New anemone - marine tank

[ElitePirate]

Hi Guys

So i'm new here and very recently i setup my 1st ever marine tank (small 15 gallon/56L nano tank).

So I have a clownfish pair and after 2 weeks i've decided to introduce a bubble tip anemone. My anemone is roaming around finding it's spot - which is normal i guess. However I also have a doctor shrimp - they call it as Cleaner Shrimp. The aquarium owner said that doctor shrimp will treat the fish all in case of any infection etc.

But now my anemone is trying to settle down, but this shrimp is bothering my anemone. I wouldn't say it's hurting the anemone, but to be very honest I have no idea if it's trying to be funny or just helping the anemone. Any idea what could be the issue?

Please see attached pics.

Thanks
Sam

 

[Reeferdood]

First of all.......

As far as the cleaner shrimp goes, they can be nasty lil buggers to anemones. Keep an eye on it and see if it tries to dig in the mouth of the BTA, if it does I would remove the shrimp since it already has a bad habit and likely won't change.

 

[James M]

The cleaner shrimp won’t take care of infections/parasites btw
Has your tank has been set up for more than 6 moths ?

 

[ElitePirate]

First of all.......

As far as the cleaner shrimp goes, they can be nasty lil buggers to anemones. Keep an eye on it and see if it tries to dig in the mouth of the BTA, if it does I would remove the shrimp since it already has a bad habit and likely won't change.

Thank you im not sure if im using the correct term or not but over here they call them doctor shrimp haha. i will monitor him.

 

[ElitePirate]

The cleaner shrimp won’t take care of infections/parasites btw
Has your tank has been set up for more than 6 moths ?

> The cleaner shrimp won’t take care of infections/parasites

Are you sure? because i bought this tank + live stock from a experienced and famous aquarium (more than 10-15 years in business). They said they will clean the fish all at times.

> Has your tank has been set up for more than 6 moths

Nope, it's been only 3 weeks.

 

[James M]

> The cleaner shrimp won’t take care of infections/parasites

Are you sure? because i bought this tank + live stock from a experienced and famous aquarium (more than 10-15 years in business). They said they will clean the fish all at times.

> Has your tank has been set up for more than 6 moths

Nope, it's been only 3 weeks.

Yes the shrimp mostly just cleans the fish of dead tissue
How long was the tank set up before you had it ?

 

[cracker]

Welcome Sam, Please go slow ! So important right now. The tank is very young .

 

[ElitePirate]

Yes the shrimp mostly just cleans the fish of dead tissue
How long was the tank set up before you had it ?

I'm a newbie, and its just 3 weeks old now. 1st few weeks, i had 2 clownfish, 2 soft corals, and a small blue fish thats all. After 2 weeks i added 2 more corals, blue legged hermit crab, 3 snails, 1 foxface, 1 doctor /peppermint shrimp and a yellow gobi (a so called cleaning crew). That's when i also added 1 bubble tip anemone. i think i made a mistake adding a anemone at this stage

 

[ElitePirate]

Welcome Sam, Please go slow ! So important right now. The tank is very young .

Thank you, can you tell me right now what and what i should be having? a cleaning crew is too early now or is it ok?

 

[James M]

Cleaning crew is fine , you should wait 1 month to add each fish for the biolosd to catch up . As for the anemone can you return it ?
Fox face requires 100 gallons

 

[ElitePirate]

Cleaning crew is fine , you should wait 1 month to add each fish for the biolosd to catch up . As for the anemone can you return it ?
Fox face requires 100 gallons

I agree, i think i just rushed into it coz i was excited I dont think i can return the anemone... and yea you're right about foxface, they need space. After doing some online research now only i realized that..

 

[cracker]

Sam I don't" think" there is anything for them to eat so no cuc for now.
What are You feeding the Fox fish? these guys need algae & lots of it . maybe Nori sheets? Is their a way to return some fish & anemone?

 

[cracker]

Anybody know how to call on the reef squad?

 

[James M]

I agree with cracker , try to return as much stuff
#reefsquad

 

[Lasse]

The situation is not the best - that i can say . However - I do not see any problem with the CUC. IMO - it is the first things you put in a tank. They normally clean up microalgae and stuff like that. Microalgae - you will have from day 1. But it is "micro" - you do not see it and IMO if you wait with the CUC till the day you see algae - you have lost the battle.

The high bio load of fish is more a problem IMO. This you must handle this in one or another way. My advises is strict IMO and you will have tons of other comments. But - IMO - it is not time to yell at you - instead we have to fix this with as few killed fish as possible. You will have three weeks in front of you that will be critical
1. Be sure that you have the tank well aerated. If you have a skimmer run it with as much of air as possible. If this means that it will be a overflow in the cup - skip the cup - let the aerated water just go back. The important in this situation is to try to get rid of ammonia gas ASAP. The skimmer will work as a gas exchanger.
2. Take down the feeding to very, very, very small amounts. A couple of frozen artemia to each fish a day, maximum. The fish will not die of starvation but you must have down the ammonia release from the fish to a minimum and stay there for two or three weeks.
3. Try to get a solution of nitrification bacteria - only nitrification bacteria - not "a good blend of bacteria". Ad this every day for three weeks. If you do not can get this - go down to your LFS and ask him to squeeze out some dirt from a filter in a good working tank (fresh or saltwater does not matter in this case and just now. You need bacteria and even if freshwater bacteria works a little bit slower in SW - they do some work). Can´t you get this - go out in nature. Dig up some unfertilized soil (0 - 20 cm down) Put this in a bucket, put in water (fresh or salt) Mix. Filter through a coffee filter. Take a couple of litres of this - put in the refrigerator. Shake and take some of it in your tank every day for three weeks.
4. No more fish!
5. Not sensitive photosynthetic corals can work. They are normally not a "load". You should not feed them in this situation. They will help you balancing the tank - taking up nutrients. More CUC can work. But stay away from tricky corals
6. Skip all adjustments and measurements for the moment. That you can fix when this crisis is over
7. Your task - cycle the tank with no losses of fish. 100 % concentration of that
8. Take my advises - value them against others - pick one way of handling this - and stuck to that for the coming three weeks. If you do not believe my advises - skip them but pick one method to handle this
9. A big welcome to R2R

Sincerely Lasse

 

[Brew12]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

@Lasse has given some excellent advice!

The only thing I would add is that I would recommend adding a macro algae if you can. That will help consume the ammonia quickly and help protect the fish.

 

[BestMomEver]

Welcome to the reef. As you can see there are a lot of very knowledgeable people here and they are all willing to help. It’s not guaranteed that you will lose fish (or anything else, for that matter) but the odds are against you with a three week old tank. At this point I would suggest a few things.. 1. See if the fish store will take the Foxface back. As you noted, he’s gonna be way too large for anything less than 75-100 gallons. And because he’s a swift swimmer, will have a higher metabolism and will need more food. More food=more waste=poor water conditions for a while.
2. It’s really hard to keep anemones in a new tank although there are some that have done it. Most of them have been reefing for a long time. If the fish store won’t take it back, ask around and see if there is a reefer nearby that can house it for a few months until your tank is a little more settled.
3. I recommend small water changes every other day. That way there is a continuous influx of fresh water. If you have a friend that has filter media that’s been in their tank for a while, you can ask if they can give you some. It will jump start the good bacteria your tank needs to survive.
4. Don’t panic if something goes wrong. Come here and ask questions. Someone is always around!

 

[BestMomEver]

Oh... a 10 gallon should really only House 1 or two fish, depending on what they are. I would keep the two clowns and try to find homes for any others. Good luck!

 

[Lasse]

Guys - do not yell at sam20e I´m sure he/she knows that this is not the best situation. Yelling have never ever save any fish

IMO - Brew12 advise will help

However - I´m not 100 % sure if I would do WC in this situation as BestMomEver suggest. The reason is that newly mixed water is rather "chemical" and lack some organic molecules that is very healthy for the mucus of the fish. You need to do it if you see any strange behavior of the fish - but I´m normally very careful with a routine for WC i a tank new as yours. But …….. It is very difficult to sit here and judge - you must decide by your self if you need to do it. It can be a good advise but you have to judge by your self. The other advises from her? - I have no problems with them.

Sincerely Lasse

 

[reef lover]

Welcome to r2r!!https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/the-supreme-guide-to-setting-up-a-saltwater-reef-aquarium.138750/