New saltwater gal, needing big time help fish boys!!!

[kaytiarafaith]

ok i got my tank 2 weeks ago, got the bioactive sand clerk told me wrong so i put freshwater on the sand!! he said i could just add water wait a day and add fish?!?! (checked the salt level,duh no salt in there) I was torked, found out later it was suspose to be saltwater I added, ..emptied tank kept sand used water from a well-established buddies tank, but think the sand messed up the good salt water , levels way too high, no bacteria in water, nitrates way too high, damsels are living, cleaner shrimp died,two anemones looking weak!! and one stupid crab attacking my anemone,damn thing,, help!!!fish store said let the tank sit?? is this all i can do??? still have fish in there?? yikes!!!

 

[lu]

Well, first of all, your tank is too young to have anemones in there. Dont put anymore fish in. Are you testing your water daily so you know the cycle is on?
And yes, all you can do is wait.....a month. DON'T be in a hurry to have it all done. Saltwater is way different than freshwater and the BIG thing is go slow, you have to give the whole system time to cycle....

 

[beth]

Don't add anything else to your tank. Instead, spend your money on a good marine hobby book so that you can learn what you need to do before jumping into this live animal hobby! A good book is Bob Fenner's, "The Conscientious Marine Aquarist", the emphasis being on "conscientious".
Next, stay with us on the BB so that you can learn. I'd suggest returning all your live animals to the LFS and not adding anything new until you have a better understanding of this hobby.
I'm not criticizing you, but you must have a steadier foot and a clearer understanding of the marine aquaria hobby before plunging into it as you have done, otherwise live animals will be sacrificed and you will find yourself in the predicament that you are now in.
Take my advise, you won't be sorry.