Hello, I am new to keeping marine fish. I have just bought my first fish today, a blenny and am about to add it to the tank. (The tank has been cycling for four weeks.) Due to moving rocks in and out so I could add substrate I did a 1/6 water change today. But the salt has not mixed in yet, specific gravity was 1.019 and water was still cloudy. I am wondering if I should keep the fish in the pet shop bag for a while longer to wait for the tank to settle? Or should I put the fish in the tank straight away?
wait to add fish
- Thread starter cf17
- Start date
gone fishin
New member
Hold on a sec. Did you add salt directly to the tank? Is the tank cycled? How long has the fish been in the bag?
gone fishin
New member
Or is the tank cloudy due to stirring up the sand?
gone fishin
New member
Did I read right a 500gallon tank. How much salt did you add?
I would suspect the tank is cloudy due to adding the salt directly to the tank and it is dissolving. In the future add salt to your change water and let it mix. I like to let mine mix for 24 hrs and match the temp within a few degrees.
The problem with doing it the way you did is things could precipitate out of the salt at the tank temp and it is difficult to get it mixed well. If you placed the fish in the tank with the unmixed salt then it can burn the fishes gills.
Also, your current salinity would be fine to add the fish. You can then slowly bring up the salinity to 1.026 over the course of several days. You can use saltwater for your evaporation top offs until you get to your desired salinity.
It is hard to say how long it will take to clear up and how long the fish will last in the bag. Is it possible to return the fish until you are ready, otherwise you will just need to take your chances with the fish.
I would suspect the tank is cloudy due to adding the salt directly to the tank and it is dissolving. In the future add salt to your change water and let it mix. I like to let mine mix for 24 hrs and match the temp within a few degrees.
The problem with doing it the way you did is things could precipitate out of the salt at the tank temp and it is difficult to get it mixed well. If you placed the fish in the tank with the unmixed salt then it can burn the fishes gills.
Also, your current salinity would be fine to add the fish. You can then slowly bring up the salinity to 1.026 over the course of several days. You can use saltwater for your evaporation top offs until you get to your desired salinity.
It is hard to say how long it will take to clear up and how long the fish will last in the bag. Is it possible to return the fish until you are ready, otherwise you will just need to take your chances with the fish.
ReefsandGeeks
New member
I'd sugest adding some ammonia detoxifyer like seachem's prime to the tank since the fish is in there and it's showing ammonia. Ammonia is very toxic to fish, and any levels that show up on a test kit, even if near 0, are bad. Any time you dd livestock you'll get a small ammonia spike, but if the tank was properly cycled it should go away soon. just monitor it closely. I'm not sure if it would happen or not, but adding the salt directly to the tank without mixing may have killed off some of your beneficial bacteria. The bacteria need certain salinity levels just like fish do, and if the salinity changes too much, it could kill them off. Just watch the water peramiters closely to make sure the cycle isn't starting over again.
+1 to everything Sk8r said. Plus when mixing, wait a bit (15-30 minutes between tests. Toward the longer end when colder out). As you get closer to saturation, it will take longer for the salt to be absorbed (plus the warmer the water is, the more salt it can "hold"). The salt has impurities. Also, if a undissolved particle lands on a coral or in a fish's gills...... Not pretty.
I'd follow Sk8r's recommendations and retest to verify if you've actually cycled. Also when did you add the rock? All at once or in stages?
I'd follow Sk8r's recommendations and retest to verify if you've actually cycled. Also when did you add the rock? All at once or in stages?
Use only if the fish are left in the tank, which is not advised. You will need to dose much more often. Depending on the test set you are using, some will show high off scale, while some will show ammonia and ammonium (Randy correct me if I'm wrong. I'm having to go off what I can find). You'd have to constantly adjust for the levels.
Stability may help: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2109559
When you added the additional rock, it started the cycle again for the new rock (prolonging the cycle).
Stability may help: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2109559
When you added the additional rock, it started the cycle again for the new rock (prolonging the cycle).
gone fishin
New member
You can use prime to "neutralize" the ammonia. More than likely you will still get a reading from your test.
I would keep plenty off water on hand to do WC until this passes. Good luck
I would keep plenty off water on hand to do WC until this passes. Good luck
goncharkina
New member
Blenny is a very hardy fish, just check all the parameters and you can put some stress coat also.
billnPS
New member
+1,000,000^^^...
Rehome the little guy while you're dealing w/ salt, ammonia & other cycling issues. You'll be wasting your money on products when tha blenny dies from ammonia burns. Just let tank do it's thing for a few more weeks, save your money from these products & spend it later on another fish.
Good luck!
