Am i unprepared for this HOBBY?

[salty tank]

You rushed yourself. I didnt buy any fish until 3 weeks after my tank was up and running. Even then i only put 3 damsels in. You need patience. My tank was running for about a month and a half before i put any expensive fish in. I think you over stocked it to quickly.

 

[mikeyjer]

Originally Posted by DaneDodger
Sorry but I don't agree with this at all. What fish will live happily together involves a lot of variables. I have a yellow tang with a neon damsel and they're best of friends being the only two fish in a 130 gallon tank so far and both being added somewhat close together. The problem with the damsel is more likely going to be in adding any new fish to my tank since the damsel has been in there long enough to be well established. If I added another type of tang right now I would be worried that the damsel would harrass him but that's no big deal as I'm preparing for this possibility. We're also setting up a 29 gallon as a QT tank so if the damsel does pick on any new fish I add we can just let him live in the 29 instead.
Yep, that's likely ich and yep, tangs are more prone to it than others. In your QT tank, not your main tank, there's several things you can do to get rid of it, hyposalinity and meds probably being the ones most folks recommend. Loads of threads right here on these boards about it for you!
Nope, your LFS shouldn't have advised that you use damsels for your cycle but most do just because they don't know better. A raw shrimp or ghost feeding are much better ways to cycle. Since the cycle is already started (maybe even done?) what's done is done though. Your cycle is complete when you see the ammonia go up then down as the nitrites go up then down as the nitrates go up. At that point you should see ammonia 0, nitrite 0, and whatever for nitrates. Do a partial water change to bring down the nitrates (as close to 0 as possible but anything up to 20 is generally considered acceptable) and only then is the tank really ready for the first fish.
I personally think you need more liverock and a skimmer would be a good investment for you. You didn't mention any kind of filtration (or else I just need to finish my coffee and missed it

). Surely you've got some kind of filtration on your tank???
Yep, raise your salinity and yep, you can use treated tap water without ill affects to the fish. The only harm in that will be you may get a terrible algae bloom. IMO, RO/DI water is worth the extra money.
Step by step? Ok, just my opinion but:
1. It might be wisest to see if you can get the damsels out of your main tank and either into another tank, give them away, sell them, give them back to the store, whatever. The longer they're in your tank the more aggressive they will probably get as they grow larger and establish that your tank is their territory making adding new fish in the future harder.
2. Move your blue to your QT tank and treat for the ich. Once you do that if you do get rid of the damsels it probably would be best to leave your main tank without fish at all for awhile to let the ich hopefully die off and help prevent outbreaks in the future.
3. Fix your water parameters such as raising your salinity.
4. If you're willing to upgrade to RO/DI water a good time to get that started is while your fish are in the QT tank. Do weekly small water changes with the RO/DI water. I started out with treated tap water, got a nasty algae bloom, and have been doing my routine water changes with RO/DI. It takes time to get back on top of it doing it this way instead of just starting all over with RO/DI then going through the cycle again but if you keep the inverts you can't afford to go through a cycle again. Just stay on top of it and eventually you'll get it.
I agree!!!

 

[anthony17]

thanks for all the info so far but i still have a few questions the damsels in my tank do not bother my tang at all, well from what i can tell they dont follow my tang or anything, and another question is i have a 10 gallon QT is that to small cuz i put my blue tang in for treatment and it just got worse ALOT WORSE actually so im not sure what i should do im planning on getting a protien skimmer and a RO so i dont have to go to the store and buy it i can just make it myself, and another question im thinking about just putting everything in my QT and just start over when i get my protein skimmer and RO water then put all my LR and inverts back in then wait for it to cycle? should i do that or not? once again what would you do. help plz and thanks again
ANTHONY

 

[danedodger]

the damsels in my tank do not bother my tang at all
No, like I said, my damsel doesn't bother my tang at all either. As long as they're all getting along ok there's no problem right now. The problem will come in when you try to add fish later. The damsels will be much more likely to pick on any new fish you add in the future is all. If you don't want to ever add any more fish then I wouldn't worry about it.
Of course that's not for CERTAIN either. You just might keep the damsels, add a fish later down the road, and the damsels don't pick on the newcomer at all! It's just kind of a crap shoot and *many times* the damsels WILL pick on the newcomer. Just take that into account and plan accordingly.
i have a 10 gallon QT is that to small cuz i put my blue tang in for treatment and it just got worse ALOT WORSE actually so im not sure what i should do
How big is the tang? If he's only 2-3" or so it might not be the size of the QT tank but just the fact that moving him at all caused additional stress which weakens the immune system and lets the ich have a bigger hold on the fish.
I'd test the water parameters too. If your QT tank is going through a cycle because you put the tang in, higher ammonia levels and such may be the cause of his stress and more ich spots. If that's the case you'll need to find a way to get the levels back to acceptable right away! Usually you just let a tank cycle and don't impede the process but in this case if it is cycling you need to take emergency measures for the sake of your tang. You could consider different products to help bring ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels down, a product to help the beneficial bacteria grow more quicky, and/or do very small water changes very often. Whatever it takes to get those levels to "normal"!
You could also be seeing more ich spots if you moved him too suddenly into your QT tank and the water conditions being different. If, for example, the pH, temp, or anything else in your QT tank are different than in your main tank and you didn't acclimate your tang to the new conditions properly that would lead to increased stress and more ich spots.
im planning on getting a protien skimmer and a RO so i dont have to go to the store and buy it i can just make it myself,
Yay!!! I think you'll be happy with that choice down the road!
and another question im thinking about just putting everything in my QT and just start over when i get my protein skimmer and RO water then put all my LR and inverts back in then wait for it to cycle? should i do that or not? once again what would you do. help plz and thanks again
No no no, I wouldn't advise doing it that way! If you can successfully move everything into your QT tank then you can go ahead and change out everything once you get your skimmer and RO water but then cycle the main tank with a raw shrimp! Here's steps I'd advise:
1. Hook up your protein skimmer
2. Drain all the water and replace it with the RO water
3. Toss a raw, peeled shrimp into the water (just the kind you get from the grocery store that you'd normally cook to eat yourself) and let it rot in there. This will cycle the tank for you without any danger to a living animal.
4. Test the water often (I'd say at least once a week but if you want to keep a closer eye on it you could certainly test more often, even as much as once a day wouldn't hurt a thing except using up your tests more quickly). You should see the ammonia go up then go back down as the nitrites go up then go back down as the nitrates go up. When your tests have reached ammonia 0, nitrites 0, and whatever nitrates scoop out whatever's left of the now icky shrimp and do a partial water change until the nitrates read at least 20 or less.
5. Only THEN put in an animal. I'd suggest the damsels going in first if you keep them as the tang and inverts are more delicate than the damsels.
6. Test about a week later to see if your ammonia is still 0, nitrites 0, and if nitrates are for some reason over 20 (which they shouldn't be so soon after a water change, if they are something might not be quite right) come back and let us try to brainstorm what's going on for you again. If the water is still good only then add in your tang and inverts.

 

[lvtofish]

What LFS are you using? The one in Branson doesn't have a clue to what they are talking about. Also the one in Springfield isn't very knowledgeable. There is one in Rogers, AR that wants you to have the best tank possible and not out to just make sales. I would suggest you keep listening to everyone on this board. Tangs will get stressed in a smaller tank. Good luck!

 

[anthony17]

LVTOFISH where are you from and yes i dont like the one in branson at all and the one in springfield is about an hour away from hollister and yes i agree they do seem to be more into it for the sales uh, how long does it take to get the the one in rogers,AR ? and thanks for the help

 

[lvtofish]

I live in Branson. The Exotic Tropical Store takes about an hour and a half. There is a saltwater fish club in Springfield that goes together about every other month or so. I usually order my fish online and have had great luck. Haven't had one die yet, but I am still new to this hobby.

 

[anthony17]

WELL, LV thanks for all the help ive appreciated it alot i hope i can get down there some time to look at that store. i hope we talk again since we basicly live next to each other.
thanks
ANTHONY

 

[merredeth]

Originally Posted by rstiles
you have ich read the thread by Beth on dealing with this. leave tang in qt get the other fish out asap let tank run with out any fish for 3/4 weeks to let ich die off.the ich needs a fish host. been their did that.
I believe to get rid of the ich out of a tank, you need six weeks to get through the entire life cycle.
Denise M.