saltwater beginner

[sammiegirl]

i now have my first saltwater tank and i have a few questions about the nitrite levels in it( for my fishes benefit). i cycled the tank for about 6 weeks and added a damsels( which i learned are mean little fish) and a clownfish. the damsels life was very short about 2 weeks. i didn't add anymore fish and did water changes and checked the ph , ammonia , and nitrite levels and they have been good for about 2 weeks . well, until i added a yellow head goby and a hawkfish and 4 snails. now my nitrite levels are going up again. i am watching the amount of food i am giving them plus i am cleaning the sand. is there something else i need to do? everyone here at my local fish store can't believe my clownfish outlived the damsel ..... i need any and all advise.....

 

[joker_ca]

first you need to post levels so we can see whats going on with your tank, and secondly dont syphon your sand just let it be
are you sure its nitrite and not nitrate, because once your tank is fully cycled you really shouldnt see any nitrite at all

 

[sammiegirl]

Originally posted by joker_ca
first you need to post levels so we can see whats going on with your tank, and secondly dont syphon your sand just let it be
are you sure its nitrite and not nitrate, because once your tank is fully cycled you really shouldnt see any nitrite at all
oops it is the nitrate (told you i was new ) ) i checked the levels again and they are ph 8.2 ammonia is 0ppm and the nitrite is back down to 0ppm .. can adding new fish cause it to go up? and if this is the problem can it harm the fish ( new/old ones) everytime i add one.. i am wanting to get a bigger tank but i want to get this one under control first..

 

[rubberduck]

well adding fish will put an additional bioload on your tank which could result in ammonia rising. a water change would be good. your bactiria is probably unprepared for the bioload you put in. if i were you. i would try to overfeed so your bactiria is read and prepared

 

[joker_ca]

everytime you add fish your levels will go up alittle because of the new bioload but dont be to worried about it
also fish can tolerate high levels of nitrate of 30ppm with no problems......well most fish but inverts will not be to happy

 

[sammiegirl]

how many fish can you have in a 30 gallon tank without having problems?
at the moment i have 1 clownfish , 1 golden head sleeper goby,1 falco hawkfish and 1 horseshoe crab and i just added a coral beauty angel.. the angel seems to want to hide alot. he moved in the goby's place in the rocks and the goby is not to happy about it ..:notsure:

 

[scubadoo]

That's plenty fish to add to a 30 gallon tank in a short period of time. What was the interval of time between additions? You best keep a close eye on your levels as you could see a mini-cycle start. When adding fish, you need to do it slowly to allow your biological filter to grow with the increased bio-load.
No hard fast rule...but it is best to wait 2-4 weeks between additions if adding a small fish and 4-6 weeks between additions if adding a medium/large fish. Slow is the best way to go in this hobby.
As far as the number of fish...usally one inch of fish per 5 gallons of water. You can cheat a little bit on this depending on filtration but not with a new tank. Sounds like you are already at max bio-load with the fish.

 

[sammiegirl]

most of the fish i have are small ones. the biggest is the angel and its only about 2 inches . the nemo and hawkfish are small. and i have been adding them one at a time and checking the levels every day. i have two filters on it because the first one i got was not the correct one and the man told me to keep it running along with the new . because it would only help the tank... is this correct ???? i am excited that i have kept the levels down and hope i can continue to keep my fish healthly and swimming around.. we are very relaxing to watch after a long day at the office. )~

 

[scubadoo]

Depends on the filtration but I do not think it will hurt. What type of filters do you have set-up?
It is important to monitor your tank when it is first set-up especially if you add fish quickly. Adding one at a time in a short period can still be risky if your biological filter is strained due to bio-load. The tank is small so I would expect the fish to also be small.
yes, an aquarium is relaxing as there are studies which show it lowers blood pressure to sit and watch an aquarium ...unless you have a disease problem, cloudy water, are a battle among the neighbors in the tank.
Best of luck and keep us posted as how things are progressing.

 

[loup]

do you have a protien skimmer? what about live rock and how much? Consider adding snails for clean up crew.
Yeah, damsel are evil. To bad yours die off before and you didn't get the joy of getting them out the tank as i did.

 

[scotts]

First of all Hi and welcome to the board.

Let me give you some general advice first, do not do anyhing to your tank for a little bit. About a week at least and do some reading on this site. I say this because you sound like you are in the same place I was when I started, listening to the LFS. I literally poured many $$$ into my tank. For every problem I had he had a $20 bottle of something to solve the problem. Then I found this site, learned how to do things and stopped pouring the $$$ into my tank and I am much happier.
Now for some specifics, First of all you do not vacuum sand. Your sand has bacteria and stuff in it that is good for your tank, if you vacuum your sand, you vacuum out the good bacteria from your sand. Second, what type of filters do you have? Third, you need to research EVERYTHING before you buy it. My story, on impulse I bought a beautiful 2" fish. After I found this site I learned about researching thins and found out tha this fish completely changes color and grows to 18 inches long.
I will now get off my soapbox and see if my daughter has eaten all of my ice cream yet.
Sorry if I sound like a jerk, just have your best interest at heart and I want you to succeed.
Scott

 

[sammiegirl]

thanks guys for the help i need all i can get.. and yes i do have live rock in the tank i am not sure how much because i buy a couple piece at a time . i am picky about the shapes i get for my tank. ( i know it sounds crazy ) but i am sure i have about 20lbs at the moment. i was reading up on the protein skimmers and thinking on buying one next time i am at the fish store. do you count the snails as part of the fish ? or can you have as many as you want ?
p.s i hope you got some ice cream scott... lol

 

[wax32]

You can have a lot, but you don't want a lot, only as many as you need.
I am pretty new too...
In my 29 gallon I have about 10 astrea snails and 10 nassarius snails and 15 or so hermits of various species. They seem to do a pretty decent job of keeping things clean.
I have 2 ocellaris clowns and 1 fire goby and 1 bi-color blenny (all fish that stay pretty small) and I consider my tank "full" fish-wise.
Hope I was helpful.

 

[loup]

since your tank size is close to mine, here the number of clean crew i have.
10 nassauris snail
10 cerith snail
2 turbo mexican
2 scarlet red hermit
you should consider getting 1 turbo mexican along w/ 7-10 nassaruis and cerith snail. 1 fighting counch is cool to. That crew should help keep your tank and rock clean after you get the other equipement in.