New to the hobby! Unfortunately already lost 2 fish! Need some guidance.

[vetteguy53081]

Hello everyone! Just started into this hobby due to my kids showing an interest and always having an interest of my own.

I started a week ago after going to a local reef shop, got a 5 gallon reef tank with several corals (2 mushrooms, acro, favia, torch, lobo, Kenya tree, GSP, zoa), an anemone, and 2 clownfish. I basically asked them to set it up for me and this is what he made me. They used cycled water that’s been there for 4 years. He acclimated the fish for 5 days in the tank before I picked it up.

I got Reef Nutrition beta brine to feed the fish, which he recommended 1 drop daily.

I took home 2 gallon jugs, one RODI 0PPM water and other saltwater from the shop.

Did daily top off with freshwater with an ATO.

He advised a 1/3 tank water change weekly.

Fish and corals looked great for a week. Eating well, no signs of stress.

Then didn’t first water change with the cycled saltwater. I didn’t warm the change water. Usually tank is at 80 bit after water change dropped to 76 and climbed back up to 78-79 within an hr.

After this clowns seemed a bit stressed but no unusual behaviors. Following day one clown fish looked more pale and then a few hrs later found it dead within the rock work next to the Kenya tree. Other clown seemed okay at this time. Following day I noticed a white film around second clown, was fast breathing and skimming the surface, he started losing bouyancy and saw I’m swimming to surface but sinking back down. He quickly died after that.

I tested ammonia at 0.25ppm, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate, pH 7 or 7.5. Used imagitarium test kit. Took water to reef shop for testing salinity and was told it was “spot on”.

Corals and anemone seem okay but Kenya tree is slumped over now.

Other person at reef shop was shocked I was feeding daily. Also recommended daily 10% water changes for now and retest ammonia in couple of days.

Looking for any advice, insights on what happened.

Thank you!

Any pics of fish you can provide to provide a clear assessment? Kenyii tree needs moderate light and medium water flow and if this tank was just set up, how did you cycle tank and for how long?
Additionally, how are you testing water?
You are adding RO water daily- Are you monitoring salinity to assure it does not get too low?

 

[vetteguy53081]

 

[crazyfishmom]

I will agree with everyone else’s comments when it comes to the fish and unfortunately it seems like in trying to make a sale they led you down the wrong path. I would highly highly recommend purchasing a few small live rocks to help with cycling since you already have Coral in the tank. The good news is that while not ideal, Coral are okay with a little bit of ammonia if you can keep it under control but you’ll need to be very careful in how you do this. There are bacterial products in the market like Stability and Microbacter7 which will be very helpful toward helping you maintain your Coral during this early start.

Do you have a refractometer? If not, this is your best friend and should be an early purchase into this hobby.

Best of luck and welcome!

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

 

[SPR1968]

Hi and welcome to Reef2Reef!

 

[shakacuz]

welcome aboard the r2r board!

 

[FrugalReefer]

 

[Jimbhoy13]

Welcome to R2R and the salty world. As others said it seems like the lfs has not given you sound advice. Lots of knowledgeable and helpful people here who will support and advise you when needed.
Happy New Year.

 

[Digimes]

Hello everyone! Just started into this hobby due to my kids showing an interest and always having an interest of my own.

I started a week ago after going to a local reef shop, got a 5 gallon reef tank with several corals (2 mushrooms, acro, favia, torch, lobo, Kenya tree, GSP, zoa), an anemone, and 2 clownfish. I basically asked them to set it up for me and this is what he made me. They used cycled water that’s been there for 4 years. He acclimated the fish for 5 days in the tank before I picked it up.

I got Reef Nutrition beta brine to feed the fish, which he recommended 1 drop daily.

I took home 2 gallon jugs, one RODI 0PPM water and other saltwater from the shop.

Did daily top off with freshwater with an ATO.

He advised a 1/3 tank water change weekly.

Fish and corals looked great for a week. Eating well, no signs of stress.

Then didn’t first water change with the cycled saltwater. I didn’t warm the change water. Usually tank is at 80 bit after water change dropped to 76 and climbed back up to 78-79 within an hr.

After this clowns seemed a bit stressed but no unusual behaviors. Following day one clown fish looked more pale and then a few hrs later found it dead within the rock work next to the Kenya tree. Other clown seemed okay at this time. Following day I noticed a white film around second clown, was fast breathing and skimming the surface, he started losing bouyancy and saw I’m swimming to surface but sinking back down. He quickly died after that.

I tested ammonia at 0.25ppm, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate, pH 7 or 7.5. Used imagitarium test kit. Took water to reef shop for testing salinity and was told it was “spot on”.

Corals and anemone seem okay but Kenya tree is slumped over now.

Other person at reef shop was shocked I was feeding daily. Also recommended daily 10% water changes for now and retest ammonia in couple of days.

Looking for any advice, insights on what happened.

Thank you!

Super shocked that they tried to rapid cycle a full tank in 5 days. I feel like they scammed you big time. I would have bought the tank, water, sand and rock and run for a few weeks before adding fish and then slowly acted corals over several months. There is no such thing as a 5 day full cycle. They overloaded the biom right out of the gate and left it to crash. The good bacteria and such will extend to the glass, sump and everywhere in a few weeks, it's not really about the water that cycles the tank. I would call the shop, complain and they should remove most of the stuff for a few more weeks. This is what gives a LFS a bad name.

 

[Pvtgloss]

 

[Nahdurr]

Thank you so much for the feedback.

I got a refractometer and tested salinity myself after calibrating it. It is steady at 1.026.

As per the rock, I spoke with LFS. They said they "cured" the rock in their main tank with bacteria for few days. They offered to test the water for me as well.

I have ordered a 15 gallon tank as per recommendation from a fellow reefer earlier in this thread.

The kenya tree is perked back up now. Rest of the corals looks good thus far.

Will be keeping a close eye on this tank, trying my best to keep the coral happy and healthy. I'm determined to make this work!

 

[Fish Fan]

Thank you so much for the feedback.

I got a refractometer and tested salinity myself after calibrating it. It is steady at 1.026.

As per the rock, I spoke with LFS. They said they "cured" the rock in their main tank with bacteria for few days. They offered to test the water for me as well.

I have ordered a 15 gallon tank as per recommendation from a fellow reefer earlier in this thread.

The kenya tree is perked back up now. Rest of the corals looks good thus far.

Will be keeping a close eye on this tank, trying my best to keep the coral happy and healthy. I'm determined to make this work!

Glad to hear you’re heading in the right direction!

Not to keep beating this up, but you really may want to look for a new LFS. When using dry rock and sand, there is really no such thing as a “5 day cycle”. They are setting you up for failure right from the start, and that’s really unfortunate. As a rule, nothing good happens in this hobby quickly. Processes can take weeks or months to balance out, and patients is almost always best.

But again, the folks here will help you get through this, much smarter people than myself, so hang in there!

 

[Digimes]

Thank you so much for the feedback.

I got a refractometer and tested salinity myself after calibrating it. It is steady at 1.026.

As per the rock, I spoke with LFS. They said they "cured" the rock in their main tank with bacteria for few days. They offered to test the water for me as well.

I have ordered a 15 gallon tank as per recommendation from a fellow reefer earlier in this thread.

The kenya tree is perked back up now. Rest of the corals looks good thus far.

Will be keeping a close eye on this tank, trying my best to keep the coral happy and healthy. I'm determined to make this work!

To"cure" rock in a tank usually takes about 30 days or more. Which 15 gallon tank did you pick? What light are you using and what was the current tank?

 

[CoralB]

Welcome !

 

[saltcats]

Glad you are sticking with the hobby! You should make a build thread when your 15 gallon tank comes in so we can all follow along

 

[zheka757]

Welcome to R2R!

 

[Nahdurr]

Alright some updates.

I purchased and received my IM 15G Nano AIO, top screen, and Helio PTC Titanium heating system.
I've also purchased an AI Prime 16HD light, mounting arm, and 3DReefing diffuser, AI Axis 20 return pump, IOAOI nano protein skimmer, and CerMedia MarinePure filter media balls.

I don't know if I will need a dedicated powerhead for this tank but considering I have some SPS corals I may do so.

I haven't moved anything over from the 5 gallon yet. This is currently set up with a Lominie aquarium light set to blue lighting which appears to be fixed in its intensity which is why I'm upgrading for automation, adjustability, and programming to the AI Prime. I'm also using the USeek ATO from amazon which has thus far been amazing and will be moving this over to the 15G. I've got the ATO sensor in the rear chamber.

As of now in the 5 gallon, corals looks good.
Salinity 1.026 steady. Ammonia 0, Nitrite 1 PPM, Nitrate 0. Although I'm using some test strips for these. Need a better testing kit.
PH is 8.4, Alkalinity is around 180 ppm.

Doing Seachem Stability with each water change, which is 20% once a week. I did do an additional dose prior to the last water change.
I am also dosing Reef Roids twice a week. Spot feeding half to Candy cane, Torches, Lobo, Acro, Lepto and dispersing the rest into the tank.

No fish in the tank anymore and will stay that way for awhile until the 15G is set up and properly cycled.

Now for some questions:
1. How should I go about moving things over to the 15G? Should I start fresh and cycle it with new live rock and sand only or should I move this rock, sand, and corals over? Should I use all new salt water mixed at LFS for the new tank or do I transfer the water over from the 5G?
2. Do I need to test calcium, mag at this moment or too early?
3. I am currently running blue light for 8 hours. No ramp up or down. Is this okay? Will transition to AI Prime with new tank so that will be on a ramp up/ramp down schedule. Any recommended settings on the AI Prime?
4. Should I dose Stability more often for now or stick to dosing it once a week with water change?
5. Is my reef roids dosing appropriate?
6. Do I need a clean up crew now? I have no fish in the tank.
7. I have a oily film on the water surface, is a skimmer overkill for this?

Also, I've noticed tiny white round creatures on the glass with tiny arms, don't look like copepods or snail eggs. I've attached a picture.

 

[Reef Devils]

Hello everyone! Just started into this hobby due to my kids showing an interest and always having an interest of my own.

I started a week ago after going to a local reef shop, got a 5 gallon reef tank with several corals (2 mushrooms, acro, favia, torch, lobo, Kenya tree, GSP, zoa), an anemone, and 2 clownfish. I basically asked them to set it up for me and this is what he made me. They used cycled water that’s been there for 4 years. He acclimated the fish for 5 days in the tank before I picked it up.

I got Reef Nutrition beta brine to feed the fish, which he recommended 1 drop daily.

I took home 2 gallon jugs, one RODI 0PPM water and other saltwater from the shop.

Did daily top off with freshwater with an ATO.

He advised a 1/3 tank water change weekly.

Fish and corals looked great for a week. Eating well, no signs of stress.

Then didn’t first water change with the cycled saltwater. I didn’t warm the change water. Usually tank is at 80 bit after water change dropped to 76 and climbed back up to 78-79 within an hr.

After this clowns seemed a bit stressed but no unusual behaviors. Following day one clown fish looked more pale and then a few hrs later found it dead within the rock work next to the Kenya tree. Other clown seemed okay at this time. Following day I noticed a white film around second clown, was fast breathing and skimming the surface, he started losing bouyancy and saw I’m swimming to surface but sinking back down. He quickly died after that.

I tested ammonia at 0.25ppm, 0 nitrite, 0 nitrate, pH 7 or 7.5. Used imagitarium test kit. Took water to reef shop for testing salinity and was told it was “spot on”.

Corals and anemone seem okay but Kenya tree is slumped over now.

Other person at reef shop was shocked I was feeding daily. Also recommended daily 10% water changes for now and retest ammonia in couple of days.

Looking for any advice, insights on what happened.

Thank you!

Welcome to Reef2Reef!!!

 

[Lavey29]

Hi OP and welcome to the reef. You got a good starter set up to work with. IM has nice AIO tanks. Unfortunately since you are new, I am going to recommend you slow way down with the corals you are buying. Most will not survive your tank in the coming weeks or months due to instability especially SPS and euphyllia corals. You will be experiencing a variety of ugly phases the first year and your current 0 nutrients levels mean your existing corals are slowly starving to death. Get your new system up and running and move your corals over but I think you will have some struggles but don't worry, we have all had those struggles and if you take your time things will improve.

 

[tharbin]

Welcome to R2R! I'm going to recommend that you start a 'build thread' so that you can get ongoing advice as you progress in the hobby. To do that. just start a new thread in one of the 'Member's Aquarium Discussion' forums. I would probably pick the 'All in One Aquariums (AIO)' forum based on your tank. Put the information from your posts in this thread into your thread along with the photos. That way there will be one place to go to see what you have already done, what your tank looks like and get a better general feeling for your setup. The 'Meet and Greet Forum' is a really good place to get initial advice but people tend not to cycle back around and recheck the 'Hello' threads after a while. Once you have your build thread set up you can copy the URL for your thread into your account profile. Near the bottom is an input field for your 'My Tank Thread'. Paste the URL into that field and in a little while you will have a clickable 'My Tank Thread' button in your user info. That way when you go to a forum, say one of the coral forums to ask for advice on an issue people can click the button to get more background information on your setup.

I hope everything is going better for you now and glad to see you are sticking with it. Once you get past the learning, cycling and ugly phases things will start to even out. It is a wonderful hobby. I've been in the sw side of the hobby, off and on, for about 48 years. No matter how many times I quit due to finances or moves or life changes, I always end up back in it. It is a very rewarding hobby. Based on your follow up posts, I'm going to cut your LFS a little slack. It does seem they rushed or, more likely, allowed you to rush a bit and probably should not have even sold you the clownfish with a 5 gallon but the set up is nice. If they told the truth on the status of the supplies they sold you it is still a bit questionable and their feeding advice is bit strange but it is hard to put this all on the LFS. A major point is to be careful, slow and deliberate when you do a water change. Make sure you have the new water at least near the same temp as the tank water and don't rush. More than any other thing to need to do with a reef aquarium is to do things slowly and deliberately. Be patient. I can't tell what it is on your glass. You probably already done this but, if not, I would move all of the rock/corals from your existing tank to the new one but I would probably start with new sand and fresh saltwater.

If there is another LFS in the area, you may want to consider having them do an occasional water test for you while you are improving your test kits just as a double check. Good Luck and again, Welcome.