be the first thing to try and your best bet. Do the zoas have any spots on them or there body look them over and make sure there are no spots on them. What does you anemone look like to make you think it is not doing well is it pulled in or looking withered? what species is it some anemones are hard to keep and If the tank it only two months old it is a little to soon to put on in in my opinion and I would have waited a min of three months and started with zoas or green star polyps first star polyps are very hardy but can grow fast and over take other corals if the get to close it is best to keep them on a separate rock not touching any other rock so you can keep them in ck easier and trim them back when you need to. After polyps do well for at least a month then i would have gone with an anemone. If an Anemone dies in a tank the will skunk the tank especially a small one so it is best to remove them as soon as you notice they are dead hopefully everything will be ok.
 
for your tank i would recommend the following level since you dont have sps coral you dont need to keep a higher alk. when you decide to check levels and start dosing alk 8 dhk Not meq/l, calcium 415 to 425, magnesium 1350
 
Sounds like you just need to do a good water change to me, definitely dont need to dose anything. Just my .02
 
graprilapril said:
As far as water changes I haven't done any yet but the water is evaporating I guess because I have to add about a gallon every few days to keep my sump submerged which is annoying to say the least. That could be one of my problems.
Click to expand...

I would address this ASAP... research automatic topoff (ATO) setups. One thing corals and more sensitive thing - anemones - need is a stable environment. Adding a gallon every few days means your tank salinity is always rising and falling. If you can't get or make an ATO, at least top it off manually yourself every day by adding a few cups of fresh (no salt) RODI water - don't wait until your pump is running dry! Mark a line on your sump where the water level should be. After a few days you will get a feel for how much you need to add every day to make up for evaporation.
 
Aaaand at this point I wouldn't be dosing anything at all. Until you get a lot more stony corals, the salt mix you use to make up water changes will have all the calcium, magnesium, and alk your tank needs. Between starting a weekly/every other week water change routine and setting up some type of system for an ATO, I would bet you'll see your tank improve loads!
 
I agree with salinity if you dont add the fresh water to top it of slow that could cause issues depend on the size of the tank before i got my top off unit Just broke it up to a few cups addeed slow in the morning and a few at night every day. just keep an eye on how much you add and break it up to a few times a day. I use the hydor top off unit works great plus no floats to get stuck and it doesnt take up a lot of room in the tank or sump. you also need a pump to go with it i use an aqua lifter it work great nice and slow. keep in mind putting it in the last stage of the sump i the only place it will work it is the only place where water level varies. Your tank and first stage or first two stages are usually at a constant water level and the top off unit will never come on it needs to be in the last stage where the return pump is and water level varies. If using one with a canister filter it can be in the tank because the water level will vary.
 
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