New guy....give me some critiquing!

[hatebreed]

Mt first salt tank, 55 gallons. I have been running for about two months now. Started off with 50 pounds of good live rock from the LFS. I've been maintaining a salinity of 1.023 to 1.0235 and a PH of 8.3. Lighting is a set of power compacts, 260 watts total.
I'm running a bakpak2 skimmer/filter, a couple smaller power heads and a digital probe thermometer. Temperature has been a consistant 77-79 degrees.
About a month ago I checked all my levels...had right around 30ppm nitrate, 0 on both nitrites and ammonia. So I added a royal gramma and a pajama cardinal fish as well as a sebae anemone and a few hermit crabs.
After another week, levels were maintaining so I added two urchins, a fire shrimp, a sally lightfoot, 4 snails and a pink cucumber. Also a little clump of live plant to help nitrates.
Performed my first (5 gallon) water change, nitrates dropped to 25ppm. So now we're at week three. I added a blue tang (2.5 inch?) and a green brittle star, as well as 3 new snails.
Today marks week four. Nitrates have now dropped to 12.5ppm with the help of the plant. (i assume..) I now have 23 critters total....just added a pom pom crab, sexy shrimp and an electric flame scallop today.
A few days ago I noticed some ich on my tang. Of course, being the classic new guy....I have no quarantine tank. Luckily...my fire shrimp has cleaned pretty much all ich from the tang and on reccomendation from the LFS guy I added some "coral vital" to the tank. He claims this will help combat the ich without adding any negatives to the tank. I have no idea how....but the dude does have a 4 year biology degree and is probably the wisest fish guy I've ever met in person. Anybody know if this may actually help? Is it possible my shrimp can contain this little outbreak on his own?
Problem number two:
With the addition of the Tang, my royal Gramma has gone into hiding. The Tang took his house. So he has moved into a new house....out of sight. I have seen him for a total of about 15 seconds a day for the last two days and no sighting him at all today. His color has darkened...and he hasn't eaten in three days. Anything I can do here other than hope for the best and does anybody have any predictions as to what may happen here?
Alright, well that's all I can think of....let me know what y'all think. I appreciate any pointers!

 

[saltwater8]

Well, for starters, your sebae requires a mature (at the very least 6 months old) aquarium and high lighting.

:happyfish

 

[hatebreed]

Originally Posted by Saltwater8
Well, for starters, your sebae requires a mature (at the very least 6 months old) aquarium and high lighting.

:happyfish
Will 260 watts not be sufficient lighting? I considered halides, but I really didn't want to deal with chillers. He also picked a place shaded by a rock, so I figured my lighting must have been at least adequate.
As far as tank maturity, live and learn I suppose. He seems to be doing relatively well so far. Has nice supple limbs/tentacles, eats regularly, seems to have good color. Those all seem to be good indications of health in my experience with freshwater fish (cichlids), though admittedly I know very little about salt. I picked him up from a chain store for $8 mismarked as a rock flower. All his tank mates are at the same store, near dead. Hopefully he'll do alright. Any suggestions for making the anemone more comortable now that I've gone ahead and added him?

 

[promisetbg]

I recommend that you SLOOOWWW down. Also that you research first before adding anything else. Your SG. should be bumped up a bit...1.025 would be better.
Coral Vital is going to do nothing to help a tang with ich. As far as the royal gramma I would just give him time. Do not move the rocks at this point, as it may stress the tang further. You could try adding garlic extreme or some fresh copped garlic to his food{add ,soak,and remove the latter}. The ich will remain in the tank though..and any stress can cause an outbreak. A QT tank is the best solution..and inexpensive to set up.Keep an eye on that green brittle,they are known predators.

 

[fishy7]

I would slow it on down and do a lot more knowledge gathering. All seems fine today but you are setting your self up. Your tank is new and very unstable till about 6 months. I did a bunch of reading and this is the best advice money can buy. I would search and get a copy of this book: Conscientious Marine Aquarist by Robert Fenner It's a great way to learn about the basics.
Good luck

 

[saltwater8]

Actually Robert Fenner says 260W PC is fine for a sebae, which was a shock to me...

:happyfish

 

[maryd]

My sabae clown did fine in a newer tank. He is still doing fine. They seem to be pretty hardy. My tank is not yet 6 months old. MY royal gramma hid a bit at first but now he's out all the time swimmign around. I have no problems with him and then tang but the yellow tang was in there first. They each have their own areas in the rock to sleep.

 

[saltwater8]

Originally Posted by MARYD
My sabae clown did fine in a newer tank. He is still doing fine. They seem to be pretty hardy. My tank is not yet 6 months old. MY royal gramma hid a bit at first but now he's out all the time swimmign around. I have no problems with him and then tang but the yellow tang was in there first. They each have their own areas in the rock to sleep.
We are talking about a sebea anenome

 

[hatebreed]

Originally Posted by promisetbg
I recommend that you SLOOOWWW down. Also that you research first before adding anything else. Your SG. should be bumped up a bit...1.025 would be better.
Coral Vital is going to do nothing to help a tang with ich. As far as the royal gramma I would just give him time. Do not move the rocks at this point, as it may stress the tang further. You could try adding garlic extreme or some fresh copped garlic to his food{add ,soak,and remove the latter}. The ich will remain in the tank though..and any stress can cause an outbreak. A QT tank is the best solution..and inexpensive to set up.Keep an eye on that green brittle,they are known predators.
I'm definitely done stocking for a while. I know I've gone way too fast.
I thought the coral vital seemed hokey, but he said it makes a "more difficult environment for ich to thrive in." He too said a quarantine tank would be best. I figured it (the coral vital) would be harmless either way since it says it helps grow coralline algaes and a few other positives.
As far as the ich goes I have the following questions:
You stated the ich will remain in the water. Do you reccomend a UV sterilizer? I am pitifully uninformed, but am familiar with UV sterilizers as applied to water for human consumption. I suspected they would be a threat to beneficial bacteria in my water since killing bacteria is their purpose in water for human consumption. Do you suggest I attain one of these?
Secondly, what is a sound way to set up a quarantine tank? My friend ran one and killed everything he ever put in it. Should I just jump start it with a piece of live rock, water from my established tank, a power head and a heater?
Lastly, as orignally posed...any chance my shrimp can contain this little outbreak and also, does ich pose a threat to other creatures besides fish? Are any of my inverts at risk?
Thanks to everybody for the help and suggestions, I appreciate them all!

 

[saltwater8]

Get a product by Chem-Marin called Stop Parasite.
Everyone who has used it swears by it. It can be used in the display tank.
Yes, a UV sterilizer is a very good investment. You can get a good Turbo Twist one for $79.
:happyfish

 

[promisetbg]

I disagree with using ANY meds in a display tank. I don't do UV sterilizers either ..as yeah they can kill the parasite,but other beneficial organisms that are necessary as well.
"Secondly, what is a sound way to set up a quarantine tank? My friend ran one and killed everything he ever put in it. Should I just jump start it with a piece of live rock, water from my established tank, a power head and a heater?"
Maintaining a QT tank is not hard if you are willing to test with good test kits and stay on top of parameters. If you are using a hang-on type filter for it..then naturally you have to keep media very clean. PH and ammonia must be monitored closely, especially when doing hypo-salinity. Using LR, and borrowing someone's hang-on {they kept the bio-wheel in their sump} is how I started my QT. Some people keep their QT going with a damsel or other small fish. Use pieces of PVC for hiding. Lighting is'nt necessary. A 29 is a decent size. Syphon detritus and leftover food daily.{just like we do at the shop~LFS} Water should be changed often, and water that is ready to use should always be handy{a 5 gal bucket running with a PH for circulation to keep the ph up is good.} Of course some people don't like their home to look like an LFS..LOL. I guess I'm used to it.

The inverts are not at risk. Ich does'nt really 'want' to kill it's host...then it would'nt have food. It can remain and often does and goes unnoticed in many tanks as it can just be a light case. When a fish gets really stressed and loses it's slime coat...then the ich can attack in high numbers. If it appears to have gone away..it has'nt....it's just in a different stage of it's cycle. There are free swimming stages, and they even go to the substrate/rocks.

 

[aufishman]

Originally Posted by hatebreed
I'm definitely done stocking for a while. I know I've gone way too fast.
I thought the coral vital seemed hokey, but he said it makes a "more difficult environment for ich to thrive in." He too said a quarantine tank would be best. I figured it (the coral vital) would be harmless either way since it says it helps grow coralline algaes and a few other positives.
As far as the ich goes I have the following questions:
You stated the ich will remain in the water. Do you reccomend a UV sterilizer? I am pitifully uninformed, but am familiar with UV sterilizers as applied to water for human consumption. I suspected they would be a threat to beneficial bacteria in my water since killing bacteria is their purpose in water for human consumption. Do you suggest I attain one of these?
Secondly, what is a sound way to set up a quarantine tank? My friend ran one and killed everything he ever put in it. Should I just jump start it with a piece of live rock, water from my established tank, a power head and a heater?
Lastly, as orignally posed...any chance my shrimp can contain this little outbreak and also, does ich pose a threat to other creatures besides fish? Are any of my inverts at risk?
Thanks to everybody for the help and suggestions, I appreciate them all!
UV is a waste of money. It requires a lot of maintenance to work effectively, and in large scale applications where UV is used to control pathogens the residence time is a lot longer than what you are going to find on a hobby UV unit. There are much easier and less costly ways to handle ich than UV. The best way to do it is move all your fish to a qt tank and treat it. You will need to keep all fish out of your main tank for ~6 weeks to be safe.

 

[mikeyjer]

I just hope there's enough food to go around for all those inverts you've added!!! Just to make sure you know, that blue tang will eventually NEED a larger tank to live in. And seriously, like it was already mentioned, you've added wayyy too much too soon. You should feed your inverts cause I do not feel that your tank have enough food to go around since it is not a well established tank. I would try garlic enhanced food like formula 2 for ALL your fish, it's a immune booster and will help to fight off ich. I would feed it up to 3-4 times daily. Feed nothing else but garlic food for a month. Blue Tangs are known to be ich magnets. You need to watch for all your levels and do water changes as needed. Good Luck! :happyfish

 

[hatebreed]

Originally Posted by Mikeyjer
I just hope there's enough food to go around for all those inverts you've added!!! Just to make sure you know, that blue tang will eventually NEED a larger tank to live in. And seriously, like it was already mentioned, you've added wayyy too much too soon. You should feed your inverts cause I do not feel that your tank have enough food to go around since it is not a well established tank. I would try garlic enhanced food like formula 2 for ALL your fish, it's a immune booster and will help to fight off ich. I would feed it up to 3-4 times daily. Feed nothing else but garlic food for a month. Blue Tangs are known to be ich magnets. You need to watch for all your levels and do water changes as needed. Good Luck! :happyfish

I have been feeding the inverts some. I have been giving flake to the brittle and the fire shrimp each day, which they both seem to appreciate. I've been putting little pieces of Spirulina under the rock my Sally Lightfoot favors so that it can float up and stick to the rock and he seems to like that. I also give the Tang spirulina and inevitably a little hits the bottom, which I'm hoping the Urchins are finding if they need it.
I had a crazy amount of algae at first, which was why I got the two urchins and the snails and hermits. After 5 days they had the tank spotless and no more growth is forthcoming.
I am considering getting rid of two of the Mexican Turbos...there is four. I have a friend with an overgrown tank so I may pass them along to him. Would you say 4 of the Mexican turbos is too many?

 

[mikeyjer]

Originally Posted by hatebreed
I have been feeding the inverts some. I have been giving flake to the brittle and the fire shrimp each day, which they both seem to appreciate. I've been putting little pieces of Spirulina under the rock my Sally Lightfoot favors so that it can float up and stick to the rock and he seems to like that. I also give the Tang spirulina and inevitably a little hits the bottom, which I'm hoping the Urchins are finding if they need it.
I had a crazy amount of algae at first, which was why I got the two urchins and the snails and hermits. After 5 days they had the tank spotless and no more growth is forthcoming.
I am considering getting rid of two of the Mexican Turbos...there is four. I have a friend with an overgrown tank so I may pass them along to him. Would you say 4 of the Mexican turbos is too many?
Yes I believe two is enough for a 55, they're voracious algae eaters. :happyfish

 

[psusocr1]

just my 02. cents
thats blue hippo you added is bad,, they get gigantic and shouldnt be in a 55 for very long so just keep that in mind, IMO they get ich very easy if in a small tank
ALSO i DISAGREE with whoever disagree's against adding any chemical to the tank
i had a small black ich outbreak and i added stop parasite right to the tank and the stuff is amazing! not only that but i have an overun of coepods in my tank since using stop parasite, not saying that adding them but it sure didnt effect their breeding!!