Jumping in head first!

[midland texas]

Hi everyone,
I started a long time dream of a aquarium. and i did it with a bang! I have never done this before and have every little knowledge of being an Aquarist. A description of what i have.
180 gal reef tank
75 gallon sump tank with a 1/3 of it made into a refugium.
300 watt heater
2-250watt 14,000 kinetic metal halide on 8-10 hrs per day
2 blue florescent lamps T-5
20" t-5 on my refugium for the green and red plants i have in it
swc 230 xtreme cone protein skimmer
koralia 4 way wave maker with 3 - koralia 6 power heads
200 lbs of Valenti live rock and 180 lbs of crushed coral for substrate
live stock:
1 small yellow tang
2 light blue damsels
2 clown fish
1 blue/yellow damsel
1 decorator crab
1 long tentacle anemone
15 quarter size carpet anemones
16 cleaner shrimp
25 small crabs super small
25 snails super small
2 Mandarin gobys
medium buckeyes i think their called orange and green
now with all this it would seem like a lot, but to me it still looks empty
the quality of the water is according to the stripe i use...excellent 0 nitrite,nitrate, pH= 0
hardness is 8-9
temp is 78*
i use purple up usually everyday
feeding every other day half frozen cube of shrimp
and some of the red weed for the tang.
i also give the shrimp some gel shrimp stuff they seem to love it.
i have had the system now for 2 months. Lost 5 damsels at the start. then 1 clown fish that i bought as a pair, the other is still alive and well.
I lost a different clown fish that i bought in pairs a bit later. the one is still alive and well.
just today i lost a lipstick tang, he got stuck(wedged) in the rocks and die.
for the most part things look like they are doing well, minus the occasional death.
I don't add any supplements or anything not mentioned.
i did a 50 gal water change 30 days from the start and about to do it again.
So, my question is .... am i doing it right, or wrong,? am i missing something ? what are some concerns i should be looking for?
Any opinions welcome
Tanks...lol

 

[tjbeams]

Welcome to the site, I'm sure you will got a lot of information here. First off the testing strips you use, I would ditch them. They aren't very accurate and it would be better if you got liquid test kits. Are you keeping corals in the tank? Corals need additional test kits like calcium, andn dKh and mangesium for example. For the fish list, damsels are nasty and usually pick on other fish in the tank, so be careful with that. Another concern I would have is the mandarins. You need to have an established tank for at least a year before even thinking about adding one. Unless your adding a great abundance of copepods every couple weeks. Those guys are very picky eaters. Anenomes needs an established aquarium also. Keep a close eye on this because if they die they can decimate a tank. They release toxins when they die. As for the purple up I wouldn't use it that often. I use it occasionally, maybe a dose every two weeks. I also change my water either weekly or biweekly. Hopefully some of that helped, and I'm sure some other opinions will be shared.

 

[midland texas]

Thanks for the advise.
I plan is to have more corals than fish, but until that gets going i figured i would get some experience in fish and the problems they have and get more time in with handling the tanks . I really like the coral, but don't know much about them and all the important stuff to keep them going. i am sure i am going to crash and burn but i would rather do that than not try anything. i have heard a lot about the damsels and the bulling they do. i will keep an eye on the one he seems to be much more aggressive to the light blue ones than the other fish. but i am sure that may change. I plan on getting the liquid test kits and more cope-pods. in fact i am making a list as we speak for my next shipment .
please keep the ideas coming i appreciate the help.
tanks
Midland Texas

 

[tjbeams]

No problem, biggest piece of advice I can give is to do research, be open minded, and have a lot patience.
:hi:

 

[snakeblitz33]

This is a forum, and I am sure you will get a lot of opinions. It really depends on you if you are going to listen or not. So, for my two cents...
Welcome to the forums, I hope you enjoy your stay. Please, share some pictures of your setup with us and we can make suggestions. Or, you could even create a build thread of your own, kind of like a tank journal that you can keep up with progress.
I know you have a sump, but what return pump are you using? Also, do you have any powerheads at all? I don't see any listed in there under equipment. Water flow is very important in a saltwater aquarium - it provides oxygen, carries CO2 and waste away from sessile organisms and keeps waste from accumulating in problem areas.
Fish deaths are not that uncommon when it comes to new tanks. The main thing is to keep going slow and take it one step at a time.
I suggest that you stop dosing Purple Up - it's solely a calcium supplement and does no good for the water chemistry. If your goal is to grow coralline algae and make corals grow better and more dense, then I suggest that you look into a two part solution of calcium and alkalinity and learn the correct ratios of what they should be.
I also suggest that you get a better test kit. The strips are no good. Salifert or Seachem test kits are quality test kits and worth every penny.
Using crushed coral is pretty much a newbie mistake. Everyone makes it the first go around. While it is entirely possible to keep a tank with crushed coral, you need to be aware that you have to gravel vacuum it out at every water change. It WILL accumulate detritus, waste and debris which will wreak havoc on your water parameters and on the health of your fish, corals, and invertebrates.
Some of the inverts that you listed actually need a sandy substrate for long term survival.
So... in summation:
1. Crushed coral needs to be gravel vac'd at every water change.
2. Sand is preferred substrate.
3. Fish deaths in new tanks are not uncommon.
4. Stop using purple up and replace it with a two part solution of calcium and alkalinity.
5. Buy quality test kits instead of the strips. Learn how water chemistry effects the health of the tank. Buy a magnesium test kit, you will need it.
6. Define what it is that you want out of your system and where you want your system to take you.

 

[snakeblitz33]

May I also direct you to this thread... You may find some useful information in it.
https://forums.saltwaterfish.com/t/388776/guides-for-new-hobbyists

 

[sweat90lx]

Welcome!
Snake has a wealth of very useful information and can help us all here. He missed the part about your 3 koralia powerheads though.

You need better test kits than the strips like others have said. And dont dose anything you cant test for.
My best advice is to take things slowly. I am new to this also and my tank IS very empty.
Set a goal of how you want to tank to end up and make a plan to achieve that goal.

 

[flower]

Hi,
Welcome to the site!
I love the idea that you dream of the aquarium...if you can picture it in your head, you can do it.
Now I would like to offer some advice that will always hold true and help you.
NEVER, EVER dose anything in your fish tank that you have not tested for FIRST. If a test says you are low, then and only then do you add anything. Purple-up is calcium, so get a test for it before using the stuff.
The next important thing to keep in your mind...If you have a sick fish, do not treat the display tank...remove the fish and place it in a hospital tank.
Figure out your all time favorite must have fish, and build your system around it. Any fish you add dictates what else can live in the tank, and it's a royal pain to have to remove a fish later. So be picky and careful...read all you can about any critter you add to your tank.
RO (reverse osmoses) water should be used instead of tap water. There are chemicals in tap water that fish don't need and well water is loaded with stuff you don't want in your tank. So start with super filtered water (RO) and that way the only thing in your water is what you add via your saltmix and additives. That will give you control and help you keep corals, fish and inverts healthy and happy. If you already used tap or well water...do all following water changes, and top offs with RO from now on.
Lab type test kits are a must. Strip ammonia tests are acceptable. If you have a reading at all...THEN do a lab type ammonia test to know what exactly is going on. For everything else don't even bother with strips. They do sell just ammonia strips so you can keep them on hand, and use them if the fish look stressed...it's an instant way to know if ammonia is the problem.