I Think My Fish Are Dying!

[steelhealr]

Wow...I'd say stop right now and take the fish back. After reading your posts, it seems there there is no knowledge base on which to take care of a marine tank. Save the fish and bring it back to the lfs. Come back here and study this forum and read and we'll all be happy to get you up and running after you completely understand how to manage a marine tank. It is NO WHERE CLOSE to freshwater. SH

 

[Chac]

Have a read of some of the Pinned Topics & also some of these

40g reef

What is Live Rock

The basics you must understand are the following

Skimmers
Flow (powerheads)
Substrate
Live Rock
Salt
Hydrometer
Test Kits (Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite, pH) & the required levels & margins
RO Water
Temp


This is an expensive & time consumming hobby but also a very rewarding one

have a read around and ask as many questions as it takes

 

[RoyalGrammaPrincessHannah]

So in other words, making the mistake of not studying is without a doubt a deadly mistake. But unfortunately, the fish stores a lot of times are just in it for the money, and dont explain anything to the buyers. So take the fish back, buy a test kit, and let the tank sit there until you know about the fish you are about to buy, it should be at LEAST another month of research on the following:
CYCLING
Filtration
Skimmers
Salinity
Live Rock
Sand [substrate]
Saltwater Ich
Quarantine Tanks
Reverse Osmosis water systems
And most of all, the animals you are buying! Browse liveaquaria.com in the beginner section of marine fish, and those are the only ones you should be thinking about keeping so far. Read the info they have on them, and then look up as much information as you can find, and decide between the differences of what different people say, what you think is right.

But I wouldnt reccommend buying fish online. Id go to a fish store [anything but petco!] and examine the fish for any signs of disease, and make sure they eat normally, although this shouldnt be a problem with beginner fish. To pick a store, Id go in, try to remember the selection of fish they have, go in the next day and then a few days later and so on. See if they have a good survival rate, or if you think that because of how busy they are that the fish could be getting bought. But if it is an abnormal number of missing fish, and it isnt such a busy place, then they may not be the best place to go to.

Keep in mind that this is not an inexpensive hobby. A good filter is about 100 dollars, a skimmer anywhere from 100-200, salt is about 40 dollars a bucket, live rock is about 6-9 dollars a pound, sand is about a dollar a pound, and a RO system is 100-200 dollars. Lighting for corals can be anywhere from 250-400 dollars on average, and powerheads [if you plan on keeping corals] are like 30 dollars each, and you need a few.

A quarantine tank is essential to make sure fish you bring home are in good health, and should be kept in a quarantine tank for at least two weeks. Consider the prices, because it is all essential, and read read read, then decide if you want to continue with the hobby.

It is such a beautiful and rewarding hobby once you get through the first part of setting up. The fish have such personality, and it is relaxing to watch the little piece of the ocean in your home that you have put together. Dont let the cost scare you if you really want it, and are willing to do your research!

 

[fish_keeper2]

i want to add that petco wont take fish back. ive asked them before and they wont. i also want to add that ive never seen my clownfish swim on its side.


it would also help(as the others said) that we knew the SG, water parameters, temp, what you use to filter the tank, did you use tap or R/O water, do you have the right amount of live rock, etc.

 

[littleimp]

If you are going to be fish only you can actually get away without live rock.

The live rock & skimmer method (berlin method) has only actually been around for around 5yrs. Before that people just used to use standard power filters.

However I suspect that he is using a standard juwel type tank & the filters in these really ain't good enough for marines!!

First off I would do as already mentioned & give away your existing fish to the shop or another marine aquarist just to save their lives.

To keep a fish only tank on a budget I would recommend this.

Cut out the existing filter if possible & stick on fleabay

Buy an external filter that is rated twice the size of a standard freshwater tank. Fill this with the media along with some carbon, filter-floss & rowaphos
Buy a hang-on protein skimmer. Deltec one preferably but if you can't afford it the prizm pro one will do.
Buy a master test kit & hydrometer.
Empty tank of existing water & start again with 2" coral sand
Set up equipment & run tank for at least a month empty. Use this time to get the water parameters up to scratch. Cycling a marine tank can be done with a bit of dead fish.


This is how it used to be done, and some people still do. The live rock method is now preferred as people are getting more success from it but only if it's done right.

If you go this route make sure it's not compacted together & preferably built around a frame system so water can flow around it. You then need plenty of pumping power to shift the water around the rock so it can perform it's filtration job.

You need to read, read & read some more, then ask questions & read some more again.

Out of curiosity how much did you spend on this?

When I set up my 125gal with sump & standard recognised components i.e. aqua-medic sskimmer/tunze stream pumps etc. it cost me in excess of £3500!! & I still didn't have the luxuries I would have liked to go with it!

 

[Navarre]

Clowns will swim on their sides when at rest near the surface of the water. Its the only way they can see any predators that might be lurking up from below.
They will display this behaviour if they feel threatened and u nhappy with their surroundings. If they are happy and not under threat of attack then this behaviour is rarely seen.

 

[Aquascaper]

Unless you have the rare species of 'stupid clowns' like me.................


The only time mine every do what clownfish are meant to do is when there is no other fish around, otherwise they play copycat (very funny when they try it with the watchman goby and the pistol shrimp gets all 'clicky' )

 

[Chazz]

WOW!!! You have to cycle your salt water tank for 1 - 2 weeks before adding fish man... When adding the water and salt, Mix it in a 5 gallon bucket then add it slowly.. and stir the salt and water in ur tank for the 3-4 hours of filteration, otherwise ur fish are swimming in Freshwater with chunks of saltwater.

Best guess is your fish are goners... Sorry man.

 

[unisonsports]

Ok so i went to my local fish store, the dude told me about cyclying and all, so i bought 30 lbs of live rock. He said the fish will most likley die during cylcing... Anyway i put in the rock and then i monitored the water and such... Its been about 2 and a half weeks, the amonia peaked and fell again to 0. THE FISH ARE STILL ALIVE AND DOING FINE! My Clown fish and damsel survived the cycling, and seem fine. Now the water is at perfect levels and ready for more fish. I just bought a lawnmower blenny today, but the damsel doesnt like him and hits him with his tail fin... they seem to get along now though, that was about 5 hours ago.

 

[Luke & Penny]

Wow...I'd say stop right now and take the fish back. After reading your posts, it seems there there is no knowledge base on which to take care of a marine tank. Save the fish and bring it back to the lfs. Come back here and study this forum and read and we'll all be happy to get you up and running after you completely understand how to manage a marine tank. It is NO WHERE CLOSE to freshwater. SH

I agree with the above post, i was so upset reading this post people dont know how hard it can be to run a Marine tank, best thing you can do bud is do alot of research on marine keeping like i did i came to this forum to read up and looked on the internet for care sheets, ive only been keeping marine since last july but i know what i need to know about keeping my tank running and careing for my fish and corals

Did you put the fish straight in the tank?? or was you told to slowly add your own tank water to the bag to get the fish use to the change??

 

[Navarre]

I have already answered your post about the algae elsewhere but im interested in knowing how much cleanup crew you have? Dont add anything more to the tank until the cleanup crew are redy to deal with the waste.


40 Gallons system = 40 cleanup crew... a mixture of snails and hermits.

 

[Sunny.C]

Add a product called stability to the water it will speed up the process and will help your fish fight off any sickness they have the natural way.

 

[RoyalGrammaPrincessHannah]

Just because the fish look fine doesnt mean they are. Ammonia poisoning takes a while to show up, and can have long term effects. You dont need fish to cycle, uncured LR works just fine, and its easier than in freshwater. Hope they still do ok.