New Member 180 gallon Just setup ** Spike Question **

I am here to learn guys and in no way take it as harsh. I appreciate the help very much.

I understand what you folks are saying let me put it another way.

Imagine a 2 year old filthy yet healthy fish tank that was moved within 2 hours keeping sand and rock 100% wet. 30% of the original water was saved while the other 70% was ocean water. The filter was kept wet and was not cleaned, very bacteria rich as the owner didn't do any form of maintenance on the tank for at least 3 months.

As you read above it isn't by any means a new fish tank. Not a single fish has died, everyone is eating well, the cleaner shrimp are doing their job and my levels which i check every other day show a drop in Amonia,Drop in Nitrite and 20 in Nitrate. Not a sign of ich either.

With that said in your honest opinion do you think that my fish will suddenly start dieing off in the coming weeks?

Below are images of the tank taken less than an hour ago. It is 11 days and 10 nights old.

 

Thank you,

What am I doing that will cause the algae issue & parasite issue's?

I would like to do all I can to turn things around and prevent the issues I may have caused.

Whats done is done and all I can do is my best for the tank.

If anyone can suggest things I should be doing from this point on please feel free to do so.

 

Like I said before the best thing you could do is no more additions of any kind for the next couple months with the exception of some LR and if you need any more cleanup crew. What's done is done and while it might not have been what some of us would have done it is over, so ride it out now and see. Who knows, it might go along without a hint of a problem, and I hope it does! I think most will agree that is the best suggestion at this point, and most will agree we hope everything goes well! With this hobby you never know... one guy buys an entire setup and fully stocks a tank within a couple weeks and everything goes well... then the next does everything "by the book", overlooks 1 little thing and everything goes sour. Good luck once again, I'm rooting for ya!

 

Thanks for the kind words guys. I will not buy anymore livestock for at least 4-6 more weeks.

Tell me if what I am using is not ok or If I need something else for a reef tank.

1. FX5 Filter
2. 400W Hydro heater
3. Skimmer I forget what brand ( not installed waiting a couple months )
4. That UV light where the water runs past it and into the tank ( not installed )
5. Satalite 48" and 24" they have to be at an angle to close the hood which irks me.

I tell ya I got a killer deal on the whole rig that included just about everything i could imagine.

 

The only thing I will comment on is the skimmer... I would start it up asap if I were you. You have a very large bioload with all of your livestock and it will help keep your nitrates down. Use your "new tank energy" on getting that skimmer goin!!

 

Yes start the skimmer, and like every one else said take it slow. Ask questions here at 3reef before you buy anything else.

 

Ok cool beans, I was under the impression that I should not use the skimmer because it will skim important bacteria from the water.

I will get it running in the AM.

Also another thing is in todays water test my PH is going up.

I was at 7.8 a week ago, then 8.0 now I am at 8.4. I hear 8.2 is optimal what should I do to return to optimal?

 

And for a tank that size, you are going to want a good skimmer. Take a pic of it and we can ID it for you.

I am really glad you found this site. You remind me of myself fifteen years ago and I headed full bore down the same path. I killed a lot of fish. A lot. Honestly, you couldn't have found a better place. They dialed me in in no time flat. I am glad you don't offend easily. It is sometimes hard to convey emotion and passion for the hobby with a typewriter.

Rock on brother......and Peace.......John.

BTW. Nice tank. And you should get ready for the spike here. A dirty tank and moving sand????? Wow.....hold on.