KMS.Kyle
New member
Hello,
I read the massive post that was put up about acclimation of fish/corals and using dips but I was curious...
I recently (last week) purchased my first 55 gallon saltwater tank as a transfer from a couple of whom had theirs for 8 months.
It came with 6 fish which they've had for quite a while now.
When I bought the tank from them I had really little knowledge of how to move it to my place but I did my best based on my limited (2 month knowledge) of freshwater and a bit of googling.
I brought 50% of their water, 50% of their sand - 150+ lbs of live rock and a couple corals (Hammer, Frog, a zoa and a couple others I don't know the name of).
When I setup the tank I had the fish in their buckets for at least 1-2 hours (using a cup to add oxygen into their buckets every 15 minutes) (Note: because the tank wasn't setup and I needed salt because they didn't give me enough / needed to run to the store to get it)
I then went at my first attempt using salt water and the SG scale.. Did my best to get it within the guide lines of the scale (at the time - 0.022-3) and at that point started to fear for my Melanurus Fairy Wrasse as it started to look really stressed and laying a bit onto its side.. I also had a PJ Cardinal, 2 youngish clowns, Golden sleeper goby and a firefin goby in buckets near by.. It had been 2 hours and at this point I really just started throwing the rock into the tank, filling it up and praying it was the right temperature and then turning on the pump (Couldn't see ANYTHING inside).
I then made the decision to put the fish right in.. I was really worried at this point that they had been there for so long..
I put them in and instantly the fairy wrasse hit the bottom... Didn't move for 10 seconds and then disappeared into the dust/sand and also lost sight of everything else...
I came back in about 5 hours and the tank was clear - the temperature was between 77-80 and all the fish/coral looked happy as ever.. And to this day (a week now) they all look incredibly healthy, happy and energetic and my tank /corals are thriving (Also tested Nitrate, Nitrite, Amonia and PH - all great and stable so far)
Did I luck out here?!!?!? After reading the whole page about acclimation - I feel like this was a pure fluke and based on how incredibly strict some peoples guidelines were - I'm surprised my entire tank didn't die.
I'm going to be getting my first addition to the tank soon and after reading that acclimation post - I'm obviously going to do things differently - I just wanted to get an opinion here and also some advice on how I would match the SG of the new fish's bag if I don't have a QT?
Thanks for reading my adventure.
My tank has since become my pride and joy and I've quite easily pumped a small fortune into making it a special place for my little friends and ecosystem.
I read the massive post that was put up about acclimation of fish/corals and using dips but I was curious...
I recently (last week) purchased my first 55 gallon saltwater tank as a transfer from a couple of whom had theirs for 8 months.
It came with 6 fish which they've had for quite a while now.
When I bought the tank from them I had really little knowledge of how to move it to my place but I did my best based on my limited (2 month knowledge) of freshwater and a bit of googling.
I brought 50% of their water, 50% of their sand - 150+ lbs of live rock and a couple corals (Hammer, Frog, a zoa and a couple others I don't know the name of).
When I setup the tank I had the fish in their buckets for at least 1-2 hours (using a cup to add oxygen into their buckets every 15 minutes) (Note: because the tank wasn't setup and I needed salt because they didn't give me enough / needed to run to the store to get it)
I then went at my first attempt using salt water and the SG scale.. Did my best to get it within the guide lines of the scale (at the time - 0.022-3) and at that point started to fear for my Melanurus Fairy Wrasse as it started to look really stressed and laying a bit onto its side.. I also had a PJ Cardinal, 2 youngish clowns, Golden sleeper goby and a firefin goby in buckets near by.. It had been 2 hours and at this point I really just started throwing the rock into the tank, filling it up and praying it was the right temperature and then turning on the pump (Couldn't see ANYTHING inside).
I then made the decision to put the fish right in.. I was really worried at this point that they had been there for so long..
I put them in and instantly the fairy wrasse hit the bottom... Didn't move for 10 seconds and then disappeared into the dust/sand and also lost sight of everything else...
I came back in about 5 hours and the tank was clear - the temperature was between 77-80 and all the fish/coral looked happy as ever.. And to this day (a week now) they all look incredibly healthy, happy and energetic and my tank /corals are thriving (Also tested Nitrate, Nitrite, Amonia and PH - all great and stable so far)
Did I luck out here?!!?!? After reading the whole page about acclimation - I feel like this was a pure fluke and based on how incredibly strict some peoples guidelines were - I'm surprised my entire tank didn't die.
I'm going to be getting my first addition to the tank soon and after reading that acclimation post - I'm obviously going to do things differently - I just wanted to get an opinion here and also some advice on how I would match the SG of the new fish's bag if I don't have a QT?
Thanks for reading my adventure. My tank has since become my pride and joy and I've quite easily pumped a small fortune into making it a special place for my little friends and ecosystem.
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