Problems with my reef, oh so many problems..

[TheDeepSandBed]

i've been in this hobby for over 10 years and keep reading these stories. This hobby is hard not easy, to have a great sps tank takes experience. Of course his nutrients are high and his phos and nitrate can't be 0. First thing. Stop killing coral, stop dosing what you don't under stand. Dose calcium, alk and mag. And if you want to dose something. Get some coral snow. If all we had to do is buy some coral and put it in the tank, then where is the challenge. I'm a lps guru, not sps maybe some but easy stuff. Please think about it. Sorry if i seem a bit off but really come on.

+1

 

[CStrickland]

I think your expectation for your tank might be a little unrealistic

Redhead wrasse, Leopard wrasse, Yellow-Flanked fairy wrasse, some other rather small and red-ish wrasse, Blenny Midas, Blenny bi-color, 5 med-big clownfish (I think percula, but maybe ocellaris), Azure demselfish, Blue reef chromis, Pseudochromis fridmani, Marine beta
2 Fire shrimps, Lysmata shrimp, 3 hermit crabs, 3 conches, 3-4 Turbo snails, Nassarius snail

That's a whole lot of poop. That poop fertilizes algae, and LPS seems better able to tolerate the high nutrients than SPS. So...

SPS keep dying
LPS (acan and symph) look good
Lot's and lot's of disgusting algae

i think you got in over your head. It can be really overwhelming at first and everybody makes mistakes. Trying to find the sweet spot where a tank can be overstocked like this and still kept at the right balance for the coral you bought is just to much at first IMO. Besides it not working out for you, it isn't nice for the fish. They won't stay small for long and some of those guys are aggressive. Just like when someone puts too many dogs in a small yard, they'll fight. It's great that you are willing to find better homes for them, if someone told you this stocking list would work, you shouldn't listen to them anymore.

I think the best way to jump into the hobby is with a lightly stocked tank, and some mushrooms and softies. There's a lot more cushion there for your mistakes. Once everything settles in all happy, add some LPS. I think an easy tank that's thriving is a lot more enjoyable than trying to get SPS and sandbeds and chaeto to play nice (cheaper too, you won't need to cover up issues with chemicals and dosing). If you search a bit you can find some really pretty examples of these sorts of setups. Good luck!

 

[leeransetton]

if your using a filter sock, make sure you change it out with a clean one every 2 or 3 days, otherwise its worse than not having one. It just holds the crap in the tank instead of removing it, causing high phosphates

cuc = clean up crew

I change it once a week. I will change it now 2-3 times a week. Got it!
What should I add to my cuc?
I wanna add toxido urchin, but lately I didn't find any at the LFS.

Depends on the size, but given your existing stock, to give you a sense, something like the leopard wrasse, fairy wrasse, two clowns, the fridimani and maybe a small goby.

Oh my god, that is so little... I will surely take out some of the fish, but I'm not sure I can get to 6 fish..

I think your expectation for your tank might be a little unrealistic

That's a whole lot of poop. That poop fertilizes algae, and LPS seems better able to tolerate the high nutrients than SPS. So...

i think you got in over your head. It can be really overwhelming at first and everybody makes mistakes. Trying to find the sweet spot where a tank can be overstocked like this and still kept at the right balance for the coral you bought is just to much at first IMO. Besides it not working out for you, it isn't nice for the fish. They won't stay small for long and some of those guys are aggressive. Just like when someone puts too many dogs in a small yard, they'll fight. It's great that you are willing to find better homes for them, if someone told you this stocking list would work, you shouldn't listen to them anymore.

I think the best way to jump into the hobby is with a lightly stocked tank, and some mushrooms and softies. There's a lot more cushion there for your mistakes. Once everything settles in all happy, add some LPS. I think an easy tank that's thriving is a lot more enjoyable than trying to get SPS and sandbeds and chaeto to play nice (cheaper too, you won't need to cover up issues with chemicals and dosing). If you search a bit you can find some really pretty examples of these sorts of setups. Good luck!

Thanks for taking the time to write this all. I couldn't agree more about the corals (keep killing sps is quite frustrating).

 

[nmotz]

Oh my god, that is so little... I will surely take out some of the fish, but I'm not sure I can get to 6 fish..

It seems like you have big ideas for your tank, which isn't a bad thing, but the size of those ideas needs to be commensurate with the size of the tank that you are running. If you want 18 fish, ok, but you need to be willing to run a tank that can accommodate 18 fish. Those who try to push the envelope and overstock their tanks often suffer tremendously from the same kinds of problems that you are having. Many just end up quitting the hobby altogether.

Anyways, I just wanted to encourage you because I know you're probably frustrated, but I agree with others that your ideas got ahead of your learning curve. If there is any consolation for you, I don't know too many brand new hobbyists that would be able to successfully keep the amount/types of fish/coral that you have in that tank! I know I couldn't have done it. Best of luck with your progress in this hobby. Study, study, and study some more!

 

[leeransetton]

It seems like you have big ideas for your tank, which isn't a bad thing, but the size of those ideas needs to be commensurate with the size of the tank that you are running. If you want 18 fish, ok, but you need to be willing to run a tank that can accommodate 18 fish. Those who try to push the envelope and overstock their tanks often suffer tremendously from the same kinds of problems that you are having. Many just end up quitting the hobby altogether.

Anyways, I just wanted to encourage you because I know you're probably frustrated, but I agree with others that your ideas got ahead of your learning curve. If there is any consolation for you, I don't know too many brand new hobbyists that would be able to successfully keep the amount/types of fish/coral that you have in that tank! I know I couldn't have done it. Best of luck with your progress in this hobby. Study, study, and study some more!

Thank you very much!
As for studying - I read:

• Marine Chemistry by Chris (I think) Brightwell
• Algae by Julian Sprung
• Giant Clams by Daniel Knop
• lightly read Reef Aquarium Fishes by Scott W. Michael.

On my waiting list there wait:

• Aquarium Corals by Eric H. Borneman
• Sex, Drugs and Sea Slime by Ellen Prager

So I really try to learn as much as I can

Guys - Thank you very much for your tips and support! You helped me a lot!

What I've learned:

• Less Fish
• Clean rocks and sump
• Change filter bag 2-3 times a week
• Not buying SPS until my red monti looks good

Any other tips will be great!

I will update as soon as I have something new.
Again - THANKS! :beer:

 

[nemodan]

Most will say that's too many, especially with three tangs. The tang police will be after you hardcore for having 3 of them in a 75.

Sorry for the,way I wrote it !

I was referring to the 3 fish. I only have the yellow tang. No other tang.

 

[jminick2]

Sorry for the,way I wrote it !

I was referring to the 3 fish. I only have the yellow tang. No other tang.

I'd say you are at your limit.

 

[PhaneSoul]

for what its worth, i have 7 fish in my 55g, clean the sand once a week, change filter sock everyday and feed heavily. i don't have an algae problem and nitrates stay put at 20ppm.

 

[Stackemdeep]

Oh my god, that is so little... I will surely take out some of the fish, but I'm not sure I can get to 6 fish..

Fish grow. I have 1" per 6 gallons in a 120 because they are growing.
My strongest recommendation to you would be to get with one reefer who has a similar tank which is thriving and has demonstrated solid experience and knowledge. Then follow his/her suggestions and learn more. Posting the same post on several forums & web sites, getting a ton of different opinions and then choosing the ones you may like and the ones you may not like will yield unsatisfactory results. This is same path that has brought you to your current situation. Good Luck.

 

[BigCountry74]

I have 1 large wrasse in a 40g and it poops a lot. I cannot imagine having 4 (even with the 25 extra gallons). I would not be able to keep up without HEAVY filtration. I would keep 1 wrasse and keep 2 of the clownfish, keep the largest one that one is the dominant and then keep the smallest one, perhaps they will mate. 5 medium clowns is a lot of poop as well. That's my .02 at least.

 

[leeransetton]

Fish grow. I have 1" per 6 gallons in a 120 because they are growing.
My strongest recommendation to you would be to get with one reefer who has a similar tank which is thriving and has demonstrated solid experience and knowledge. Then follow his/her suggestions and learn more. Posting the same post on several forums & web sites, getting a ton of different opinions and then choosing the ones you may like and the ones you may not like will yield unsatisfactory results. This is same path that has brought you to your current situation. Good Luck.

Thing is, a great reefer that lives right next to me says I'm not overstocked and that I can host even more fish. That guy has one of the most beautiful mixed reef I've seen..
I posted the same question on another forum, and got quite the same answers from everyone (see my conclusion in the previous page)..
Thanks

I have 1 large wrasse in a 40g and it poops a lot. I cannot imagine having 4 (even with the 25 extra gallons). I would not be able to keep up without HEAVY filtration. I would keep 1 wrasse and keep 2 of the clownfish, keep the largest one that one is the dominant and then keep the smallest one, perhaps they will mate. 5 medium clowns is a lot of poop as well. That's my .02 at least.

Ok, got it
I will give away some of my fish

 

[addictedreefer]

Thing is, a great reefer that lives right next to me says I'm not overstocked and that I can host even more fish. That guy has one of the most beautiful mixed reef I've seen..
I posted the same question on another forum, and got quite the same answers from everyone (see my conclusion in the previous page)..
Thanks



Ok, got it
I will give away some of my fish

Don't know what your buddy is smoking.

 

[Stackemdeep]

Ok, got it
I will give away some of my fish

That is a beginning. The tip of the iceberg so to speak. Seriously consider someone else to work with other than the neighbor. It will take months of hard work to get your tank in shape, but you can do it if you are persistent. Best of luck to you :thumbsup:

 

[Kalen]

I would start to listen to some people here who are trying to give you advice. Otherwise your tank will crash and you could lose everything.

 

[billdogg]

I think you've gotten some great advice. One thing I noticed that nobody has commented on - why do you run carbon only 3 hours a day? I would suggest either 24/7/365 or not at all. Leaving it sit for 21 hours a day just creates stagnant water that is then being circulated in your tank.

+1000 on don't add if you don't test!

For reference - my 120 has minimal rockwork, so lots of swimming room (lots of "spare" rock in the sump), and has only 9 fish - the largest being a 3" Tomini Tang, and at least IMO, it's pretty full

 

[leeransetton]

I think you've gotten some great advice. One thing I noticed that nobody has commented on - why do you run carbon only 3 hours a day? I would suggest either 24/7/365 or not at all. Leaving it sit for 21 hours a day just creates stagnant water that is then being circulated in your tank.

+1000 on don't add if you don't test!

For reference - my 120 has minimal rockwork, so lots of swimming room (lots of "spare" rock in the sump), and has only 9 fish - the largest being a 3" Tomini Tang, and at least IMO, it's pretty full

I read that carbon can absorb some of the good stuff.. I would be happy to run it 24/7.

I would start to listen to some people here who are trying to give you advice. Otherwise your tank will crash and you could lose everything.

Yeah.. That's what I'm doing...

That is a beginning. The tip of the iceberg so to speak. Seriously consider someone else to work with other than the neighbor. It will take months of hard work to get your tank in shape, but you can do it if you are persistent. Best of luck to you :thumbsup:

Thanks, pal!



Ok, so I just changed water with the great advise of Reefwithareefer.
I cleaned all my rocks with airline tube and then cleaned all my sump, shook the media bags I got in a bucket full of water from my aquarium and the results are quite disgusting!

What came out of the rocks:

What came out of the sump:

And this is the most recent full pic of my tank:

Sorry for the blur.. I saw the quality after the lights went off..
I'll post a better pic tomorrow.

Thanks for the great advises!

 

[addictedreefer]

Where are all the fish? I only count 7.

 

[leeransetton]

Actually there are 10 in the pic. You missed the Betta behind the blue-purple mili and the blenny bi-color next to the top green acro. and the chromis next to the right wave pump.
The Fridmani has it's place in the back, and I don't know where the rest of the fish are, but trust me they are there.

Your comment is exactly the reason I didn't think I'm overstocked in the first place..

 

[BigCountry74]

yeah I was expecting to see some monster wrasse hehe

 

[leeransetton]

yeah I was expecting to see some monster wrasse hehe

Nope.. No monster fish at all..
After seeing this pic, am I really overstocked? (I'm not being sarcastic).


Nothing about all the disgusting nasty crap I cleaned out of my tank? :hmm2:
I was quite excited haha