New Reefer

[Stonefish1]

I just setup my first reef tank, which is a new redsea 350 about 5 weeks ago. The last time I checked my cycle was 5/26 and ammonia was 0 and nitrites were somewhere between 0 and 0.25. I got so busy and was not able to check the water again until today, which showed all ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates at 0. Did I wait to long to put fish in? How do I know if the bacteria is still alive? Appreciate any advise.

 

[PeterC99]

I just setup my first reef tank, which is a new redsea 350 about 5 weeks ago. The last time I checked my cycle was 5/26 and ammonia was 0 and nitrites were somewhere between 0 and 0.25. I got so busy and was not able to check the water again until today, which showed all ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates at 0. Did I wait to long to put fish in? How do I know if the bacteria is still alive? Appreciate any advise.

You can always double check by adding some food and checking NO3 and PO4 the next day.

 

[dedragon]

Yep, what peter said, just add an ammonia source and see how that effects parameters. Almost certain the cycle is just over and you can probably add fish already, but adding ammonia and rechecking is the best way to be sure

 

[Stonefish1]

Thanks for the help

 

[Stonefish1]

So all checked out at 0 but my PH is around 7.8. Is it ok to add a couple of green chromis and how should I raise the PH. I will eventually be using BRS 2 dosing system when I start adding corals or should I start dosing now?

 

[PeterC99]

pH of 7.8 is perfect for starting to add fish.

Don’t start chasing pH yet. Get your fish in and aquarium established. Way too early to start dosing.

 

[Stonefish1]

pH of 7.8 is perfect for starting to add fish.

Don’t start chasing pH yet. Get your fish in and aquarium established. Way too early to start dosing.

Thank you. What do I do if the PH keeps falling and how does the PH finally start going up?

 

[dedragon]

What peter said, though i think green chromis tend to pick each other off over time and you end up with one. Dont really see people have them for too long usually either, not sure why

 

[dedragon]

Thank you. What do I do if the PH keeps falling and how does the PH finally start going up?

did you turn on the protein skimmer yet? o2 should help with the pH

 

[PeterC99]

pH should stabilize especially after regular, weekly 10% water changes. This will also add back the Alk, Calcium, and other elements needed by the aquarium.

 

[Stonefish1]

did you turn on the protein skimmer yet? o2 should help with the pH

I tried out the skimmer yesterday but it does nothing but overflow. I researched the skimmer and found that it will just overflow if there is not anything to skim.

 

[dedragon]

usually the bubbles will die and it wont overflow if there is nothing in the tank. This can occur during break in though and you can just let it run overnight with the collection cup off of it so the water just falls straight back into the sump. After break in it will stop overflowing

 

[Stonefish1]

Thanks! I let it run for about 4hrs yesterday but I will take your advice and run it over night.

 

[Stonefish1]

What peter said, though i think green chromis tend to pick each other off over time and you end up with one. Dont really see people have them for too long usually either, not sure why

Yea, I heard that too but they are cheap and just want to use them for a couple of months to make sure I got a handle on keeping all the water parameters stable. I dont know much about reefing yet, but the one thing I have read over and over is be patient and slow when building a new tank. Just want to do everything right to avoid any future problems down the road.

 

[dedragon]

gotcha, my favorite cheap fish btw is a springeri damselfish. I know damsels have a bad rap but there are a couple that are very peaceful including springers, azures, and starcki damselfish. Springers are cheaper though at around $10 and eats pests from corals as well

 

[Stonefish1]

gotcha, my favorite cheap fish btw is a springeri damselfish. I know damsels have a bad rap but there are a couple that are very peaceful including springers, azures, and starcki damselfish. Springers are cheaper though at around $10 and eats pests from corals as well

Can you put two together or one of each?

 

[dedragon]

I would say 2 starcki max or 3 springeri or 3 azures. You may end up with 2 overtime if 2 of them pair off and establish a nest. I had 3 springeri and now after 4 years I have 2.
hard to say for the mixed species, you could probably do 1 springeri and 1 azure. Starcki is a bit bigger so i would worry about mixing it, i dont have as much experience with them either

 

[Stonefish1]

I would say 2 starcki max or 3 springeri or 3 azures. You may end up with 2 overtime if 2 of them pair off and establish a nest. I had 3 springeri and now after 4 years I have 2.
hard to say for the mixed species, you could probably do 1 springeri and 1 azure. Starcki is a bit bigger so i would worry about mixing it, i dont have as much experience with them eith

 

[Stonefish1]

Thanks! On may way to the LFS. I'll let you know what I ended up with. I will also be using Safety Stop before adding them to my tank.

 

[Stonefish1]

Thanks! On may way to the LFS. I'll let you know what I ended up with. I will also be using Safety Stop before adding them to my tank.

I went to my LFS and found these two guys for $35 each. Buy the way the only LFS around me within 100 miles is Petco (that sucks). But they looked like they were in good shape and I dipped them in Safety Stop before adding them to the tank. The store had no idea what kind of clown fish the were. They have been in my tank now for about 2.5 hours and are swimming all over the place and eat quite abit.