Starting over

[shreez]

I've gotten some diseased fish that have successfully wiped out my entire reef. Whatever it is came from a yellow tail damsel and infected everything in my tank. I'm in the process of starting over now though and rebuilding my tank. I'm opting not to go with a reef this time because I've found that a lot of the fish that I like a lot tend to pick at corals, making a reef a bad choice for me.
I've been told by the local lfs that I should not use any of my live rock or substate because it could be contaminated and kill any new additions that I put in. So I have already gotten rid of all of this and am now working on rebuilding the entire system. I'm planning on using live sand and am going to build my base with playsand and some live sand from the lfs.
Since this is a 25 gallon tank, are there any fish that I should consider for this particualar setup? Also is the cycling process any different for a fish only tank?
Thanks,
Chris

 

[flydan]

Hey,
I don't think you needed to get rid of lr and dsb. I believe that fish deseases will not be present in your tank if there have been no fish in there. They need a host of some sort to exist. Hope you didn't toss your lr! Others will jump in here if I'm wrong. You could also ask in the desease forum to check if I'm right. I'm certainly no expert of fish deseases, but there are plenty on this site.
Dan'l

 

[fender]

If it was a disease or parasite and not chemical then the LR and sand should've been ok. Most diseases and parasites need a host and after 4-6 weeks should be completely gone.....
Ina 25 gallon, most of the fish that can be kept could also be kept in a reef. What did you have in mind for fish?
Most if not all angels will get too big. Puffers, triggers,tangs, eels, lionfish will all get too big.

 

[shreez]

The fish in the tank has no signs of a disease and also my water levels were almost perfect. I believe it have been a chemical contamination because it literally killed every living thing in my tank. I'm even having to be very cautious about changing everything in the tank out because I've been told that even the glass could still be contaminated.
My lfs stayed closed for more than a week just before all of my stuff died and just after I bought my last fish and rock. Needless to say I'm looking for a new one.
I'm sorry I threw you guys off by saying disease.
I'm just really wanting to add some really colorful fish to my tank, but I'm looking for more the "open sea" look rather than the "reef" look.
Again! Thanks for any suggestions.
Chris