What should i use?

[liongirl]

When I started my tank it was going to be brackish water, so I had play sand on the bottom. Then (right away) I decided to go to Saltwater, so I put crushed coral over it. Since then I have added LS over the top of the CC. My very first cycle is almost over (the levels are almost down to 0, im not sure what NitrAte is at, i need to test it). I cycled my tank with damsels (6 of them, one of them died). When the first damsel died right away i was worried and took him back to the lfs and they said he had ICK, so I should treat my tank for 3 days. And i did and it turned all of my seals around the tank turquoise (and that ticked me off - but I was told it will go away with water changes). Then the next time i went into another lfs and told them i had treated my tank for ICK the guy yelled at ME (!) and told me that the person who told me that was an idiot and that you should never do that to a tank that is cycling. Well, shoot me but i didn't know that.
After reading stuff on this board, the thought has come to mind that maybe there are still chemicals left in my tank and my LS that I bought might be dead sand now. Could this be true?
Also, I want to put a dogface puffer and a Dwarf Lion in this tank (only those two fish) ... so what is going to go on the bottom of this tank, dead coral? Will adding dead coral change any of the chemicals in my tank? Or are there any other options of what I could put in there to make it look nice.
By the way, this is a 44 gallon (hexagon) tank.
I would appreciate any help you can give. Thanks!

 

[liongirl]

... can anybody help me?

 

[03]

well about the silicone seal it will almost go away in about ten years,he was right the guy who told you that wasn't the brightest star in the sky.also about the cycle you most likley killed some bacteria but not to worry you didn't do enough to kill all.now as far as adding fish the puffer i don't see a problem with but i do with the lion they are very sensitive to copper if that is what you added,the lion will die if added in about 4 days!if you did put copper in the tank,you will have to run carbon in the system for about two weeks you should get most out but the copper will get into the crushed coral and it will leach back into the tank!so i would get rid of the substrate now and start all over if you want to keep a lion or any inverts if infact you added copper.

 

[kappadoku]

In my personal opinion, one a tank has been treated with copper, (im making an assumption there...) it should never be used to house inverts. Your live sand should still be live sand, not all critters are affected by copper the way shrimps and crabs are. If this is going to be a fish only tank, I think youll be allright. IF you did treat with copper, there are new products out that will supposedly remove it. Regular water changes should help also, IF YOUR CYCLE IS COMPLETE! Dont do any water changes untill your nitrAtes reach 10ppm or more.
As far as the fish, I have heard that lions are overly sensitive to copper. Do some more research there. The puffer should be allright.
[ May 08, 2001: Message edited by: KappaDoku ]

 

[liongirl]

How do I find out if there was copper in the medicine????????? I already threw out the bottle. Anybody know of anything i can use to get it out ... if in fact that was one of the ingredients. If i cant have a lion, im selling my tank and buying a new one, or converting one of my freshwater tanks to salt.
Thanks.

 

[fender]

Get a copper test kit. Don't buy it from the guy who told you to use the meds
It is cheaper than replacing everything if the med has no copper.
It is a good idea to have this test anyway if you are using tap water.......

 

[03]

well what was the name on it ????????????????

 

[cosmosbasement]

LionGirl-As stated, use some carbon for a couple of weeks. That should take care of the copper. I would take that substrate out. Go get some more LS. Just in case the copper was obsorbed by the substrate. You should be okay, but if it makes you feel more comfy, and money is not a problem do it. But, the Carbon should handle the copper. For next time, if you were going to treat the tank and put the med in the tank itself go with a product called Rally. Works well. It comes in a couple different sized bottles and has an orange color to it. It doesn't have any copper. Anyway, don't get rid of your tank!! No way, just use some carbon in your filters for a while and you should be fine. Don't trash the Lionfish idea!
peace
doug

 

[caymanlovers]

LionGirl - You possibly used Rid-Ich by Kordon, it has formaldehyde and malachite green in it and stains the seals as you said. The label does not indicate any copper and says it is zinc-free.
The carbon treatment should take care of it but may take some time.

 

[maestro]

LionGirl- to find out if the medicine you used had copper in it go back to the store you bought it from and read the lable.
If it did have copper in it then use some carbon in your filters that should do the trick.
Good luck

 

[liongirl]

Originally posted by CaymanLovers:
<STRONG>LionGirl - You possibly used Rid-Ich by Kordon, it has formaldehyde and malachite green in it and stains the seals as you said. The label does not indicate any copper and says it is zinc-free.
The carbon treatment should take care of it but may take some time.</STRONG>
Yep, this is what i used. Rid-ICH.