New to hobby - Searching for Advice - Deceased Clown

I guess that makes sense. I stand corrected.

 

Nice advise Seano, I agree. Good stuff.


It depends on your weather, but I couldn't get by topping off only 2 times a week... Before I had the process automated (research ATO) I was refilling with freshwater 2 to 3 times a day.


I'd try to keep direct sun off my tank...

 

Your tank may be close to the end of it's cycle, just take it upon yourself to get a SW Master test kit vs trusting the LFS with the water testing. Getting familiar with the water params is a necessity, especially as you move into corals and deal with the extended params.

If you have fish currently in the tank with the live rock, there is a source of Ammonia that is feeding the cycle currently. Hopefully all livestock make it through if it is still cycling. Once your AM & NI hit 0 and you begin seeing a reading of NA, you are good to go in terms of adding more fish. Just do it slowly so your bio load can catch up to any new additions.

 

One big reason people think this is they get someone who has never had a tank in front of a window trying to debunk the theory. Take everything you hear with a grain of salt, and go with facts unless proven otherwise. I have had numerous tanks in direct sunlight. When I noticed I lacked on water changes and nitrates/phosphates began to clime, algae started to thrive. When I took care of the tank better, I had no ill effects. In fact, I loved looking early morning into the tank to see all the SPS's and other corals starting to wake up and open with the natural sunlight peeking into the tank. It was quite beautiful.

 

thanks, Peredhil. Two top-offs was a broad, min. amount. As my tank isn't near a window, I don't get all that much evap. in my 29g. While others, such as yourself, may have much more to top off, due to location, climate, & tank volume.

 

IMO, your fish died because of high ammonia, and the implication is your LFS flat out lied to you when they tested your water or they used a worthless strip test. Either is likely. Just wait and start testing.

Not by itself no. But it can make it harder to control it via light control methods. You know the times when you want to reduce lighting periods to combat some nuisance or another.

The hardest part about natural sunlight (if you don't live on the equator with your tank outside) is the inconsistent times it hits your tank. Not like you can't plan for it, but it is something to consider when setting your own lighting schedules.

It will also heat the tank. Which is very annoying (depending on where you live this may actually be a benefit). It's the reason I wouldn't want sunlight on it being down here in TX. My tank is warm enough without it.

 

How would I go about trying to clean the filters or check for an obstruction? This seems to be a very likely potential cause of the problem.

 

What are your filters made of? In most cases you can just wash them off at the sink faucet.

 

Those are all great points to consider. Every tank is different, has different needs/requirements. And there are at least over a million, maybe 2 million ways to do any one thing in this hobby(obviously kidding lol).

 

Based on what everyone else has said here is my input:

1) I have heard that 1.5 pounds of LR per gallon is a good calculation for biological filtration. Based on that you should have 54 pounds of LR.
2) Cycle times can be reduced if you have established LR (this greatly varies depending on how long the LR is out of water, etc). The key is how long it takes for the beneficial bacteria to build up. I would still count on 4-6 weeks at the earliest.
3) 1/2 cube of food sounds like a lot. I feed my two clowns a pinch or two of flake per day. 1/2 cube of frozen food would be way to much in my opinion.
4) This may be a good time to start looking into a CUC for your tank.
5) I would look into purchasing a RO/DI unit for water changes. I would also start doing 10% WC per week. There are differing opinions on this, some due 20+% and some do less during the cycling process.
6) Unless your live sand came from an established tank it will likely not do much good for awhile, a lot of the beneficial bacteria dies in the bags (IMO).
7) After you clear your pump and place back in tank make sure you shake it to get rid of any air bubbles it can cause issues. You may want to install a foam ring around the filter to keep things from clogging it or place a different type of pump on the unit if the issue continues.
8) I would get a good quality skimmer. Reef tank or not there will be nutrients in the water and the skimmer will assist on removing a lot of problems.
9) The only concern I would have on sun light for algae is if you are using tap water. It may cause a bloom due to the mineral and other crap found in water. If you use RO/DI water then I would just be concerned with heat.
10) Depending on which fan you purchased they can help with keeping heat down.
11) I would purchase your own base test kit and a refractometer to assist with water conditions and confirming your newly made SW is ready for the tank.

Good luck and welcome to 3 Reef.