new at saltwater tank having some problems

mgerbera

mgerbera

New Member
Hello
Me and my Wife have had are 55gallon tank set up for about three month some of the problems that we are having is First we dont know what the best type of light is for the tank and for two we cant seem to keep any angles or tangs alive in are tank for more than two week they get these little dots that come and go and then thay die. could it be that we buy them from ***** or some thing else? thank you for the help
 
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enigma1388

Guest
***** is horrible try to find a new local fish store.
 
fishfreak1242

fishfreak1242

Active Member
Originally Posted by MgerberA
http:///forum/post/2597667
Hello
Me and my Wife have had are 55gallon tank set up for about three month some of the problems that we are having is First we dont know what the best type of light is for the tank and for two we cant seem to keep any angles or tangs alive in are tank for more than two week they get these little dots that come and go and then thay die. could it be that we buy them from ***** or some thing else? thank you for the help
Ok first of all, like the previous poster, DONT GO TO *****!!!! Ive been there a few times and everything I bought from there died withing 2 weeks. Also, tangs need alot of swimming space and all of them need at least 75 gal tank. Next is that you shouldnt have any angels in your tank just yet. What kind did you get a dwarf or large? You can only keep a dwarf in a 55 because the larger ones can get up to 12+ inches. If you would like an angel, you should wait another 3 months at least. Were the dots white sugar like dots? If it was then it could have been ich due to all of the stress that you put them through. Some good advice would be to get a good book and start with some easy, hardy fish such as: Damsels, Clowns, Blennies, Cardinals, and gobies. Remember to take every purchase slow and observe the fish before buying. Also do some research before you buy ANYTHING to make sure that you do not spend $150 on a fish that will potentially wipe out your whole tank. Good luck.
 
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enigma1388

Guest
Clowns are a great starter fish. I had 2 as my first fish in my tank about 1 year ago and they were amazing! damsels are violent and can be a pain to get out if you ever would want to remove them. a lunare wrasse is incredible and will make full use of your tank and rock work (watch out they jump)
 
imurnamine

imurnamine

Active Member
First off, are your levels okay?
Not ALL PetCos are bad. My local ***** is great, it all depends on who is taking care of the tanks. Saying that ALL PetCos are bad is a rash generalization. But yes, most of them kind of suck.
Especially since they sold you a Yellow Tang knowing you have a 55.
How did you cycle?
What equipment are you running on it? Most importantly, DO YOU HAVE A SKIMMER?
 
richieexd

richieexd

Member
Hey Welcome to the board!
The white dots you mentioned that comes and goes sounds like ich to me.
I used to vouch for my ***** saying they are different from the usual "bad" Petcos. That was until... a clown that I purchased from ***** perished within 24 hours.

I would look for a good LFS and support them. I'm not sure if there is a "central" forum for your state but for New York there is a popular reef forum where I derive all my information from about local fish stores. So far so good
Found a store with excellent fishes, corals and prices!
Also, When you purchase a new fish you should examine it thoroughly for a good 5 to 10 minutes before purchasing it. Look for awareness in the fish. If it doesn't seem aware that there is a giant human being gawking at them...I would stay away from that fish. Look for signs of distress (heavy breathing), signs of transit damage (gill damage and what not) and of course, signs of diseases! Even if the fish doesn't seem to have any disease if one or more of it's tank mates are sick, it is more than likely that fish is carrying some bad stuff! Finally when you are satisfied with the the fish, ask the person working there how long the fish has been in the tank and what is eating. (I generally do not buy a fish unless it has been in the tank for at least 2 weeks, but that's because I'm only a teenager and financing my own stock and equipment is some what hard. Needless to say every death burns my wallet slightly harder than it would to an adult :p ) Oh yea, Ask them to feed the fish to see that it is active and eating.
 
notsonoob

notsonoob

Member
Is it me or is you tank a bit small for tangs and angels?
I wouldn't put them in anything under a 120 gallon.
 
mgerbera

mgerbera

New Member
none of the other fish seem to have a problem its just the bigger fish and the only reason that we buy are fish from ***** is because my wife works there and gets discount. Other then that we arent sure about buying this type of things online.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Gerber,
In your case, I guess it would be alright to buy from *****. I wouldn't honestly put any more large fish in your tank just to watch them die.
If they were getting small white dots on them, they were stressing out and needed to be put in a quarantine tank, perhaps with cupramine to get them back to health.
What are your water parameters? How much live rock do you have? What is your filtration? What is your internal flow? What other tank mates do you have?
 
mgerbera

mgerbera

New Member
Originally Posted by SnakeBlitz33
http:///forum/post/2598112
Gerber,
In your case, I guess it would be alright to buy from *****. I wouldn't honestly put any more large fish in your tank just to watch them die.
If they were getting small white dots on them, they were stressing out and needed to be put in a quarantine tank, perhaps with cupramine to get them back to health.
What are your water parameters? How much live rock do you have? What is your filtration? What is your internal flow? What other tank mates do you have?
Ok the water seems to be fine we have been using a "Saltwater master test kit" that seems read that we have no problems. as for live rock theres none. and filtration system we have (1)Emperor 280 and (1) Whisper 60 power filter. and as for the water flow i think the theres a good amount. who would i tell. and the tank mates are (1) puffer (1) snowflake eel (1) three stripe damesl (1) blenny lawnmower and they all seem to be healthy.
 
jints

jints

Member
Originally Posted by MgerberA
http:///forum/post/2598567
Ok the water seems to be fine we have been using a "Saltwater master test kit" that seems read that we have no problems. as for live rock theres none. and filtration system we have (1)Emperor 280 and (1) Whisper 60 power filter. and as for the water flow i think the theres a good amount. who would i tell. and the tank mates are (1) puffer (1) snowflake eel (1) three stripe damesl (1) blenny lawnmower and they all seem to be healthy.
Lawnmower Blenny needs hair algae to survive or you have to at least get him some algae sheets (nori) to supplement. I would sugest you buying some live rock to add to the natural filtration as well as live sand but then you would have to remove all the fish and let the tank cycle. me thinks the fish wont survive with your limited knowledge in the hobby. Read read and read some more there are alot of people on this site that can help you. If your fish die or your tank crashes...make sure you get some live rock and live sand before you think about getting fish. Or you can give your fich back to the LFS and start over....maybe get some store credit. Also...buy a good skimmer....its a tank saver!!
 
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