did I mess up?

[melissa]

hello, I am new to all of this and have a 30 gallon tank, I waited until the nitrite was gone to add my fish. I bought the LR and LS like the pet store told me to. As soon as they gave me the go ahead I bought a maroon clownfish, 2days later a shrimp, 4 crabs, 2more days I added a coral beauty and a royal gramma then tonight I added a gobie? sifts the sand. anyway did I add fish too quickly. I did have my water tested tonight and the nitrate level is fine, ph was a little low.I just love my fish and want to do the best for them. any advice would be greatly appreciated. sorry this is so long!

 

[whipple]

Youre moving a little fast but if all levels are ok then dont freak out but use a little patience and also you might be bordering to many fish.

 

[fshhub]

if all is ok, then don't panic, however for a couple of more days I WOULD monitor your water parameters(every day or 2) closely, just to be safe
Other than that just slow down(alot), I definitely would wait a month or so before adding anything else, to let your bio system play catch up, not to mention the fact, you may be close to maxing out your system already, the maroon clown and coral beauty will get enough to max it out by themselves
how much lr do you have? and ls?
good luck

 

[y2says]

I think you went a bit too fast. You want to have your livestocks situated first and don't want to mess up your bio-load. From mine experienc, dwarf angels are tough to keep in a newly set-up tank. Wait about 6 months before you add one. Since you already did, keep a close eye on him. I wouldn't add anything else in your tank because it'll be a lot tougher to keep the water quality consistent.

 

[bobothewizard]

Your fine, most of those fish you added were pretty hardy. Dont forget though, every time you add a new fish or liverock or pretty much anything, your levels will go crazy for a little bit. I especially wouldnt really worry about the crabs/clean up crew, as they will not add to your bio load on your tank unless you try to stick a few hunderd crabs in there

 

[melissa]

thank you to all who have replied, as for the live rock I have about 20lbs and ls is 20lbs, I was going to add more sand since it seems to not be enough. by the way I have a corner tank. Last night after buying my gobie I looked him up since the pet store didnt give me any info on him and it said they jump out of tanks. right before I went to bed I told my hubby I was worried and he got up to but some plastic wrap on the little spots that arent covered, and sure enough the gobie was on the floor! I am not sure how long he had been out of the water but he is still alive this morning. do any of you know how long a fish can be out of water and still be ok? I appreciate all your advice, before I buy any fish I have always told the pet store person how long my tank has been running and what fish I have and they always say oh you will be fine, makes me wonder do they care?

 

[josh]

Melissa,
How long can you live without oxygen.. Minutes, same for the fish. Maybe he just couldn't take it anymore!

 

[eric18]

melissa your readings may be fine now but in a week or 2 they may sky rocket becasue ur tnak will go throguh another cycle but doin worry theyll go down after that and those fish u have should be able to handle it

 

[gq]

Mellisa,
The thing about having a slt water tank is that it is very exciting and you want to get everything that you see in sight.
A couple of things to worry about

• Crowding
  Ick
  Cycles
  AND RUSHING!

Just make sure that you don't do it to soon i mean i have a 55g and my tank has been setup for 4 months and i only have a percula, and false royal gramma and i just bought a dwarf flame angel! And a couple of corals. "I'm glad to have you here at SWF.COM and enjoy good luck and do A LOT OF READING!" That's what it's here for
WELCOME

 

[wrigley11]

hey josh, don't pick on her and if you had a clue it may actually be funny.
Melissa... about how long a fish can live out of water depends on the spieces and if the gills a wet. The general rule is if the fishes gills are still wet they can live outside of water. The length will depend on the species because some speices have better control on opening and closing their gill covers. Nurse sharks for example can spend longer periods out of water because of this.
So in the future keep your fish in the tank and they will be a lot happier...
Also about your tank, I would check you tanks levels everyday maybe twice a day for the first week or so... You added a lot of biomass really quickly... if you detect any elevated levels do a water change ASAP...
Hope that helps, if you have any other questions just ask

 

[oldest salt]

Melissa
Hi, welcome to the board and the marine hobby. As you can see there's lots of advice to be had.
From Bobothewizard,
I especially wouldnt really worry about the crabs/clean up crew, as they will not add to your bio load on your tank unless you try to stick a few hunderd crabs in there
I would like to clarify something in the above quote, every living thing you ad to your aquarium adds to the bio-load, including the very bacteria that makes the nitrogin cycle happen. All living creatures eat something and that produces waste and that is where the term bio-load comes into play. If a fish dies and left unattended too or uneaten food is left to rot that leads to an increase in bio-load.
Putting to many creatures to fast into your aq is the most often committed error of newbies.
Slow down! Enjoy the view! If your LFS has something you can't live without, relax there'll be another one.
The most important obligation we have as reef/fish hobbiests is to provide the safest, most comfortable environment possible for our charges. If we fail to learn to do that, then we are guilty of consumption. Learn to keep them alive for extended periods of time (years). You will enjoy them much better that way.
Did you add to many? It kind of sounds like it to me. But what is done is done. Now keep them healthy and alive. They will reward you with many happy moments.
I know because I have been this hobby for 55 years.
Happy Holidays
The Oldest Salt

 

[josh]

Fellow cub fan:
All that about the gill covers is great, I see you went to a site before composing that.Take a fish out of your tank and see how long he lives. Maybe a few minutes at best. Melissa I wasn't making fun of you, nor would I intend to. This hobby is full of people that are most willing to help and not to ridicule, I didn't know jack when I started years ago. Some people just take things a bit too literal. No question is a dumb question.