I think i messed up..... real bad

[john06]

Hey,
I'm realy new to saltwater. I recently perchused a false perc and a condi. They are doing great in my 10 gallon tank but there is one really bad issue. The dumb people at ***** never told me anything about cycling. All they told me is that, it is best to wait 4 - 7 days before getting a fish. Well I am almost at day five and my fish are eating and seem fine, but I hear they will die and that is the last thing I want to happen. Please help me out here, I am totally lost and have no idea what to do with my fish. Will they be okay if i keep them in the tank? Anything will be great!!
Thanks

 

[suzi1780]

nope won't be good for them, you need to take them back to ***** asap!! your are going to have a huge spike in ammonia that is the start of your cycle that will probably kill your poor babies!

 

[alyssia]

First of all, do you have a test kit? You need to test your ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates, oh, and, ph. Do you have the proper lighting for an anemone? I'm not sure the anemone has much of a chance b/c they require pristine water conditions, which you obviously won't have while cycling.

 

[alyssia]

*****

 

[teresaq]

is the condi an anemonie?? if so, you will have to find a home for it. your tanks is no where near ready for one. they need an established tank, and proper lighting. your clown may be ok,, though if you can take it back then do, until your tank is properly cycled. it takes 4 to 6 weeks to that to happen. What are your water readings. keep a close eye on the ammonia

 

[john06]

What is this "cycle"?? everything i read i just keep comin up with the same answer. why do the ammonia levels go up anyways?? cant i just put some type of chemical in or something? isn't there something i could do before i take them back??

 

[cain420]

i would go to ***** with the fish in bags and get a refund!.. explain to them that you dont feel the need to torture the fish, but would like to come purchase at a later date.. make a big enough stink about it and they will give u a refund.. if not write their corporate headquarters.. one good thing about a chain store... you can complain and get things done!

 

[cain420]

i got my ls from *****.. $40 for 20lb bags.. about the same price as anywhere else for that, but alot closer to my home.. i traveled over a half an hour to get my lr tho...

 

[teresaq]

you need to do a search on what a cycle is and what it does. there are several threads about it. your tank need to stablize itself.

 

[alyssia]

Originally Posted by TeresaQ
you need to do a search on what a cycle is and what it does. there are several threads about it. your tank need to stablize itself.

Yes

 

[john06]

ok, so my clown can make it right?? tomorrow morning im taking my anemone back and on my way home im thinking of buying some live rock. whats the difference between normal rock and live rock? oh!! and what makes "cured" rock so special??? :notsure:

 

[heap]

>What is this "cycle"??
quick and dirty answer...ammonia levels will increase because there isn't enough bacteria to process the ammonia....until there is enough ammonia to sustain the bacteria in sufficient quantity. thus the spike that will definetly, absolutely, no question 'bout it kill your condi. the clown has a slightly better chance, but i don't think i can emphasize enough just how slight of a chance that is.
if you've grown attached to them, do them a favor...get them into a tank that wont kill them. be that back at *****, or with someone else that has an established tank...one way or another, it needs done.

 

[heap]

>>ok, so my clown can make it right??
could. not something i'd do, tho.
>>whats the difference between normal rock and live rock?
live rock is from an ocean environment, or from an established reef (be it natural or artificial) that has all sorts of little microbial/visible goodies on it to help keep your water kosher.
part of the process for live rock will involve a 'curing' process where a portion of these live goodies will die off. you can get 'pre-cured' live rock that will shorten the time period, but any shipping or time out of water will typically require another curing period.
patience is more than a virtue in the salt water aquarium hobby...it's a bloody requirement ;^)

 

[cain420]

is it possible to significantly shorten cycle time using lr from a well established tank??

 

[alyssia]

I think that does happen sometimes.

 

[john06]

ok so im at this website about saltwater cycling and its telling me i can cycle with a damselfish which is related to the clownfish. they say they will do well while the tank is cycling. is this true? if so can you guys tell me about experiences you have had with cycling tanks?? please give detailed info this is all realy confusing to take in at once

 

[heap]

potentially. you'd want to make sure the rock stayed submerged and within a sane temp range thruout the move from one place to another (assuming we aren't talking moving from one room to another here, or else a bucket would be fine), or else the die-off/psuedo-curing would only compound the problems.
i've had luck w/ reducing cycle time by moving live sand and filter media from an established tank to a cycling tank....still not something i'd want to do with livestock in the tank, tho.

 

[cain420]

Originally Posted by John06
ok so im at this website about saltwater cycling and its telling me i can cycle with a damselfish which is related to the clownfish. they say they will do well while the tank is cycling. is this true? if so can you guys tell me about experiences you have had with cycling tanks?? please give detailed info this is all realy confusing to take in at once

they might live but will not do well! how well would u be if u had pee n poop (ammonia) all over u all day long for a week or two???
get some shrimp that someone else killed at the grocery.. all u need is waste to get bacteria growth.. dead shrimp rotting in tank will work..

 

[alyssia]

Here we go again....isn't there like 3 or 4 threads right now about cycling with fish? And everyone starts arguing. Well, most everyone.

 

[cain420]

yea my dilemma is that i set up over a week ago, and had dead shrimp in for 4 days (so old when i went to take em out, they dissintegrated...the rock i used was all cured, must be.. never had ammonia spike!), with 16lbs of it being from a well established tank, at least 2 years old.. anywho... the shrimp never brought up the bacteria, but my rites went up SLIGHTLY for a day and now my rates are jumpin off the chart.. a mini cycle due to the established rock or what?? what should i do? some people say to get some live stock, others dont know what to say...