Why do my fish keep disappearing?!?!

nissan577

nissan577

Active Member
Im getting close to giving up! This is the 8th fish that has just disappeared since I set this tank up.

I have a 30 gallon tank that is about 4 weeks old now, but I started with fresh saltwater and sand from my local beach, so there shouldnt be a cycle. The grass is growing well and I have little green bubble looking things showing up to, so I know the tank is doing well. BUTTTT, fish keep disappearing. I have lost 4 clownfish and 3 chromis, along with one jawfish that I really liked.
See if you can help me!
Tank Parameters:
Ammonia 5
Nitrite 20
Nitrate 20
Salinity 1,030
Temp 74

Only other fish in the tank is a 6" lionfish, a 4" panther grouper and one 5" clown trigger that are all doing really well. I dont get it!
Thanks for any help you can offer.!
 
zoidberg01

zoidberg01

Member
The painter grouper, trigger and the lion all participated on this they are all carnivore and will eat anything smaller or weaker than it so its not ur fault
 
zoidberg01

zoidberg01

Member
How big is ur tank because the panther grouper will need more than 300 gallons because it grows over two feet and produces a high waste production, my reccomendation is to get rid of the grouper and get a poisonous fish because they won't want to eat it and that is one of the main priors of the attacks or a fish that can really fight back. I reccomend a rabbitfish like a foxface and if u wanna get a clown get a maroon clownfish they grows six inches and can defend himself DONT GIVE UP BUdDY
 
hawkfish203

hawkfish203

Member
Those are some large fish for a 30g tank. Stress could be a main factor. Your salinity is a bit high as well I believe the red sea is something like 1.030 but not all your fish will tolerate that high of a salinity.
 
Skinr1

Skinr1

Member
2 things I caught here ,
im not exactly sure I would of used sand from the beach either here . with all the pollution the cities pump into the local water ways .
just food for thought . plus I agree with hawkfish
salinity level at 1.030 is like really high , many of the clown fish family for instance don't like salinity at those levels . IME clowns and others in that family like between ,023-.025 to be comfortable . most of the stores keep their tanks at .025 steady . I would seriously consider a water change with just straight fresh water and get the salinity down . you will find your fish act very different and are more lively if you lower that salinity . also if your going to keep predator fish like that I would recommend not putting anything in there that isn't 1.
plus all those predators in a 30gal they will outgrow it in no time .
 
Skinr1

Skinr1

Member
just a suggestion , loose the predators unless you really like them and then you have plenty of room for a small community tank
do a water change lower that salinity to .023-.025
I bet you will be a lot happier with a community with say 6-8 fish swimming around then a tank with a few predators
 
geridoc

geridoc

Well-Known Member
There are so many problems with your system that I hardly know where to begin.

I have a 30 gallon tank that is about 4 weeks old now (not completed the cycle yet), but I started with fresh saltwater and sand from my local beach (possibly polluted, not necessarily rich in the bacteria needed to maintain a tank), so there shouldnt be a cycle. The grass is growing well and I have little green bubble looking things showing up to, so I know the tank is doing well. BUTTTT, fish keep disappearing. I have lost 4 clownfish and 3 chromis, along with one jawfish that I really liked.
See if you can help me!
Tank Parameters:
Ammonia 5 (any level other than zero is cause for alarm, and water changes. Consider adding Amquel Plus as directed on the bottle to protect the remaining fish)
Nitrite 20 (see the comment about ammonia, same thing here)
Nitrate 20
Salinity 1,030 (too high. For a fish-only system 1022 is fine)
Temp 74

Only other fish in the tank is a 6" lionfish, a 4" panther grouper and one 5" clown trigger that are all doing really well. I dont get it! (all of your small fish are inside the lionfish, who will soon be inside the clown trigger, and all three will soon be on the floor as they become so large that they break the tank).

Isn't it amazing how even trolls will evoke responses from we serious aquariasts?
 
flower

flower

Well-Known Member
geridoc said:
There are so many problems with your system that I hardly know where to begin.



Isn't it amazing how even trolls will evoke responses from we serious aquariasts?
Click to expand...

LOL...I can't get my pictures up or I would post my little troll picking it's nose.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top