problem with killing damsels

chris200058

chris200058

Member
I have purchased a 125 gallon allglass tank (new) with A bio-ball filter system. I have requested info on other message board websites but eveyone keeps telling me I am doing nothing wrong and some are telling me that I have the wrong filter for my tank. 3 weeks ago I purchased 3 sets of damsels for my tank to start the cycling of the tank because I can't afford the LR yet. Although within 1 week they all died I have constantly been checking the levels in my tank and even went to the pet store and had them tested. All the tests are coming back great with my PH being just a little low. Saturday I went and purchased 3 more dominoe damsels trying to see if I could do it one more time although 2 of the 3 are already dead and the third is starting to show a little whitish color.
My levels are as follows as the person showed me at the store;
They did one of those dip tests and they gave me the results as follows;
ph 7.0
ammonia 0
nitrite 0
nitrate 0
salinity is 1.021
What should I do in order to stop the fish from Dying?
Please help!!!!
 
chris200058

chris200058

Member
The other web site I went to told me to buy mollies for cycling a swtank do you have any knowledge of this working?
 
maroonclownfan

maroonclownfan

Member
Use dead shrimp or live rock/sand...please
Spare the damsels....they aren't my favorite fish either, but hey they deserve a chance to live too.
I too made the mistake once, never again. lost two yellow tail blues.
IMO, Live rock and sand works much better.
MCF
 
fshhub

fshhub

Active Member
no matter which fish you use to cycle, with, there is a strong chance it could die,this is normal
however, with 3 fish in it, and them dying, I think there should have beensome type of rise in trites and or amonia by now. Something may be fishy.
go with the shrimp, they are cheaper and will last through the cycle. Remeber, use raw shrimp, not breaded or LIVE, but raw steamed shrimp. 2 or 3 is fine and may cost you(depending on region) about $5 total.
I second getting your own test kit,and definitely do NOT get strips. NOT IMO, but from vast experience with test kits on variuos levels and areas(not only reefing). STRIPS are NOT always accurate, and are way too easy to corrupt. They cannot be relied upon for accuracy at all. NEVER could. They are only convenient.
 
fishvdo

fishvdo

New Member
pH? 7.0 it not little you should get pH powder about $9 it will bring your pH to 8.2 and your tank should be fine
 
killafins

killafins

Active Member

Originally posted by chris200058
The other web site I went to told me to buy mollies for cycling a swtank do you have any knowledge of this working?
please don't. Mollies need to be acclimated into saltwater for a long period of time. Althuogh they are hardy, I heard it would take a couple days to do it properly. Don't buy any more fish since the damsels can't even survive. Go get some grocery shrimp and wait it out. The shrimp might do a better job.
 
fshhub

fshhub

Active Member
actually, mollies can be acclimated up in under a day, but I still would go with raw shrimp, cheaper and you do not have to worry about gettign them out or them dying. The mollies, They too can die while cycling as well, not as likely but they do.
 
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