Sick ricordea..looking for advice

[vanwassup]

Water quality is:

10 gallon water changes every week...
Temp 80.6
pH 8.2
Salinity 1.025
Ammonia .25
Nitrite .025
Nitrate 5.0 (it is always this high right before my water change which is scheduled for tonight)
Alkalinity 9.2
Calcium 450

? already asked on another forum, so I thought I 'd say upfront - Yes, I cycled my tank.

There are no powerheads pointed directly at him....but there is good water flow around him.

I got the ricordea a month ago and it was a beautiful purple color. It started turning a fluorescent green about a week after I got it. It seemed to do really well until I started adding alkalinity booster to the tank. I'm not sure if the addition was the culprit or not, it was just the timing that makes me think there might be something to it. Everything else in the tank is doing fantastic. Nobody is sick, all are thriving and reproducing wonderfully.

My question is - can he be recovered and is there anything I can do to help him along? I feel so badly for him because he just looks miserable.

Pic of the sick ric:

Pic of the placement of the sick ric:

Thanks,
Vanessa

_____________

 

[scapes]

1st pic isn't working

 

[vanwassup]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11978524#post11978524 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by scapes
1st pic isn't working

Not sure why...

Hopefully that one works.

 

[vanwassup]

Update

Update

I did a 10 gallon water change tonight...and had a few thoughts. I recently changed the carbon in my filter. I didn't do a partial replacement as you are supposed to. I just took out the old, put in the new. Inexperience, I guess. Could this be the problem with the ricordea?

Thanks in advance.

Vanessa

 

[Racing1]

What kind of lighting do you have? If it is not getting enough light it will slowly die... Also, what size tank is it. Looks kinda small for a hippo tang which will get huge quick....

 

[Amadeusb12]

I'd lower the tank temp. Looks like a purple yuma, deep water species. 80+ degrees is pretty warm. JMO

Beth

 

[nUgZ]

If you're still showing ammonia and nitrite then your tank is NOT cycled.

 

[vanwassup]

So, you are saying that because my ammonia is .25 (not 25, but 1/4 of 1 ppm) and my nitrites are .025 (again not 25, but twenty-five hundredths), I have not cycled? They DID hit zero and then rose back up because I have fish and I feed them (probably too much). But, anyway, wasn't aware that my tank hadn't cycled yet it my numbers weren't zero. My tank is three months old...

 

[vanwassup]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12017442#post12017442 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Amadeusb12
I'd lower the tank temp. Looks like a purple yuma, deep water species. 80+ degrees is pretty warm. JMO

Beth

This is the tank:

Thanks, Beth. I did lower the temp. You are right, purple yuma. It didn't make it. The guy at the fish store told me not to acclimate and the more I think about it, the more I think that was what did the little fella in.

Racing1 - I have a RedSeaMax running stock lighting which is:
2- 10,000K: 55W, 2-Actinic: 55W and LED moonlights
The yuma was up at the top of the tank.

nUgZ - I responded in another post.

Thanks

 

[nUgZ]

That's exactly what I'm saying. If your ammonia was 25 you wouldn't have one thing left living in there. When a tank is fully cycled it means that there is enough beneficial bacteria to convert the ammonia and nitrite. If you have traces of either then the cycle isn't finished. If your numbers were at zero, but aren't anymore it means that you stocked the tank WAY too quickly. The only time you would see ammonia in a cycled tank is if a fish was sitting in there rotting, and even then a tank with a healthy biological filter can absorb that. From the looks of the tank I would definitely say you stocked too quickly. Also I hope you have plans for a larger tank or someone you can give that tang to once he grows.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12025470#post12025470 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by vanwassup
So, you are saying that because my ammonia is .25 (not 25, but 1/4 of 1 ppm) and my nitrites are .025 (again not 25, but twenty-five hundredths), I have not cycled? They DID hit zero and then rose back up because I have fish and I feed them (probably too much). But, anyway, wasn't aware that my tank hadn't cycled yet it my numbers weren't zero. My tank is three months old...

 

[vanwassup]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12027654#post12027654 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nUgZ
That's exactly what I'm saying. If your ammonia was 25 you wouldn't have one thing left living in there. When a tank is fully cycled it means that there is enough beneficial bacteria to convert the ammonia and nitrite. If you have traces of either then the cycle isn't finished. If your numbers were at zero, but aren't anymore it means that you stocked the tank WAY too quickly. The only time you would see ammonia in a cycled tank is if a fish was sitting in there rotting, and even then a tank with a healthy biological filter can absorb that. From the looks of the tank I would definitely say you stocked too quickly. Also I hope you have plans for a larger tank or someone you can give that tang to once he grows.

I will just leave it at that. I would be willing to bet there are people -including me - who disagree, but enough said.

 

[nUgZ]

It's one of the most basic principles in reefkeeping...there's nothing to argue.

 

[vanwassup]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12030182#post12030182 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by nUgZ
It's one of the most basic principles in reefkeeping...there's nothing to argue.

My point is that people come to forums such as these for help and support in their hobby. Everybody makes mistakes and EVERYBODY starts from the same point in learning. Some of us here have more experience than others. I am here as a beginner - experience with FOWLR - with very little experience with reef tanks. I have read several books and spent hours on the internet to understand the processes of the reef tank. I am a fast learner and can pick things up. I know you are supposed to go slow...I was told inaccurate things from my LFS and now I'm paying for it.....

I sensed a very strong undertone of condescension and what I came here for was honest help. If you don't like the way I've done things up until this point, that is fine. I would even AGREE I've gone way too quickly. But, my issue is with your approach.

 

[nUgZ]

I'm sorry if you sensed condescension..that wasn't my intent. It's just that in your first post you stated that the tank is cycled when in fact it isn't. Sometimes I come across the wrong way escpecially on these forums where it's difficult to convey emotion. Too many people get TERRIBLE information from their LFS's just because they themselves are ill informed or just trying to make a sale. Again I appologize. If I were you I wouldn't add ANYTHING to the tank for at least a couple of weeks until you ammonia and nitrite are back at zero. Ideally after you have cycled you should add a clean up crew and wait a week or two. Then maybe add one fish and wait a couple more weeks. Continue to add things very slowly and you shouldn't run into trouble. Nothing good happens quickly in this hobby. Since you already have a good bit of stuff in there you should just let it level out and enjoy what you have for a while. Good luck.