My carpenter flasher wrasse and tomani tang suddenly dying

[Tamberav]

I have 180 gallon upgrade coming within the year, I would not ever keep the tangs I have in my 55 in there long term

yea but a year is plenty of time for them to kill each other. Some only need a good 5 min.

Tangs will still be for sale in a year. You should only be keeping one now and buy more when you have a tank that accommodates more.

 

[jmanzzz]

He's also causing unnecessary suffering to the animals...

I’m not causing suffering? I don’t intentionally give the fish problems and I care for/about them that’s why I’m asking for help

 

[albano]

the fish before that came from a lfs that quarantines the fish when they get them.

Would love to hear what type of QT
your LFS ‘says’ that they do.
IMO/E, the # of LFSs that actually do an real QT to their inventory is close to 0%!

 

[Dom]

He's also causing unnecessary suffering to the animals...

Let's not judge. Yes, @jmanzzz has made some mistakes. But he is new to the hobby and we all made some of those same mistakes as we were learning.

Some advice:

• Slow down. You're trying to do too much too fast. Reef keeping is like a garden; it has to be nurtured and allowed to mature into the the fantastic reef tank you see it as in your mind's eye.
• Avoid bottled solutions. While bottled solutions have their place in the hobby, it is best to identify and correct the source of the problem.
• Be cautious with advice from the LFS. They are in business to make money and it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to compete with the on line competition.

I know a 55 gallon tank seems big, but it isn't. It looked big to me too when I first got in to the hobby. A 55 gallon tank is small; I use one for a sump.

Will you please tell us about your filtration? Do you use canister filter, hang on back or do you have a sump?

Nutrient export is very important. I noticed people recommending water changes, which is good advice. But I haven't seen the recommendation of a REFUGIUM.

 

[Tamberav]

A true QT from a LFS is about 30 days with medications in a separate room before being moved to the sales room. Due to the fact they eat the losses during those 30 days, the fish will generally be triple the cost as you are paying for this service.

We have two who QT here and they will give you a tour of the back room and show you the medications they use and how long and when they move to the next tank.

If your LFS can’t show you that, then they are not really QT.

Instead of wasting money on fish, buy or make a large sump that will fit a 180g that you want a skimmer rated for heavy bioload of 180g… and then hook them up to your 55. This won’t be a waste since you want to upgrade and will help you now.

I have a skimmer rated for a heavy bioload of 175g on my 80g and a 20g refugium cuz I also stock heavily and feed heavily. I avoid fish that will fight though and have a acclimation box for newbies and fish trap for when things don’t work.

 

[jmanzzz]

Buy fish appropriate for a 180 AFTER you have a running, cycled 180. Tangs don't know that this is a temporary tank and aggression is almost guaranteed with your stocking choices.

I was told by my lfs (different

Let's not judge. Yes, @jmanzzz has made some mistakes. But he is new to the hobby and we all made some of those same mistakes as we were learning.

Some advice:

• Slow down. You're trying to do too much too fast. Reef keeping is like a garden; it has to be nurtured and allowed to mature into the the fantastic reef tank you see it as in your mind's eye.
• Avoid bottled solutions. While bottled solutions have their place in the hobby, it is best to identify and correct the source of the problem.
• Be cautious with advice from the LFS. They are in business to make money and it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to compete with the on line competition.

I know a 55 gallon tank seems big, but it isn't. It looked big to me too when I first got in to the hobby. A 55 gallon tank is small; I use one for a sump.

Will you please tell us about your filtration? Do you use canister filter, hang on back or do you have a sump?

Nutrient export is very important. I noticed people recommending water changes, which is good advice. But I haven't seen the recommendation of a REFUGIUM.

thank you for the advice, I do need to slow down and my last additions to the tank were the last ones. I’m going to do a 20gal nano and pull my clown pair and damsels so there is a little more space and less bio load. I have a hang on the back filter that is for a 110 gallon tank that I recently adjusted the filtration to lower but once all of this happened I turned it back up. Also what is a refugium? To my understanding it is a sump packed with established rock, correct?

 

[BanjoBandito]

First off I’m not treating my tank like a chemistry set. I dosed with what I did because that’s what I had on hand and it was light medications and immunity boosters, melafix and fish protector, and dosed for only couple of days, and then stopped and confused continued about a week later because of fin nipping on a new fish and I asked the guy at my lfs and said 2 capfuls every other day would be fine and I didn’t have any nitrates at all last week, the main reason why I put the increaser in, and have only put 6 capfuls in altogether. I’m going to do a retest and a 25 percent water change as that’s all the salt I have on hand to make water, and will retest in the morning to see if another is nessesary. And what do you mean by “biblical plague level problems”

Why do you want nitrates, what problem do you think it will fix and why isn’t your tank producing them with that bio load. If you aren’t asking these types of questions or cannot answer them then do not “dose”.

 

[jmanzzz]

Also, the fish did not make it through the night unfortunately

 

[jmanzzz]

A true QT from a LFS is about 30 days with medications in a separate room before being moved to the sales room. Due to the fact they eat the losses during those 30 days, the fish will generally be triple the cost as you are paying for this service.

We have two who QT here and they will give you a tour of the back room and show you the medications they use and how long and when they move to the next tank.

If your LFS can’t show you that, then they are not really QT.

Instead of wasting money on fish, buy or make a large sump that will fit a 180g that you want a skimmer rated for heavy bioload of 180g… and then hook them up to your 55. This won’t be a waste since you want to upgrade and will help you now.

I have a skimmer rated for a heavy bioload of 175g on my 80g and a 20g refugium cuz I also stock heavily and feed heavily. I avoid fish that will fight though and have a acclimation box for newbies and fish trap for when things don’t work.

Ok thank you I’ve been looking for a skimmer so I’ll look for a bigger one then

 

[jmanzzz]

Why do you want nitrates, what problem do you think it will fix and why isn’t your tank producing them with that bio load. If you aren’t asking these types of questions or cannot answer them then do not “dose”.

I wanted nitrates because I had none and my Kenya tree corals have not been opening, as they like a bit of nitrates, I have a filter for a 110 gallon that I usually run on max filtration, so I turned it down and put the stuff in and now I have too much nitrates.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Also, the fish did not make it through the night unfortunately

I would have guessed and sorry to hear. We all take chances and make mistakes and in a hobby of impulse, easy to make moves we later regret. There was some good advise and insight offered while one person has to continue to be insultive (ignore Erin if you must ).
From this point forward, focus on management of your tank. management of water quality, management of diet, and management of disease if present.
Make feeding a time to observe your fish and tank for any abnormalities. Tamberav stated that tangs will be here a year from now- Its true. That statement " there is plenty of fish in the sea" does exist.
Hang in there and take the time TO ENJOY YOUR TANK and not fret about unfortunate loss and insults given.
This is a piece of the ocean in our homes and be proud you have gotten this far

 

[vetteguy53081]

Ok thank you I’ve been looking for a skimmer so I’ll look for a bigger one then

look at :
aqua Maxx
reef octopus
bubble Magnus
nyos

All are reputable skimmers

 

[BanjoBandito]

I wanted nitrates because I had none and my Kenya tree corals have not been opening, as they like a bit of nitrates, I have a filter for a 110 gallon that I usually run on max filtration, so I turned it down and put the stuff in and now I have too much nitrates.

You did 2 different things to fix 1 problem. Now you don’t know if the filter or the dosing increased nitrates. You have so much going on here that you are setup to fail. I’m not trying to be rude, but you have to start small and slow. These are complex ecosystems, there’s stuff going on even the most seasoned biologist doesn’t understand.

And who in the heck sold you a moorish idol for a 55 gallon? I would NEVER deal with them again because you are getting your money taken and torturing animals, played like a sucker. If it was your initiative then you need to do some more research.

I don’t want this to turn into a rant…so the best advice I can give you is join a local reef club or find someone with a tank you want yours to look like and ask them for help!

 

[((FORDTECH))]

What nitrate level do you think this is? I’m doing the water change now just want a second opinion

I think you should buy a quality test kit

 

[jmanzzz]

I would have guessed and sorry to hear. We all take chances and make mistakes and in a hobby of impulse, easy to make moves we later regret. There was some good advise and insight offered while one person has to continue to be insultive (ignore Erin if you must ).
From this point forward, focus on management of your tank. management of water quality, management of diet, and management of disease if present.
Make feeding a time to observe your fish and tank for any abnormalities. Tamberav stated that tangs will be here a year from now- Its true. That statement " there is plenty of fish in the sea" does exist.
Hang in there and take the time TO ENJOY YOUR TANK and not fret about unfortunate loss and insults given.
This is a piece of the ocean in our homes and be proud you have gotten this far

Thank you for the kind words, will not be purchasing any more fish and am going to be focusing on building up the coral in my tank, and will be testing more often and being more cautious with what I put in my tank. My water quality has always been pretty stable but I’ll make sure to keep an eye on it. Going to pull my clown pair and damsels and do a 20g nano

 

[vetteguy53081]

Thank you for the kind words, will not be purchasing any more fish and am going to be focusing on building up the coral in my tank, and will be testing more often and being more cautious with what I put in my tank. My water quality has always been pretty stable but I’ll make sure to keep an eye on it. Going to pull my clown pair and damsels and do a 20g nano

remember that one sentence I stated" Take the time to enjoy your tank " !! Your plan sounds positive.

 

[jmanzzz]

remember that one sentence I stated" Take the time to enjoy your tank " !! Your plan sounds positive.

Thank you and I will. I’m going to pull those fish next weekend

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I would have guessed and sorry to hear. We all take chances and make mistakes and in a hobby of impulse, easy to make moves we later regret. There was some good advise and insight offered while one person has to continue to be insultive (ignore Erin if you must ).
From this point forward, focus on management of your tank. management of water quality, management of diet, and management of disease if present.
Make feeding a time to observe your fish and tank for any abnormalities. Tamberav stated that tangs will be here a year from now- Its true. That statement " there is plenty of fish in the sea" does exist.
Hang in there and take the time TO ENJOY YOUR TANK and not fret about unfortunate loss and insults given.
This is a piece of the ocean in our homes and be proud you have gotten this far

ONE comment that stated the fact (which others agreed with) that the OP's actions did in fact harm his animals is not "continuing to be 'insultive' [sic]". There have been multiple threads recently where new reefers move way too fast and keep adding animals to their tanks even as fish are dying... I'm sorry if you feel my words were uncalled for, but sometimes the truth hurts.
I am sympathetic to the losses and hope things go better in the future.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

remember that one sentence I stated" Take the time to enjoy your tank " !! Your plan sounds positive.

I would also add, for those who are unfamiliar, that vetteguy has taken issue with me in the past for pointing out errors in his posts... Seems he can't take feedback and instead chooses to target those he feels have wronged him...

 

[Kmst80]

ONE comment that stated the fact (which others agreed with) that the OP's actions did in fact harm his animals is not "continuing to be 'insultive' [sic]". There have been multiple threads recently where new reefers move way too fast and keep adding animals to their tanks even as fish are dying... I'm sorry if you feel my words were uncalled for, but sometimes the truth hurts.
I am sympathetic to the losses and hope things go better in the future.

I agree with Erin here. I did not think her posts were insulting but rather a constructive criticism. Sometimes that can be the best thing for us to see beyond our own horizon.
From what i have read and seen in OP posts is that he has got a 55 gallon tank stocked with a clown,coral beauty,tomini tang, hippo tang, chocolate tang, china wrasse, carpenter wrasse, melanurus wrasse and morish idol.
Thats a lot of fish for a 55 g for a lot of reasons.