New aquarium, bought too many fish and dont know what to do.

D

dpzimmerman

New member
I bought a 75 gallon tank with a Fluval 404 canister filter on craigslist the other day. It came with a free 55 gallon tank on a stand full of big coral chunks (dead) along with two clown fish and a black damsel fish with a white spot on it.
I had these fish so i rushed to set it up. I got home and bought two bags of salt. One said it would make 25 gallons of water and the other said it would make 50 gallons. So I filled the about 1/6 of the tank with water, added dechlorinator and then added some salt. Then I added more tap water and mixed in more dechlorinator and added more salt. I did this until all the salt was dissolved. The water was cloudy but it was clearing up by the moment.
I left the fish in a 10 gallon bucket with the canister filter in it over night and they survived.

When i woke up in the morning the water was crystal clear and everything looked perfect in the aquarium. I checked the salinity with a hydrometer and it was off the charts. So i took 1 gallon out and dumped it in the sink and got one gallon of tap water and dechlorinated it and dumped it back into the tank. I did this until the salinity FINALLY got to an acceptable lever.
When the salinity was okay then i added the two clown fish and the black damsel.
They seemed okay so i thought i was good to go.
My friends saw the tank and headed to the pet shop and bought 1 more clownfish, 3 blue damsels and a green crab and put them all in the tank.
Then i checked the ph and it
 
.....was really low, like 7.6 so i added some ph straight to the water (i know now you are supposed to pre mix it). I left and went to class and when i got home my black damsel and one blue damsel were dead.
i scooped them out and checked the salinity and ph. The salinity was high and the ph was still really low.
so i added more fresh water which lowered the ph even more but didnt want to add more ph b/c every time i add it the fish start having these spazms and nearly die.
So my tank is in this cycle where the salinity keeps being high but the ph keeps being low. if i add fresh water then the ph will be even lower and the salinity will be okay and if i add ph then the fish will look like they are about to die.
I know there are so many things i did wrong as the man at the pet store told me but i dont know what i should do now so more fish dont die.
any suggestions?
 
well sounds like a couple things went wrong first being the tank sounds like it isn't cycled. The next would be that everything is added to quickly. Also when you added fresh water does that mean from the tap or RO water?? Do you have any other parameters like the ammonium level No2 and NO3 levels. A test kit would help also what lighting if any are you using. I learned the hard way take everything slow in this hobby.
 
yeah i have a test kit and i brought the water to the pet store here and he said that everything was ok but my ph was too low.

new water is tap water. in oxford the ph is 7.something is what i was told.

where do i buy reverse osmosis water? walmart?

yeah there are two light bulbs one is white flourescent and then one is purple. i keep the white one on during the day and the purple one on at night.......
 
Yeah understood you can get RO water at walmart I think through the machines but I would double check it. If anything you might have to wait then go to a fish store and get some RO water from them. So wait did you cycle the tank or just add the salt to the water then let it wait a day and add the fish?
 
Yeah then the tank didn't even cycle yet... so first before you add anything you need the water to cycle essentially get bacteria in the tank. Fish help this cycle and start it but the problem with that is that they might die. You will have to go through the cycle with the fish I guess unless you know someone who can hold the fish for you. I know some people have been successful with keeping fish alive during the cycling process and others haven't.
 
If you are in the oxford area I would suggest that you contact "Sanford Carson who is a club member and is in the Oxford area. He can most likely hlep you out and sell you some RO water and can most likely help you along.

It would be a god idea if you could "loan" out those fish to someone untill your tank has time to cycle a little. Do not feel too bad as "many people" make the same mistake that you did at first. I have sent you a PM.
 
ok so how long do you think i should wait for the tank to cycle? Should i get some live rock or live sand or something to try to speed it up? i put some of this stress coat zyme chemical in the tank that has live bacteria in it.

i read that adding too many fish (which clearly has been done here) will lower the ph. Yeah i dont know anyone who has a saltwater aquarium in oxford so i guess my fish will just have to ride this one out.
 
well the worst is that i knew what i was doing was wrong (i have been researching sw a lot) but i just did what i thought would give the fish the best chance at surviving, they were not going to make it long in a bucket. Thanks for the contact ill try to find him on here.
 
Um... It can take a while for my one tank it only took about 3 weeks to cycle but another tank it took about 6 weeks... either way it goes the only way you can tell when the cycling process is done is by doing tests on the water you will see an ammonia spike and a rise in your nitrate and nitrite levels. Live rock always is good but sounds like the process has already started. Probably the only thing you can leave in there is the crab he should be fine the fish though I would try to find a home for them
 
Cycle times will vary depending on what you have in the tank. Right now your best bet is to check your perameters and keep doing water changes, but you will need more saltwater mix.

I suggest that you also go to this forum "new to the hobby"

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=104

and read the stickies posted at the top of the forum. This will be a great source of information for you and can answer a lot of the questions that you are having.

Hang in there, and spend some time on that forun reading the threads.
 
Greetings Ya' Noob! (Std. Greeting, take no offense.)

WOW! I don't even know where to begin. So many opportunities for improvement.... the good new is: You're here!

Well, a couple things come to mind.

First, welcome to the fun, fantastic and beautiful world of Reef-keeping. As your profile indicates, you're a student, so prepare to learn. A lot"¦.and fast it sounds like!

Two words however, (comma) that do not go together in this hobby are (Reef & Fast). Even if you're only keeping a FOWLR tank.

Go to the Library, or better yet: Buy a Book. There are plenty, buy several. Some of the essentials are:

*The New Marine Aquarium "“ (Michael S. Paletta)
*Reef Secrets "“ (Nilsen & Fossa)
*The Nano Reef Handbook (CR Brightwell) - don't worry if you're not keeping a nano tank; the precepts are solid and relevant.

Next, go take your water to a REEF pet store and don't buy any more livestock until you understand your situation. RO/DI water can't (?!), "œshouldn't" be purchased from a non-Reef store (due to all the other support you'll get from the pros), but there are folks here on RC that might be selling an older unit. New, they run $100-200., but you can get by with buying water from a local store / hobbyist.

There's a really good local guy in Oxford that could be a huge resource for you in Oxford MS.

(Sanford!? Are you out there son???) "œscarson"????!!!

Lastly, for free information, go to RC's Newbie corner: http://reefcentral.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=104

Rest assured though. Fish CAN BE resilient. Corals on the other hand? That's another story and one you'll not want to rush, until you really understand what you're in for, chemically, procedurally, and financially!
 
Got to check the forum more often, I have been installing two 180 gallon tanks in a new restaurant in town (thanks for the recommendation Richard). I am sending you a PM Zimmerman with some contact info. You are welcome to give me a call or come out to the house and see if I can get you straight.
 
What a guy!

So, you're doing side-work now?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15747049#post15747049 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by scarson61
I have been installing two 180 gallon tanks in a new restaurant in town (thanks for the recommendation Richard).
Click to expand...
 
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