Need help lawnmower blenny !!!

[Snake132]

Oh and your question about the vlamingi I know they get quite big but I kept seeing him in the shop for 3 months and fell in love with him slowly he just looked very very very cute and clever and he would always follow me by the glass I gave in
he is the reason I want a bigger tank and I will accommodate for his size as he grows haha he is currently only 2 inches . Strange he reminds me of the porcupine puffer fish or bod fish he has a very similar personality very different to other tang and surgeon fish species. His behavior and personality are really special .

 

[CanadianReefer]

((((( this is what I always see

From the pic, it's hard for me to tell. Is it pure white or does it look a bit yellow??

 

[Snake132]

From the pic, it's hard for me to tell. Is it pure white or does it look a bit yellow??

It is as in the picture in real life slight yellow tinge

 

[CanadianReefer]

It is as in the picture in real life slight yellow tinge

Okay. Slight yellow is better than no yellow.

I'll try my best to help you troubleshoot, but plz keep in mind that I really don't know the history or timeline on your system so it's simply what I would do if it were my tank...

1) buy marinepure and a bottle of bacteria. Reseed the aquarium and test frequently over the next week to see if your ammonia and nitrite disappear and if your nitrate level increases. If ammonia and nitrite go away, it was likely a mini cycle. Do you have carbon in you canister? If not, you could also add half the recommended amount to help with water quality (the calculators on the BRS website can help you work out how much to add for your system)...

2) buy an RODI system and slowly change out your water. Test your nitrates frequently since you don't want to overdo it and bottom them out. Buy a phosphate test kit as well. In a fish only system or softie system, aim for less than 10 nitrate and less than 0.05 phosphate. If you go for an LPS system, keep phosphate below 0.05 and nitrate between 2-5. If you go SPS, nitrates below 2 (high demand would be best at .5) and phosphate at .03). Keep in mind that neither should ever be at 0! If you still had ammonia and nitrite as a result of the tap water, it should be gone by the end of this stage.

3) slowly change over your media. What you have in there now (ceramic balls etc.) will work better in freshwater systems but may be counterproductive in saltwater. You'll have already added marinepure, so ever so slowly, remove small amounts of the ceramic balls etc. Keep testing nitrates! Once that media is out of your system, you can increase your carbon to the full amount. If your phosphates are high, you can add GFO (half amount at first and work your way up). Add more marinepure if needed as space is freed up. Consider converting you HOB filter into a makeshift refugium by adding a plant light and putting up a filter screen then add something like chaeto so it will naturally help with nitrate and phosphate.

4) buy a QT system. Add a couple of marine pure balls to the HOB filter and seed them with bacteria. How often you'd change the water would depend on the size of the system, what you have in it and what meds you're dosing at the time...

In the meantime, as for your poor little blenny... If he isn't eating, but the rest of the fish seem fine, it could be an internal parasite/worm. The best medication for this is prazipro. It can be added to a reef system but not one that has prime in it, so unless you buy a QT system, you wouldn't be able to dose it. Is he eating even a little bit? If so, you could try mixing his food with seachem metro and focus.

 

[Snake132]

For other people who are reading
This is him now he is still white but breathing a bit slower now thank god but he has not moved an inch his belly is so full and he has not eaten anything today

 

[CanadianReefer]

For other people who are reading
This is him now he is still white but breathing a bit slower now thank god but he has not moved an inch his belly is so full and he has not eaten anything today

Btw, lawmower blennies really prefer algae. You could also try a clip with some nori to see if that works? Mine loves it...

 

[Snake132]

Okay. Slight yellow is better than no yellow.

I'll try my best to help you troubleshoot, but plz keep in mind that I really don't know the history or timeline on your system so it's simply what I would do if it were my tank...

1) buy marinepure and a bottle of bacteria. Reseed the aquarium and test frequently over the next week to see if your ammonia and nitrite disappear and if your nitrate level increases. If ammonia and nitrite go away, it was likely a mini cycle. Do you have carbon in you canister? If not, you could also add half the recommended amount to help with water quality (the calculators on the BRS website can help you work out how much to add for your system)...

2) buy an RODI system and slowly change out your water. Test your nitrates frequently since you don't want to overdo it and bottom them out. Buy a phosphate test kit as well. In a fish only system or softie system, aim for less than 10 nitrate and less than 0.05 phosphate. If you go for an LPS system, keep phosphate below 0.05 and nitrate between 2-5. If you go SPS, nitrates below 2 (high demand would be best at .5) and phosphate at .03). Keep in mind that neither should ever be at 0! If you still had ammonia and nitrite as a result of the tap water, it should be gone by the end of this stage.

3) slowly change over your media. What you have in there now (ceramic balls etc.) will work better in freshwater systems but may be counterproductive in saltwater. You'll have already added marinepure, so ever so slowly, remove small amounts of the ceramic balls etc. Keep testing nitrates! Once that media is out of your system, you can increase your carbon to the full amount. If your phosphates are high, you can add GFO (half amount at first and work your way up). Add more marinepure if needed as space is freed up. Consider converting you HOB filter into a makeshift refugium by adding a plant light and putting up a filter screen then add something like chaeto so it will naturally help with nitrate and phosphate.

4) buy a QT system. Add a couple of marine pure balls to the HOB filter and seed them with bacteria. How often you'd change the water would depend on the size of the system, what you have in it and what meds you're dosing at the time...

In the meantime, as for your poor little blenny... If he isn't eating, but the rest of the fish seem fine, it could be an internal parasite/worm. The best medication for this is prazipro. It can be added to a reef system but not one that has prime in it, so unless you buy a QT system, you wouldn't be able to dose it. Is he eating even a little bit? If so, you could try mixing his food with seachem metro and focus.

Thank you !!!!! I just copied what you wrote and will be working hard to do all those things ... bacteria first and the marine pure and I’ll take it from there . If he is not doing well in an hour I will take him over to my friend house he has a qt which I will probably use for treating the blenny
I don’t think it’s the ammonia affecting him all the other fish seem to nonbe bothered it’s probably as you said a parasite of some sorts .
Thank you thank you thank you

 

[Snake132]

Btw, lawmower blennies really prefer algae. You could also try a clip with some nori to see if that works? Mine loves it...

Did the nori today but no
his favorite is hikari algae wafers . He didn’t eat the one I put in today though

 

[CanadianReefer]

Thank you !!!!! I just copied what you wrote and will be working hard to do all those things ... bacteria first and the marine pure and I’ll take it from there . If he is not doing well in an hour I will take him over to my friend house he has a qt which I will probably use for treating the blenny
I don’t think it’s the ammonia affecting him all the other fish seem to nonbe bothered it’s probably as you said a parasite of some sorts .
Thank you thank you thank you

I'd tend to agree that it is likely a parasite. If the rest of your fish start showing signs, then that's a different matter entirely.

If it does turn out that he has worms or something of that nature, then at the end of step 2 once all the tap water is gone, you can add prazipro directly to the reef system to help the rest of the fish. You'd have to remove any carbon during the dosing period, but beyond that it's pretty mild and doesn't cause any damage. I've been using it for years with no ill effects.

Let me know if you need any additional help troubleshooting. I'm no expert but I've had tanks since I was a kid and I've dealt with a lot of issues so I've learned through experience. I can try my best to help.

 

[40B Knasty]

Everything sounds good with what she is saying. Prazipro is for flukes. Metroplex and Kanaplex is for internal parasites. You need to use Focus to bind kanaplex and metroplex to the frozen foods. Do not put water with the food to thaw it out faster. Kanaplex and Metroplex has to be placed on the frozen food and thawed out on it. When the ice crystals begin to thaw. The focus that binds the medication to the food will be drawn into the food to hold it better.
Definitely beef up your biological media with Marine Pure. Dose a bottle of Dr. Tims or Nite-Out ll for speeding up your beneficial bacteria.
Marine pure has about 2,300 for porosity. Cnodes/ceramics have about 380. MP is 6x the surface area. Bioballs are at 170 for surface area which is garbage.
I want a lawn mower blenny. Just they have bad survival rate from what I have heard from my LFS. BTW never go back to your LFS from what you have mentioned about what they have said for helping you.
Algae is natural to have. Even the Ocean has it and it has a million time less the detectable amount of phosphates as home aquarium. Just stick to getting your ammonia down. Adding live rock over 5-10lbs can cause a mini cycle. Dead rock I would imagine no more than 3lbs would start one.
On my screen your test kit for ammonia the water in the tube looks gray. I know people love their Salifert and Red Sea test kits. From the videos from BRStv. The Red Sea was not accurate. I am not trying to be a Trailblazer by saying this, but I have been to 8 States to LFS. There is only one LFS I trust and he uses ELOS test kits. It has NIST certified reagents. I switched over to them and they are accurate, affordable, and why would you want to buy a test kit from a company that wouldn't go out of their way to prove how good they are for their customers. Instead of having someone like BRStv disprove the accuracy years later of being in business. Even with undetectable phosphates from other test kits. It shows up on my ELOS PRO Phosphate test kit.

 

[CanadianReefer]

Oh and your question about the vlamingi I know they get quite big but I kept seeing him in the shop for 3 months and fell in love with him slowly he just looked very very very cute and clever and he would always follow me by the glass I gave in
he is the reason I want a bigger tank and I will accommodate for his size as he grows haha he is currently only 2 inches . Strange he reminds me of the porcupine puffer fish or bod fish he has a very similar personality very different to other tang and surgeon fish species. His behavior and personality are really special .

They are a cool fish, for sure! I contemplated one, but ultimately went with the naso instead. I have a 300g system and a 105g system - the larger to accommodate my naso and Maculiceps tangs and the smaller one to house all the misfits (the coral eaters, troublemakers etc lol). The latter system's first resident was a lemon Peel Angelfish, hence why I understand what you mean about yours having been a bully lol

 

[Snake132]

I'd tend to agree that it is likely a parasite. If the rest of your fish start showing signs, then that's a different matter entirely.

If it does turn out that he has worms or something of that nature, then at the end of step 2 once all the tap water is gone, you can add prazipro directly to the reef system to help the rest of the fish. You'd have to remove any carbon during the dosing period, but beyond that it's pretty mild and doesn't cause any damage. I've been using it for years with no ill effects.

Let me know if you need any additional help troubleshooting. I'm no expert but I've had tanks since I was a kid and I've dealt with a lot of issues so I've learned through experience. I can try my best to help.

You have been a great help . Thank you
You are very very very very knowlegeful I’m really happy that you helped me.
I know things will improve in my tank now I’m confident now in the steps I need to take going forward.
I Hope one day I can offer advice to someone just like you did to me today.
You have saved me so much trouble and helped make life for my fish better thanks ....
Great !!! What an awesome person you are
Tc and I hope your fish are always healthy and happy and you too . Good luck :3

Thanks again .;Playful

 

[domination2580]

Not sure on the prazi directly to a reef tank....If I am correct, prazi will effect coral..@humblefish

 

[Snake132]

They are a cool fish, for sure! I contemplated one, but ultimately went with the naso instead. I have a 300g system and a 105g system - the larger to accommodate my naso and Maculiceps tangs and the smaller one to house all the misfits (the coral eaters, troublemakers etc lol). The latter system's first resident was a lemon Peel Angelfish, hence why I understand what you mean about yours having been a bully lol

misfits ahahahahaah you got any space in there for my damsel ???????? Jk
He is the apple of my eye I couldn’t get rid of him no matter how much of a savage he is .
He tricks the other fish at feeding time he will poop to make the water full of particles so the other fish go to that instead of the food
While they are thinking it’s food he eats all the food before they get to it hahahaha
Ps ( he does this everyday right when the food goes in every day !!!! )

 

[CanadianReefer]

Not sure on the prazi directly to a reef tank....If I am correct, prazi will effect coral..@humblefish

I've used it many times in several systems.... it's not ideal (a QT is better) but it is considered reef safe. It will make your protein skimmer go a little wonky when you turn it back on, but I've never had an issue with my corals... for those that have, there s likely a secondary cause... however, if you have tap water/prime, that's a different issue in that the two don't react well and can cause some sort of toxicity.

 

[CanadianReefer]

misfits ahahahahaah you got any space in there for my damsel ???????? Jk
He is the apple of my eye I couldn’t get rid of him no matter how much of a savage he is .
He tricks the other fish at feeding time he will poop to make the water full of particles so the other fish go to that instead of the food
While they are thinking it’s food he eats all the food before they get to it hahahaha
Ps ( he does this everyday right when the food goes in every day !!!! )

Too funny!

 

[Snake132]

They are a cool fish, for sure! I contemplated one, but ultimately went with the naso instead. I have a 300g system and a 105g system - the larger to accommodate my naso and Maculiceps tangs and the smaller one to house all the misfits (the coral eaters, troublemakers etc lol). The latter system's first resident was a lemon Peel Angelfish, hence why I understand what you mean about yours having been a bully lol

Ha yeah I can’t say they are not gorgeous though . Look

Too funny!

is seachem matrix a good alternative for marine pure . I can get that tomorrow
Or should I just look for marine pure ?

 

[CanadianReefer]

Ha yeah I can’t say they are not gorgeous though . Look

is seachem matrix a good alternative for marine pure . I can get that tomorrow
Or should I just look for marine pure ?

Good question. I've only used matrix once in a sump and found that they had to be rinced periodically (i had it between baffles so it caught a lot of detritus) so I stuck with marine pure. However, since you have a canister, matrix might be more ideally sized??

I do recall that marinepure is more effective in passive areas (though it works in both), so I'd have to wonder if matrix would actually be better suited...??

Since I don't know a ton about the matrix product, perhaps someone who has more experience with it can better answer your question...

 

[Snake132]

Good question. I've only used matrix once in a sump and found that they had to be rinced periodically (i had it between baffles so it caught a lot of detritus) so I stuck with marine pure. However, since you have a canister, matrix might be more ideally sized??

I do recall that marinepure is more effective in passive areas (though it works in both), so I'd have to wonder if matrix would actually be better suited...??

Since I don't know a ton about the matrix product, perhaps someone who has more experience with it can better answer your question...

Thank you ill think about it and make my decision tomorrow . Good
What are baffles ? If I do use it I should place it in the middle of my canister right ? I have 6 trays I’m planning to do 3 with biofilter instead of one which is what I currently have.

 

[CanadianReefer]

Thank you ill think about it and make my decision tomorrow . Good
What are baffles ? If I do use it I should place it in the middle of my canister right ? I have 6 trays I’m planning to do 3 with biofilter instead of one which is what I currently have.

Yes. Baffles are partitions for sumps and they are high flow areas. That's where I had put my matrix when I had it, so I would think it would suit a canister quite well