Please help with advice if possible!

[LukeSz]

Hello,
I am needing some help with this fish tank that has now has no one to take care of it after my uncle's death recently. It is a saltwater coral tank which is 100cm by 30cm by 30cm approx. It has 2 small fish which you might be able to see on the photos, and is at least 15 years old (the fish are as well i believe), probably more. My uncle did regular water changes on it, and fed them every 2 days or so (i think), which we are doing still to ensure the fish are as happy as can be. The tank (wooden frame and glass) would most likely not survive being moved, but the corals seemed to be healthy and the tank appears to be happy from what i can see. (This might have changed as i haven't been to see the tank in a day or so, but a family member informed me the corals look very unhealthy.) I would like to take care of this tank myself, but might not have the time/experience/knowledge/money to do so. The other option is to try to give the fish to some of the local fish stores which might know local people who could take care of them. If anyone has any help with knowledge about action i need to take to care for the tank in the present (how to do water changes, when the light should be on, etc), or what it might cost to make a new tank and how i might go about that, i would be very grateful. Thank you all.

P.S. I will be going around tommorow to try and do a water check of the quality and maybe a water change to try and help. I have done some more online research which is all very confusing, but the corals dying might be due to the light (as we are only able to turn it on and off every other day or so.) I would much appreciate any help at all. Thank you very much.

 

[KrisReef]

I recently attended my favorite uncle's memorial service If he was still alive he would know how to advise you provide different options.

I would contact family, friends, and neighbors of the deceased to find options for the living to ensure that the tank and the memory of your uncle are handled as respectfully and honorably as possible.

Sincere condolences,

 

[ReeferMo]

Would you happen to have a picture of it how it looked before he passed away when he was still maintaining it?

Also regarding water changes, are they using tapwater?

 

[Freenow54]

The light is a necessary water changes are done with what is called RO or reverse osmosis a local fish store may carry that . Maybe ask them about pre mixed ie with aquarium salt. Tell them 1.024 they will understand. Buy it in 5 gallon plastic bottles , buy I would think three or 4 . Is there another Tank underneath with equipment in it? If so repost and I or others will help you to give it a name . And what you may have to do . Even if you do it once every two weeks at about 20% that should give you some breathing space I feed my fish once a day at least but DONT over do it that will cause you grief you wont be able to handle. The light is the problem with the corals I would think. I wont go into details you have enough to handle right now. The tank does not look good a lot of algae from what I see , and the one fish I think has a parasite called ick so time is important to donate or sell the contents and equipment if not too old. I am sorry for your loss unfortunately I have to make a plan myself I will tell you now its not an easy task

 

[LukeSz]

I recently attended my favorite uncle's memorial service If he was still alive he would know how to advise you provide different options.

I would contact family, friends, and neighbors of the deceased to find options for the living to ensure that the tank and the memory of your uncle are handled as respectfully and honorably as possible.

Sincere condolences,

Thank you, and I'm sorry for your uncle, he sounds just like mine. I have a small tropical tank of my own but that is about it for me or my close relatives knowledge about fish tanks. I will ask my local store for help too, where my uncle went for salt and fish food.
Thank you again

 

[LukeSz]

Would you happen to have a picture of it how it looked before he passed away when he was still maintaining it?

Also regarding water changes, are they using tapwater?

No, I'm afraid I don't. I believe he was using tapwater and leaving it out in buckets for a day or few to try and acclimatise it or something although I'm not sure. I presume he also added salt to it when he added it to the tank for water changes, but I also know he used that water to keep the tank topped up.

 

[LukeSz]

The light is a necessary water changes are done with what is called RO or reverse osmosis a local fish store may carry that . Maybe ask them about pre mixed ie with aquarium salt. Tell them 1.024 they will understand. Buy it in 5 gallon plastic bottles , buy I would think three or 4 . Is there another Tank underneath with equipment in it? If so repost and I or others will help you to give it a name . And what you may have to do . Even if you do it once every two weeks at about 20% that should give you some breathing space I feed my fish once a day at least but DONT over do it that will cause you grief you wont be able to handle. The light is the problem with the corals I would think. I wont go into details you have enough to handle right now. The tank does not look good a lot of algae from what I see , and the one fish I think has a parasite called ick so time is important to donate or sell the contents and equipment if not too old. I am sorry for your loss unfortunately I have to make a plan myself I will tell you now its not an easy task

Hello, I really appreciate all the information. Firstly, I don't think there is another tank underneath, when I went before there was just some equipment for filtration or something like that (I'm not very sure, ill send a photo soon to update when i visit tomorrow). I know my uncle wasn't very up to date with the modern methods (If you could call it that), of the 'RO' water, as i think he just used tapwater, he definitely didn't carry bottles or anything to his house, the salt was too much on its own for him to take. I don't know very much about the parasite, but looking again at the photo i see what you might think, but I think it is just a poor photo as i have not seen any white spots on the fish while observing the tank carefully. I realised i can setup a timer to turn the tank light on and off every day if you think that is a good idea?
Thank you again for all the help, and i will send better photos and an update shortly.

 

[Freenow54]

Hello, I really appreciate all the information. Firstly, I don't think there is another tank underneath, when I went before there was just some equipment for filtration or something like that (I'm not very sure, ill send a photo soon to update when i visit tomorrow). I know my uncle wasn't very up to date with the modern methods (If you could call it that), of the 'RO' water, as i think he just used tapwater, he definitely didn't carry bottles or anything to his house, the salt was too much on its own for him to take. I don't know very much about the parasite, but looking again at the photo i see what you might think, but I think it is just a poor photo as i have not seen any white spots on the fish while observing the tank carefully. I realised i can setup a timer to turn the tank light on and off every day if you think that is a good idea?
Thank you again for all the help, and i will send better photos and an update shortly.

Very good idea the tap water I would not use as it contains at least chlorine along with other chemicals If you are going to use it look around for a chemical he may have used to remove chlorine or let it sit in an open top container for time . The length of which I forget but solids ie metals and other evil stuff will remain. Pictures of equipment yes very interested . Im old but have pretty up to date stuff

 

[LukeSz]

Very good idea the tap water I would not use as it contains at least chlorine along with other chemicals If you are going to use it look around for a chemical he may have used to remove chlorine or let it sit in an open top container for time . The length of which I forget but solids ie metals and other evil stuff will remain. Pictures of equipment yes very interested . Im old but have pretty up to date stuff

I think he might have just left it for a while but not sure, will look for chemicals. Also i forgot to mention but on the algae front, it has been like that for many years, so i don't think it is causing harm but it might? I will send photos of all the stuff tomorrow, including fish.

 

[LukeSz]

I think he might have just left it for a while but not sure, will look for chemicals. Also i forgot to mention but on the algae front, it has been like that for many years, so i don't think it is causing harm but it might? I will send photos of all the stuff tomorrow, including fish.

Hi, just got these photos of the filtration system and other bits and bobs, all the tests stuff appears to be empty, and the corals don’t look as bad as I thought, which is good. The fish look healthy, so if you know where to get tests or what you think I should do, please let me know.

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

This looks like a DIY AIO tank. I only see soft corals. (mushrooms and something redish?) Because of that, there is less demand on trace elements like calcium so that helps. I see a damsel and clown for fish. These are hardy fish and deal with less than optimal water conditions.

If the goal is to rehome the coral and fish, I would add a simple timer for the lights and add a cheap automatic feeder for the fish. Have the lights come on for an 8 to 10 hour period each day. Have the feeder feed twice a day. If you know what your uncle was using for food, I would stick with it.

If the previous method for water changes and top-off worked then I would just continue with that until the tank's inhabitants are relocated.

I'm sorry for your loss. I had a recent health issue which got me thinking about making a detailed set of instructions on dealing with my tank.

With your situation, I would just ride it out as is, with a bit of cheap automation until everything is rehomed.

 

[LukeSz]

This looks like a DIY AIO tank. I only see soft corals. (mushrooms and something redish?) Because of that, there is less demand on trace elements like calcium so that helps. I see a damsel and clown for fish. These are hardy fish and deal with less than optimal water conditions.

If the goal is to rehome the coral and fish, I would add a simple timer for the lights and add a cheap automatic feeder for the fish. Have the lights come on for an 8 to 10 hour period each day. Have the feeder feed twice a day. If you know what your uncle was using for food, I would stick with it.

If the previous method for water changes and top-off worked then I would just continue with that until the tank's inhabitants are relocated.

I'm sorry for your loss. I had a recent health issue which got me thinking about making a detailed set of instructions on dealing with my tank.

With your situation, I would just ride it out as is, with a bit of cheap automation until everything is rehomed.

Hi, thank you very much for the help, your knowledge of the fish and corals are correct i believe, and I am going to sort out the automatic light for the tank tommorow. I found his box of salt and I think i will try to find some RO water for a small water change soon. Just wondering what kind of price it might be to make a new tank and rehome the fish and coral into that, and how difficult it would be? I would love to try and keep his legacy going but that depends.
Thank you so much for the kindness and help.

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

Hi, thank you very much for the help, your knowledge of the fish and corals are correct i believe, and I am going to sort out the automatic light for the tank tommorow. I found his box of salt and I think i will try to find some RO water for a small water change soon. Just wondering what kind of price it might be to make a new tank and rehome the fish and coral into that, and how difficult it would be? I would love to try and keep his legacy going but that depends.
Thank you so much for the kindness and help.

The 100 x 30 x 30 cm dimensions for the display is about 70 liters or 18 gallons.
I'm not sure what products are available in York but something like a 40 gallon aqueon breeder with a hang on skimmer and glowrium light would be a good start. A glass top will help keep the evaporation down. An inkbird heater controller with a preset heater is safer way to heat the tank. The inkbird controller will be the fail-safe for the heater if it gets stuck "on".

Don't transfer that sand in your uncle's tank. Just the rocks and fish. I wouldn't worry about a tank cycle - the rocks should have you covered and there's only two fish so it isn't a heavy bio-load.

I'd guess around $500 to $600 would be the cost, depending equipment brand and sales. You may also want to check out facebook's market place to see if there are any used setups near you. Pretty good deals can be found there.

 

[LukeSz]

The 100 x 30 x 30 cm dimensions for the display is about 70 liters or 18 gallons.
I'm not sure what products are available in York but something like a 40 gallon aqueon breeder with a hang on skimmer and glowrium light would be a good start. A glass top will help keep the evaporation down. An inkbird heater controller with a preset heater is safer way to heat the tank. The inkbird controller will be the fail-safe for the heater if it gets stuck "on".

Don't transfer that sand in your uncle's tank. Just the rocks and fish. I wouldn't worry about a tank cycle - the rocks should have you covered and there's only two fish so it isn't a heavy bio-load.

I'd guess around $500 to $600 would be the cost, depending equipment brand and sales. You may also want to check out facebook's market place to see if there are any used setups near you. Pretty good deals can be found there.

Thank you, that sounds great! I will have a look into that and you'll probably see me again on here asking for more help haha.
I appreciate all the help along the way.

 

[BonnieB]

Thank you, and I'm sorry for your uncle, he sounds just like mine. I have a small tropical tank of my own but that is about it for me or my close relatives knowledge about fish tanks. I will ask my local store for help too, where my uncle went for salt and fish food.
Thank you again

First and foremost, I’m so very sorry for the loss of your uncle and will hold you and your family in prayer. I officiated a memorial about a month or so ago for a reefer who had no family. Those of us there were fellow reefers. His best friend took charge of everything. First, he let everyone in attendance pick things they wanted to care for to take with them. Then he had made arrangements with a couple of LFS to take most of the rest. They even donated their time taking down the system. I’d start there and if there is an ich outbreak, that will need to be handled quickly! I wish you all the best in whatever you decide to do.

 

[LukeSz]

First and foremost, I’m so very sorry for the loss of your uncle and will hold you and your family in prayer. I officiated a memorial about a month or so ago for a reefer who had no family. Those of us there were fellow reefers. His best friend took charge of everything. First, he let everyone in attendance pick things they wanted to care for to take with them. Then he had made arrangements with a couple of LFS to take most of the rest. They even donated their time taking down the system. I’d start there and if there is an ich outbreak, that will need to be handled quickly! I wish you all the best in whatever you decide to do.

Thank you very much for your support and the support of this lovely community. I will certainly do all I can to rehome the beautiful fish and corals.