HELP. ASAP. TORCH CORAL DYING.

[Dburr1014]

Hi. I think there is no saving the torch now but I would like to know exactly what caused this. Also my LFS say that right now with my current tank inhabitants, I could still add another tang and a few small fish. But I dont know who is right.

Let me give you an idea who is right here.

Firstly, we don't know you. We owe you nothing and you owe us nothing. We are just a bunch of people passionate about the hobby(as you see in the thread).

Secondly, the local fish store needs to stay open. They need paying customers. They need your money.

Thirdly, do some looking and do your homework. Just type in your fish in Google search. It will give you lots of information on the fish including tank sizes. Some bigger size, some smaller size. I tend to lean towards the bigger size tanks for any certain fish. You will not find one site will recommend either of those fish for a 20 gallon.
Try it.

 

[BristleWormHater]

Stop taking advice from that lfs they are seriously messing you up for the sake of sales. Tangs get big and they are very active swimmers most at the very minimum require a tank that is 6 feet long.
I also noticed a starfish in the background, did your lfs sell you that too? That's looks like a sand sifting starfish to me, there is no beginner-friendly starfish. They also require bigger and more mature tanks, rehome him aswell. He might live a few months but starfish silently starve in those months and then die & melt which is very bad for the water especially in a tank this size. I am not trying to be a jerk here but I'm just trying to help inform you. If you go back to the lfs and mention this website I'm sure they say, "oh, that website is full misinformation." Any good lfs won't say that, but the bad ones know they can say that to new hobbyists so they can sell them anything, my lfs did that to me too, they tried to sell me chemiclean and other algae killers which would absolutely destroy my still young tank.
Dont buy from whoever sold you that frag, they clearly don't know how to frag a torch.
Look around for another hobbyist that you could trade the tang, foxface, and starfish with in return for other fish or whatever really, I feel like your lfs won't even give you credit if you return them. For your first corals start with soft corals, they are hardy and very fast growing, just please do your research before, some of them grow a little too fast. Sorry to bore you with a whole essay but I hope this helps

 

[VintageReefer]

@praba775
Your torch died because it was a poorly cut frag from a mother branch that was not ready to be fragged. While it could have survived, it does not appear your tank is stable enough for an unhealthy torch frag in recovery which needs stability and near perfect conditions. Your alk is very high, you have cyano everywhere, you don’t share your full parameters, and in addition to the water/tank issues, you had large fish, cramped and acting out, swatting and further irritating the torch.

Your LFS if misguiding you and giving you poor advice that puts corals and fish in environments they don’t belong. I’m sorry that this is what you have to deal with. Use google or the forum to research your next fish or coral before purchase

 

[VintageReefer]

Your starfish will survive 6 months tops. You will begin to notice it looks like something is eating the legs, as they dissolve and have fibers coming out. It will look like something is biting it and eating it. In reality it is the starfish wasting away from starvation. Your 20g tank can not sustain it. Sorry to give you the bad news, I hope you can rehome it before it’s life begins to erode.

 

[praba775]

I will try to fix my tank. Anyways I saw this little piece of torch coral tentacle. It has been glowing for three days now

 

[praba775]

This is my current water params. Not sure if can help.
Kh: 11.8
Calcium: 490
Megnesium: 1350
Phosphate: 0.5
Nitrate: 2
Nitrite: 0

 

[praba775]

My pacman frog looking at my tank right after I cleaned my tank. No more cyano. At least for some time.

 

[eliaslikesfish]

try to lower your alkalinity and phosphates and raise your nitrates. and get the tang and foxface out of your 20 gallon tank. would you keep your toad in a hamster ball?

 

[Amphibious Wallet]

Your tank is too unstable. You have added two fish to a tiny tank in two weeks. It will not be able to keep up with the biological load.
Test every 5 days until you have 2 months worth of testing to graph and identify trends. Minimum.
Your tank is overstocked with fish. These fish need a bigger tank. Give the tang and foxface away.
You are rushing everything without knowing the parameters of the tank or the requirements of the things you are keeping in it.
There is no mention in this thread of a water change, at all. This is the biggest clue that you are not taking your time.

How long have you had the tank?

 

[praba775]

I have my tank in this setup for 8 months