tank problems

[55reef1146]

From my experience, increasing and arranging flow will help you get rid of cyano. A reactor will not help at all if your skimmer is not functioning properly. Do weekly water changes. Do not dose your tank with medicine, do it naturally, peppermints get rid of aptasia. I had a bunch, bought 2 peppermints and the aptasia was gone within 2 days.

Not that this is the main problem but Pepermint Shrimp will only eat the small ones. I have already tried this and the pepermints only ate a few. Thanks for the suggestion, but I am not worried about the Aptaisia right now. The other advice is helpful though.

 

[Fishfish0001]

I think you just need to slow down and do one thing at a time. Try to get rid of the algae first before you try adding everything else to the tank. Once that is gone/ going away work on the skimmer and try to fix it. Give it 2-3 days to even itself out and get working correctly. I set my foam below the cup and it slowly bubbles over when it needs to, the bubbles shouldn't be right at the edge of the cup, as far as I've been told.

 

[LittlePuff]

What kind of wrasse do you have? Your salinity is high because you are topping off with saltwater. Needs to be plain R/O or distilled water.

 

[reefgeezer]

Please accept the following as constructive criticism. I've been tagging along in this thread and think maybe it should have been posted in the Newbie forum. The lack of definitive information about the problems has caused lots of advice to be given without really knowing what's going on. I also suspect that implementing some of the suggestions may be beyond your capability. IMO, you need to educate yourself a little so you can communicate effectively with the forum members and become capable of critically assessing their advise and acting on it. I recommend the articles by Randy Holmes in the RC Archives and the series by Julian Sprung. Then and only then, I would suggest you start over.

FWIW, until you become capable of recognizing the BS, retailers will continue to take advantage or you.

 

[con999]

You guys sure all telling him to buy a lot of stuff he really doesn't need entirely.

His lights are fine, they have nothing to do with his algae problems.

Do at least one water change per week of 15-20% and manually remove all the algae that you can.

Set your skimmer to skim as dry as possible. It will take at least 2 days for it to form a good foam head and to skim efficiently. Don't mess with it for at least those 2-3 days.

The hippo tang needs a much bigger tank. Some would say 125g other's will say more. Also the foxface will also get too big for that tank also. They need at least a 4'x18" tank(75g).

Do a lights out for 3 days as suggested after doing a water change, and removing all the algae manually. This will help to kill off the cyano and algae problems you are having.

Ask the LFS you go to, to get your water from what their TDS (total dissolved solvent) is of their RO/DI water, and if possible ask to see the meter. I had a LFS tell me once it was zero and I asked to see the TDS meter reading and they got all huffy. I told them if they wanted me to continue buying their water I'd have to see the meter. When they asked why I told them I was having a severe algae problem, which I was. In my case they said to bring in a water sample to test to see if I had nitrates or phosphates in my tank before they'd let me see the TDS meter. I thought that's only fair, but I already knew I had 0 of both because I test myself. Brought it back to prove to them I didn't have any NO3 or PO4 in my tank and they reluctantly told me that the RO membrane hadn't been changed in a year and it was reading over 20 TDS. Needless to say I didn't come back to that store and went home and broke down and bought a RO/DI unit.

You can't believe more than half the stuff a LFS tells you, my case in point and yours with your Hippo Tang, and Foxface.

If you do all the things above I mentioned and are still having problems then I'd recommend you buying a dual reactor to fill with GFO and carbon.

Your lights are fine right now. In fact watts per gallon don't really matter it's the PAR output of your bulbs that matters, but since you have 5x54 right now, that should enable you to keep all kinds of LPS and some low light SPS if placed near the top of the tank. You said you had 2 blues, one white, and one purple. Any idea on what kind they are? There is a great thread by Grim Reaper in the Lighting and equipment forum that gives the specific PAR output of almost all major bulb companies, or at least the ones that are worth purchasing.

Do all the things I mentioned and that should alleviate your problems that you are having.

im not suggesting to buy a lot of stuff. we are trying to fix the stuff that needs to be fixed. like the skimmer i bet the air intake is getting cloged or somthing.:fun4:

 

[55reef1146]

Please accept the following as constructive criticism. I've been tagging along in this thread and think maybe it should have been posted in the Newbie forum. The lack of definitive information about the problems has caused lots of advice to be given without really knowing what's going on. I also suspect that implementing some of the suggestions may be beyond your capability. IMO, you need to educate yourself a little so you can communicate effectively with the forum members and become capable of critically assessing their advise and acting on it. I recommend the articles by Randy Holmes in the RC Archives and the series by Julian Sprung. Then and only then, I would suggest you start over.

FWIW, until you become capable of recognizing the BS, retailers will continue to take advantage or you.

I know you say that this is just constructive criticism, but I dont appreciate you telling me I basicly dont know anything and that the solutions and advice that other members have posted are beyond my capability.

 

[55reef1146]

What kind of wrasse do you have? Your salinity is high because you are topping off with saltwater. Needs to be plain R/O or distilled water.

I am using RO/DI Freshwater for top off.

 

[con999]

ok so how you done any of the updates we have mentiond to fix ur tank look at ur PM's
i am sending you a few links

 

[Pallobi]

ok i just read this whole thread. hit post has some high's and some low's
first the high's. that is a great way to feed frozon the only other way not to add everything that frozon food comes with. ok now the lows "Bio load seems good I wouldn't add many if any more fish." no thats wrong. tanks eat are pigs they eat a ton. and thats a hippo tank that thing needs an 8 foot tank. even small. that NEEDS to be removed today.
you guys have given some good and some bad advise. 1 cube is way too much. you shold go though 2 cubs mabey 3 becuse of the tang a week. feed every other 2 days until the tnag is gone then go to 4 or 5 days between feddings untill everything stableizes. also dont add any chemicals to the tank ever. even chemi-clean. thats what one of you were talking about to remove the cyno(red slime) the are just a few things to change their are move but do that to start. sorry guys i dont mean to undertow you guys but with only a few post somethings could be qustioned

so your telling him to feed his tang only 2 to 3 cubes per week? and then not to feed but 2 times a week without the tang? this is nonsense...with the tang, he needs to eat PLENTY everyday... do you only eat twice a week? horrible advice coming from someone questioning others advice... i mean seriously? my fish get fed 4 to 5 times a day without any issues whatsoever..
someone also said that flakes are bad for increasing nutrients... that i dont agree with either... frozen and meaty foods contribute far more to phos and trates... good flakes are very good foods, jus usually not enough to sustain most species...

 

[Pallobi]

why did the fish store tell me it was ok?

becuz thats what they do to people who dont know more than they do... not your fault, we all, well most, make that mistake in the beginning

 

[Pallobi]

also, a 4 bulb t5 light at 48" is absolutley jus fine for a 55 gallon, dont let anyone tell you different... sorry but i am posting as i read the the entire thread...

 

[Pallobi]

and blues dont do much for light its more of a looks thing. i dont know they could work i have never used them so i cant talk too much like i know all about them. now that im loking them up they look ok for some corals but thats not ur concern first we need to solve the cuno problem

actinics are absolutely important to coral growth... they need all spectrums of light for proper growth...

 

[Pallobi]

I'd say that is fine for most soft corals but you won't really be able to keep most LPS ( depending on the species you might get away with an LPS or two close to the top, not recommended though) and definitely no SPS.

I personally have an outdated 4- 65w PC (power compact) system and my mushrooms, green star polyps, leathers and zoanthids are healthy and multiplying very nicely.

i have an sps grow tank under t5's only, all corals are kept 18 to 24" below the light... absolutely no problems growing sps whatsoever...

 

[Pallobi]

i would just buy a new on. that skimmer isent a very good one i think. yes i would do a lights out for 3 days this has to be no light at all even the lights in the room you could cover the tank with blankets but make sure the heater is off. no light at all can hit the tank or it will defeat the purpose.
you will need atleast 1650 GHP of flow for a 30x turnover rate. and thats a good rate for softcoarls too. also to get rid of the cyno.

why would you turn of the heater? if working properly, any heater jus shuts off and does not go on once the desired temp is reached... turn off the heater as we are coming into winter months? more bad advice....

 

[Pallobi]

your answers to your problems dont involve getting rid of this and buying this and better lights... anyone who has ever done any troubleshooting on their own established system knows that jus changing everything all at once cuz one or tow or three people on the internet told you to is the wrong answer...

i will agree, as i had one heck of blue tang thread a month or so back, that your blue tang will need a new home, EVENTUALLY, not right this minute...

you should read more about your skimmer, and try to learn how to use it before you go and buy a new one... no sense in buying another when you dont know how they work or how to work the one you have now... if it keeps over filling, then perhaps the gate valve or something similiar to, is not open enough and the water needs to go somewhere... learn first, before you jus buy another cuz someone says so...

as far as a refuge, well thats great, but you DO NOT NEED a light or any macro for that matter... i use a 5" deep sand bed... no nitrates, ever, never have had any at all... and you dont have to worry bout the marco going sexual and polluting your tank, though there are some macros that harm your tank like that from what i understand... DSB, will do the trick as long as your not too heavily stocked...

youtube can be a big help... LA fish guys keep it simple and if you dont know too much, they can teach you a TON... very helpful people and incredible easy to understand and watch videos... and a TON of them...

and imo, and some will disagree, but the only time you need RODI water instead of RO, is if you keep delicate sps corals... i have a few friends that use tapwater, and their tanks are incredible, though i am not gonna telll you to do that myself...

as far as flow, you should have more than what you have now, not gonna tell you that you NEED 40 times more, but the more you have, as long as your corals arent closing cuz its too much, the more it will help.... think of the ocean and the mass amounts of flow it has...

please do not listen to some and jus start buying this and that jus cuz one or two people say to, from their advice, i dont feel they have the experience they are coming across as to having...

change things slowly, and HAVE PATIENCE... regular water changes, get your skimmer working at least somewhat (as these are very important in water quality), maybe some carbon and phos media and a bit more flow is all i would recommend at this time, but thats jus me...

and again, if your tang is only a few inches, maybe even 5, he is doin jus fine... for now... but PLEASE feed him more than once a day even, they are huge eaters

 

[reefgeezer]

I know you say that this is just constructive criticism, but I dont appreciate you telling me I basicly dont know anything and that the solutions and advice that other members have posted are beyond my capability.

My apologies. Tact is not my strong point. It's just that there is so much wrong. I believe it would be better to start over than try to fix it. I also believe that you should be able to properly adjust a skimmer, maintain salinity levels, understand the control of nutrient levels, and etc before you spend a bunch of money based on advice from anyone. It appears that I am alone in this belief, but I still urge you to increase you knowledge base.

 

[Pallobi]

My apologies. Tact is not my strong point. It's just that there is so much wrong. I believe it would be better to start over than try to fix it. I also believe that you should be able to properly adjust a skimmer, maintain salinity levels, understand the control of nutrient levels, and etc before you spend a bunch of money based on advice from anyone. It appears that I am alone in this belief, but I still urge you to increase you knowledge base.

your not completely alone, i dont feel that he should be running out spending money on this and that either... definately feel like there is a real lack of knowledge, and i kind of feel sorry for him that the first 3 to 4 pages were full of misleading advice and alot of unexperienced opinions... i am not saying anything against the OP that is ill mannered and i dont feel that you were either... i would like to help him though

 

[quickwiz00]

...as far as a refuge, well thats great, but you DO NOT NEED a light or any macro for that matter... i use a 5" deep sand bed... no nitrates, ever, never have had any at all... and you dont have to worry bout the marco going sexual and polluting your tank, though there are some macros that harm your tank like that from what i understand... DSB, will do the trick as long as your not too heavily stocked...

All good advice, but please be aware that some macro algae like caulerpa will eventually go sexual...Ive only had this happen to me 2 times in 11 years and I've noticed that regularly trimming excessive growth will prevent the caulerpa from going sexual.

If you do decide to get macro algae just get some chaeto, that way you don't have to worry about it going sexual or getting into the main display tank and proliferating like crazy.

Also, since you are having an algae problem, I really don't think you should be feeding the fish (tang included) multiple times a day. For now, I would cut back to no more than 3x per week, at least until you get a handle on all the information and be able to implement what you think is best.

This must be very overwhelming for you but be patient and look for common themes among all the answers; aside from some of the unintentional misinformation I think you have a good amount of facts that should really help you in the process of getting your tank well on its way.

And if you see or read something you are confused about or feel mislead in any way, just continue to read; not just the forums but utilize other online resources like the ones mentioned in this thread and many more.

Check out http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm for many hours of educational and beneficial reading.

 

[con999]

so your telling him to feed his tang only 2 to 3 cubes per week? and then not to feed but 2 times a week without the tang? this is nonsense...with the tang, he needs to eat PLENTY everyday... do you only eat twice a week? horrible advice coming from someone questioning others advice... i mean seriously? my fish get fed 4 to 5 times a day without any issues whatsoever..
someone also said that flakes are bad for increasing nutrients... that i dont agree with either... frozen and meaty foods contribute far more to phos and trates... good flakes are very good foods, jus usually not enough to sustain most species...

no sorry i thought i said somwere that feeding now 1 cube a day. is good for now with the tank. i ment after the tang was gone. and i just dont like flakes iv had some bad times with flakes. and about the T-5 i have never used them so i cant say too much and i know i said that. i feel as im being bashed for no reason.

 

[Pallobi]

mis-quote

mis-quote

All good advice, but please be aware that some macro algae like caulerpa will eventually go sexual...Ive only had this happen to me 2 times in 11 years and I've noticed that regularly trimming excessive growth will prevent the caulerpa from going sexual.

If you do decide to get macro algae just get some chaeto, that way you don't have to worry about it going sexual or getting into the main display tank and proliferating like crazy.

Also, since you are having an algae problem, I really don't think you should be feeding the fish (tang included) multiple times a day. For now, I would cut back to no more than 3x per week, at least until you get a handle on all the information and be able to implement what you think is best.

This must be very overwhelming for you but be patient and look for common themes among all the answers; aside from some of the unintentional misinformation I think you have a good amount of facts that should really help you in the process of getting your tank well on its way.

And if you see or read something you are confused about or feel mislead in any way, just continue to read; not just the forums but utilize other online resources like the ones mentioned in this thread and many more.

Check out http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm for many hours of educational and beneficial reading.

you quoted my statement... i am not the one looking for advice here... i was saying one does not need any macro if you have a dsb... and i know cheato doesnt go sexual... used to use it, but it jus died cuz it had nothing to feed off of...