Setting UP A Tank At My School!!!

[Baby Ray]

So sorry to hear this, no stray voltage going on is there? Just grasping as I know how careful you are.

I don't think there is any stray voltage. I don't exactly know how to test for this

 

[Chrisfish]

Hmm I'll have to check out some prior post, there's a probe of some kind that you can use, I think it's a voltage probe.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Sorry. Sad day. Keep working hard.

 

[Baby Ray]

Sorry. Sad day. Keep working hard.

Thank you. I am going to do a big water change and then maybe add another firefish. I am going to test temperature and stuff like that first and see if any of those might have been a factor.

 

[Budman93]

What are your Nitrite and Nitrate levels for the tank? Tanks usually take about a month to cycle before you can add fish. Good work so far though. I got into the hobby about the same age you did. Best advice I can give is to always research and ask places like this first before you add anything new to the tank

 

[Baby Ray]

What are your Nitrite and Nitrate levels for the tank? Tanks usually take about a month to cycle before you can add fish. Good work so far though. I got into the hobby about the same age you did. Best advice I can give is to always research and ask places like this first before you add anything new to the tank

All the levels were fine when I added the fish and shrimp to the tank. They tank was ready and it has benifial bacteria in it. I am not sure why they died because everything was running well

 

[tj w]

Maybe something was off in the old water from the lfs. Just a thought

 

[nitrodude]

Id be willing to bet tabk didnt cycle fully yet get a cheap api test kit and test ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

 

[Baby Ray]

Maybe something was off in the old water from the lfs. Just a thought

I thought about that but the LFS's tanks look really good and everything is healthy. If the water was off, it would of killed everything in their tanks as well.

 

[Baby Ray]

Id be willing to bet tabk didnt cycle fully yet get a cheap api test kit and test ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

I started with LR, live sand, and old water change water from my LFS so it already had bacteria. I also ghost fed the tank to keep the bacteria alive. My ammonia and nitrites were 0 when I added them.

 

[nitrodude]

You could very well still of had a cycle.
Who did the testing and with what test kit?
Have you retested now?

 

[Baby Ray]

You could very well still of had a cycle.
Who did the testing and with what test kit?
Have you retested now?

My LFS did the tests for my. I don't know what test kits they use but I am sure they are nice. All my parameters were perfect maybe an hour or 2 before I put everything in the tank so I am sure they were fine. I haven't tested the parameters since because I don't own any test kits

 

[nitrodude]

Get your water retested and get the readings.
Ammonia. Nitrite and nitrate.

There is a very, very good chance this is what killed everything.

 

[Baby Ray]

Get your water retested and get the readings.
Ammonia. Nitrite and nitrate.

There is a very, very good chance this is what killed everything.

I don't mean to be pushy or annoying but what is your reasoning behind this?

 

[Budman93]

Every tank, no matter what you are starting off with, live rock, live sand, dry rock, used water, etc will go through a Nitrogen cycle. This is called 'cycling' it is usually a 30-40 day process that is pretty much unavoidable. Until this process is complete, adding livestock will usually result in death or harm of the fish. You should buy a multi-test kit from the LFS that covers Nitrite, Nitrate, and Ammonia. First the ammonia will spike way up then get broken down into Nitrite, eventually that gets broken down into Nitrate. When the Nitrate subsides then it is all ready to add fish.

You should use your kit to test every couple of days to track the cycle and know where your tank is at in the process. There's some pretty helpful videos that I'll link to that explain this.

Cycling is definitely one of the more boring and un-fun parts of the hobby. But use the time to research and gather some more equipment. If you take your time and do your due diligence your tank will blow everyone away!

 

[Bob3655]

Test your ammonia and salinity. Shrimps are especially sensitive to salinity swings. I know youre using seasoned water from your LFS but I personally dont think your rock is done cycling yet. I would wait a few more weeks, keep doing water changes and test again in 2 weeks or so. I know its really hard, but try to be patient with it, the critters will appreciate it

 

[Bob3655]

Every tank, no matter what you are starting off with, live rock, live sand, dry rock, used water, etc will go through a Nitrogen cycle. This is called 'cycling' it is usually a 30-40 day process that is pretty much unavoidable. Until this process is complete, adding livestock will usually result in death or harm of the fish. You should buy a multi-test kit from the LFS that covers Nitrite, Nitrate, and Ammonia. First the ammonia will spike way up then get broken down into Nitrite, eventually that gets broken down into Nitrate. When the Nitrate subsides then it is all ready to add fish.

You should use the kit you hopefully bought to test every couple of days to track the cycle and know where your tank is at. There's some pretty helpful videos that I'll link to that explain this.

^ This. Excellent post Budman

 

[Jack Eskay]

I got a powerhead!! I got a jebao RW-4 from my LFS. I still am not sure about a light but I am leaning towards SB reef lights

I had a question of you could message me!( my phone won't allow me to pm anyone...)

 

[cmcoker]

Hey, I know your on a budget so I would suggest an ammonia badge. They aren't terribly expensive and you can look at the tank and get a reading. Thin you've probably used them before...
Athats the main thing you should be concerned about for fish health. Nitrites and nitrates aren't toxic to marine fish. Check out Randy's article on nitrite for more info on it not being toxic until you get really high numbers
They probably would effect shrimps though...

 

[cigarshark]

If you still need anything I'll donate it to you. Just let me know what you need.