Doing something wrong?

[Jason mack]

Awesome looking tank!
I was thinking of adding a bridge from the 'cave' and the 'tunnel' in my tank. Then adding one more rock on top of that.

Sounds like a plan !!!It's beter to do it now then .. I would use some live rock .. play around with it .. your new rock will give you new inspiration!!! Good luck and happy reefing .. ohh this stuff is great for sticking rocks together .. I can highly recommend it !!

 

[Shark_Party]

Sounds like a plan !!!It's beter to do it now then .. I would use some live rock .. play around with it .. your new rock will give you new inspiration!!! Good luck and happy reefing .. ohh this stuff is great for sticking rocks together .. I can highly recommend it !!

Sweet! Thanks for all the help. I appreciate it.

 

[Jason mack]

Sweet! Thanks for all the help. I appreciate it.

Your welcome ..! Glad I was able too help !!

 

[Diesel]

I told them everything that I had in my tank setup, then asked them if there was anything else I needed to do for a cycle. They said that i should add "sacrificial" fish to jumpstart the ammonia cycle since they're hardy they recommend damsels. So, i bought them.

This should raise a red flag.
Sacrificial fish??? What is wrong with this world.

 

[sheepdog76]

A few things I noticed. First was the white rock live picked from a tank or was it dry "base rock"
The Fluval salinity meter you have is awful! They often stick and just aren't the best or great at all. Get your self a refractometer they are the way to go. I feel bad for the fish yes damsels can be territorial however they also in a tank your size could live very happy. When stressed most likely from your numbers they are more likely to attack. One would have done the trick. The biggest thing I have learn you need in the hobby (besides money lol) is patience. Take your time use good water and test weekly at the least.
One thing you didn't mention was your lighting? What do you have and how long do you keep it on.

 

[sheepdog76]

A few things I noticed. First was the white rock live picked from a tank or was it dry "base rock"
The Fluval salinity meter you have is awful! They often stick and just aren't the best or great at all. Get your self a refractometer they are the way to go. I feel bad for the fish yes damsels can be territorial however they also in a tank your size could live very happy. When stressed most likely from your numbers they are more likely to attack. One would have done the trick. The biggest thing I have learn you need in the hobby (besides money lol) is patience. Take your time use good water and test weekly at the least.
One thing you didn't mention was your lighting? What do you have and how long do you keep it on.

 

[Shark_Party]

This should raise a red flag.
Sacrificial fish??? What is wrong with this world.

Im paraphrasing here but he said something along the lines of "you could get a couple of cheap fish to start the process, something that's hardy, so they can handle the changes in the water, but more sacrificial in case they don't make it, you didn't spend much."

Yeah, i feel like kind of an ******* for buying them, but I'm going to claim naivety here...plus, the ones that died got attacked and stressed to death by the lone survivor. He seems to be healthy, and happy by himself. So if he is alive, i can only imagine it isn't my cycling water that killed the other 2, especially aftwr watching him chase and nip them constantly.

 

[Shark_Party]

This should raise a red flag.
Sacrificial fish??? What is wrong with this world.

Im paraphrasing here but he said something along the lines of "you could get a couple of cheap fish to start the process, something that's hardy, so they can handle the changes in the water, but more sacrificial in case they don't make it, you didn't spend much."

Yeah, i feel like kind of an ******* for buying them, but I'm going to claim naivety here...plus, the ones that died got attacked and stressed to death by the lone survivor. He seems to be healthy, and happy by himself. So if he is alive, i can only imagine it isn't my cycling water that killed the other 2, especially aftwr watching him chase and nip them constantly.

 

[Shark_Party]

A few things I noticed. First was the white rock live picked from a tank or was it dry "base rock"
The Fluval salinity meter you have is awful! They often stick and just aren't the best or great at all. Get your self a refractometer they are the way to go. I feel bad for the fish yes damsels can be territorial however they also in a tank your size could live very happy. When stressed most likely from your numbers they are more likely to attack. One would have done the trick. The biggest thing I have learn you need in the hobby (besides money lol) is patience. Take your time use good water and test weekly at the least.
One thing you didn't mention was your lighting? What do you have and how long do you keep it on.

The white rock was dry out of a box, same with the purple color.

Yeah the hydrometer is sticky as hell, so that was a bad $12 investment lol

I'm going to get the water tested tomorrow to see where its at.

I'm using the standard lighting that came with the hood. It's not for corals or anything but I want to get a coral lamp eventually.

 

[Jason mack]

Im paraphrasing here but he said something along the lines of "you could get a couple of cheap fish to start the process, something that's hardy, so they can handle the changes in the water, but more sacrificial in case they don't make it, you didn't spend much."

Yeah, i feel like kind of an ******* for buying them, but I'm going to claim naivety here...plus, the ones that died got attacked and stressed to death by the lone survivor. He seems to be healthy, and happy by himself. So if he is alive, i can only imagine it isn't my cycling water that killed the other 2, especially aftwr watching him chase and nip them constantly.

Nobody blames you for receiving and acting on bad advice .. this hobby is a huge learning curve .. we all make mistakes we all began at the beginning.. only now we have this awesome forum with some of the foremost experts on the planet on here .. your tank is cycling take this time too research as much as possible .. ask questions read posts .. there is a lot too learn !!!!

 

[bif24701]

I told them everything that I had in my tank setup, then asked them if there was anything else I needed to do for a cycle. They said that i should add "sacrificial" fish to jumpstart the ammonia cycle since they're hardy they recommend damsels. So, i bought them.

If you have a choice, I would choose another reef/aquarium shop. That's poor advice, no one really does that anymore as we know now how to start a cycle as well as test to verify its complete. Your shop is out of touch with current trends in the hobby or just looking to sale fish no matter what, either way not a great shop.

 

[Diesel]

That said going back to your tittle "doing something wrong"
Part is the LFS selling you 3 poor damsels for a nano tank and for you doing all that research doing the right thing.
We making mistakes and this will be not your last one.
Would have ask here on R2R what your next step would be.
There were many before you that turned a awesome Reefer with a great tank.
Now what would be your next step?

 

[Diesel]

That said going back to your tittle "doing something wrong"
Part is the LFS selling you 3 poor damsels for a nano tank and for you doing all that research doing the right thing.
We making mistakes and this will be not your last one.
Would have ask here on R2R what your next step would be.
There were many before you that turned a awesome Reefer with a great tank.
Now what would be your next step?

 

[sheepdog76]

Keep in mind Cycling the tank could very in time. I have had tanks cycle in a wk and others that have taken a month. I don't see you are doing anything wrong.
Do you have a good source of water for changes?
I would also pick a new store to shop if you have a choice. If you have any question about advice a lfs is giving ask here there are many that can help you out along the way.

 

[CanadianReefer]

Since you've used life rock as opposed to live rock, and since you've added a damsel, I'd suggest buying a product called Colony. Make sure it's their Marine version, since they also have a FW product. Colony is live bacteria and it speeds up the cycling process. None of you rock would have had bacteria. I've had tanks cycle in 2-3 weeks with this bacteria. It will also help your poor damsel. They are hardy, but it will still have a hard time with those water parameters.

Did you use tap water or RODI water?

 

[Shark_Party]

I have a good source for water, and Ill be using RODI water for my changes.
My next step is to get the water tested again, probably do a water change, and add that colony bacteria. Would I need to add it even though I have live sand?

 

[iemsparticus]

I have a good source for water, and Ill be using RODI water for my changes.
My next step is to get the water tested again, probably do a water change, and add that colony bacteria. Would I need to add it even though I have live sand?

You certainly don't NEED to add it, even if you had dry sand... adding the bacteria, however, will still speed the process up.

 

[CanadianReefer]

I have a good source for water, and Ill be using RODI water for my changes.
My next step is to get the water tested again, probably do a water change, and add that colony bacteria. Would I need to add it even though I have live sand?

Yes, I would still add it if I were you. Live sand won't provide what you need to get your tank cycled. For it to truly provide an aerobic and anaerobic bacteria filtration source, you'd need a deep sand bed and lots of time for it to establish itself. The colony will really help speed things up.

For the initial water, did you use tap water? If so, since there's a fish in there, did you add a bit of Prime? It dechlorinates the water and helps detoxify ammonia. It will help your damsel out a bit. I primarily use it for FW applications, but I will also use it when I'm using the TTM method. Just note that it isn't compatible with some medications, like prazipro for instance.

 

[Shark_Party]

Yes, I would still add it if I were you. Live sand won't provide what you need to get your tank cycled. For it to truly provide an aerobic and anaerobic bacteria filtration source, you'd need a deep sand bed and lots of time for it to establish itself. The colony will really help speed things up.

For the initial water, did you use tap water? If so, since there's a fish in there, did you add a bit of Prime? It dechlorinates the water and helps detoxify ammonia. It will help your damsel out a bit. I primarily use it for FW applications, but I will also use it when I'm using the TTM method. Just note that it isn't compatible with some medications, like prazipro for instance.

The initial water in there is distilled water and i mixed in salt before adding it to the tank, a few gallons at a time.
Is this bacteria something I can get at like a petco?

 

[iemsparticus]

The initial water in there is distilled water and i mixed in salt before adding it to the tank, a few gallons at a time.
Is this bacteria something I can get at like a petco?

PetCo sells BioSpira, which would work very well.