any advice would be great

[wickj]

i am very new to the hobby i started a 55 gal salt water tank 8 days ago
i have a empeor 400 boiwheel filter
prizm skimmer
standard lights that came with tank
and a heater
the only knowledge i have is from the fish dealer and a book i got
after i mixed the watter and got it up to temp i added 40lb dry sand and 40lbs live sand three days later after water cleared i got 5 fish 2 clowns 2 damsels and 1 yellow tang
its been a few days now the fish seem to be doing fine i test the water every evening but im only showing a small amount of ammonia and maybe a little nitrite i know it hasent fully cycled yet but even the ammonia is still very low
do you think everything is going ok and any advice would be appreactied

 

[airforceb2]

Welcome to the boards!!
You sadly fell victom to the wrath of local fish stores

You will most likely loose the tang and clowns. The damsels may or may not make it. If the cycle doesn't kill the tang, the size of the tank will. Tangs love to swim and a 55 just isn't big enough for them. Also, the damsels will pester the other fish to death if not controlled early.
Can you post your water parameters? Low to you may actually be good.

 

[speg]

Well if nothing is dying... Really you should have a reading of zero ammonia and zero nitrites... did you add all those fish closely together? You may be showing some sings of ammonia now due to adding them so quickly together... your biological filter hasnt caught up with the new comers.. you must be running carbon in that filter though.. is probably the only thing saving your

[hr]
right now =c(
My advice is to add fish slower in the future.. and with a 55 gallon tank I wouldnt add too many more fish to it. maybe another 3-4 smallish ones or so. Also I would advise you to be careful when adding new fish with the damsels.. as they will almost surely beat the snot outta new arrivals. I would also strongly advise that you enjoy this hobby ! enjoy@once!

 

[speg]

No offense to that last poster.. but you wont lose the tang due to having it in a 55 gallon tank As much as these so called 'tang police' believe a those fish cant be in a small tank (50 gallons being 'small') they most certainly can and they most certainly will thrive in small tanks. Granted they will get larger and may then require a new place to live.. but if it dies it is gonna be because of the ammonia in your tank. I hope it doesnt... losing fish is always so sad =c( :happyfish

 

[airforceb2]

So requiring a larger tank means that they wont live in a smaller tank. I never said it will die immediatly but it will become stressed and prone to ich. Tangs can live in a 30 gal tank...it just has to be long...they love to swim.
However, I highly doubt it will make it past your cycle. Ammonia is toxic and burns the fish.

 

[f1shman]

Yes. You like many other newcomers fall wrath to the fish store who just want your $$$. You shouldn't have added ANYTHING except possible the damsels until the cycle is complete! So for future reference always do your research on any fish/coral before you get it!! :joy: I highly doubt your yellow tang will make it, I would say, if you can, take them back to your pet store and see if they can hold them for you until your cycle is 100% done, then get them back.

 

[speg]

How has this hippo tang survived in a 24-26 (forget which) gallon nano for a couple years now?
How has MY yellow tang survived in my 46 gallon?
I have a Pacu in my fresh water tank... nobody told me how big they would get and how fast.. he is about a foot or so long and its only in a 55 gallon tank... he survives and thrives and grows larger every day.
Your next argument will be that they are unhappy... they eat.. they show personality.. how would I know if they are ACTUALLY unhappy ? If we could talk to the animals.....

 

[airforceb2]

What if I can? :thinking:
haha, just kidding.
I'm not saying you are wrong in doing it, just that I wouldn't do it myself. I'd rather watch my fish swim a lot more.
In this case however, the attention should be focused on the cycle first. See if you can take the fish back to the LFS until your cycle is done and then put them back in your tank.

 

[speg]

Originally Posted by airforceb2
In this case however, the attention should be focused on the cycle first. See if you can take the fish back to the LFS until your cycle is done and then put them back in your tank.
Yeah thats good advice. Probably all the fish except the damsels.

 

[wickj]

thanks for the advice however its doubtful the fish store will hold the tang for me its been 4 days and it seems to be doing good
my water lvs are ammonia is 1ppm , nitrite is 0.25ppm, nitrate is 0
the ph is between 7.8 and 8.0 ive read is should be 8.2 is this ok or should i do something about it?
thanks
jay

 

[monalisa]

Originally Posted by wickj
i am very new to the hobby i started a 55 gal salt water tank 8 days ago
i have a empeor 400 boiwheel filter
prizm skimmer
standard lights that came with tank
and a heater
the only knowledge i have is from the fish dealer and a book i got
after i mixed the watter and got it up to temp i added 40lb dry sand and 40lbs live sand three days later after water cleared i got 5 fish 2 clowns 2 damsels and 1 yellow tang
its been a few days now the fish seem to be doing fine i test the water every evening but im only showing a small amount of ammonia and maybe a little nitrite i know it hasent fully cycled yet but even the ammonia is still very low
do you think everything is going ok and any advice would be appreactied

I definitely second, or third, or...where ever we are at this point...take the fish back and have the LFS hold them for you until your cycle is complete. Please don't put any fish through that...shrimp from the grocery store works wonders to speed the cycle. JMO...
Lisa :happyfish

 

[speg]

You're not taking the fish back for keeps.. just ask the lfs guy nicely if he can please hold your fish for a week or however long it takes for your cycle to come to a end.. then slowly one by one over a period of a few days place them back in your tank after the cycle has completed!

 

[rberhow]

I want to give you some hope and let you know that you are not the only one who fell prey to money loving LFS's. When we started our tank, we began with 4 false percs and a yellow tang in our 55 gallon!!!! Its been about 6 weeks and our cycle seems to be complete. The tang did have a bout of ich and that was probably because of the poor thing having to go through the cycle.

I am still hoping and praying that our poor little fishies stay with us for years on end and that our foolishness didn't cause them any harm. I would definitely not suggest following our lead but I did want to let you know you are not alone. THankfully, we have found a great board like this to learn from and hopefully prevent our future mistakes. h*