Question about new setup?

J

Jennifer Taylor

New Member
Hello everyone,
I have just set up a new 55g saltwater fish only tank. I did start with live sand and added a bottle of live bacteria to help it cycle. I have a fluval 306 canister filter rated for 303g an hour, a seaclone 100 skimmer, thermometer, and one power head. I cycled my tank for one month until test results were.
PH: 8.2
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 10 ppm
Salitity: 1.023
Water temp: constant 79°

So here are my question's.
4 days ago added two black and white clowns, one hermit crab, and one Mexican turbo snail. All seem to be doing. One clown is about 1" the other about 1/2".
Q1-I feed clowns once a day. One day flake food the next frozen cobalt marine. Is this two much, or not enough? Also is this the right food?
Q2-As for the snail I don't see much algea, should I supplement with algea sheets? And do I need to worry about the calcium, alkaline, and magnesium or should I be good with water changes every other week.
Q3-I took water tests today and these are may results.
PH: 8.0 this seems low how can I get it up?
Ammonia: .25ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm going to do water change tomorrow.
Salitity: 1.023
Water temp: 79°
So does everything look like it should?
Q4-When would it be OK to add another fish or two? And what would be the best fish for my tank set up and fishy friends?

I know my tank is on the small side I live in a rental and wanted to start to learn now about saltwater. When we move into a house I would love to have a 200g and will use this as a quarantine tank.

Also, any other tips or comments would be greatly appreciated. As I am here to learn all I can.
 
bang guy

bang guy

Moderator
55 is not a small tank. The dimensions are a bit awkward but it's not small.

The Turbin Snail cannot eat algae sheets. It can live quite some time without food, probably long enough until you have plenty for it, or a dozen, to eat. Good that you started with one.

The ammonia spike happened because the bacteria you added could not maintain their population without food. I'm guessing you did not ghost feed your tank while it was cycling.

Throw the flaked food away. Although nutritious, too much of the nutrition ends up in the water before the fish can eat it. The frozen food is fine for once a day. More if you plan on having the Clownfish breed. Consider making your own seafood.

I would test Alkalinity and Calcium. It's important to have adequate alkalinity and Calcium should be balanced. If you have difficulty maintaining a good alkalinity level then consider tasting Magnesium.

Q3 - a PH of 8.0 is fine. Especially for a new tank. Test the Alkalinity... Do NOT add anything to raise PH without first verifying that your Alkalinity is low. If it's not low to not add PH up or anything like that.

Another fish is fine but wait a bit. Ammonia needs to be zero. A week or so before you plan to add the new fish try overfeeding the Clownfish just a little bit. This will grow more bacteria to handle the waste of the new fish.

I would not suggest adding more than one fish at a time unless they are paired. Sometimes I know you just have to do it. If so see my note about overfeeding for a while to grow a larger bacteria colony first.

What fish are you considering?
 
J

Jennifer Taylor

New Member
I'm really not sure, I like probably most people saw saltwater fish in stores and thought oh I want one of those. (Puffer, blue tang, yellow tang, angles) but since starting this and all the research I have done, I have found out that those will not work in my tank. And I am not one who thinks "no big deal, if they live they live, if they don't they don't). I love all my pets fish encluded I only want to do what is right for them. So if you have any suggestions on fish that will work that are pretty and compatible I would appreciate it greatly.
 
beaslbob

beaslbob

Well-Known Member
I like using marco algaes (usually in a refugum) to balance out and stabilize the tank.

FWIW with the api ammonia test kit I always tested .25. Hard to tell at that level.

my .02
 
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