Tank crashing??

[edchao]

I added more ceramic media last night, and I was wondering if I should use sea gel stability or more turbo start?

I would just add the TurboStart for now and do water test daily. Don't want to stress your hammer too much with too many changes. TurboStart can speed through the cycle in less than a week. Once you see only Nitrate, it's time to do 40 to 50% water change.

 

[ians pico]

Hi. I am sorry to hear about your loss. A 5g tank can react fast to anything. First, what type of Blenny was it? Can be a factor if it was a Miller, Lawnmower type as they need a much larger mature system to be happy. If a tailspot or smaller type, could be something else.

Next, when you said you fed weekly, does that mean you only feed the blenny once per week? If so, that is not healthy for those fish. Most fish need food every day at least. Just small amounts.

Next, the ammonia from API are usually poor. If you finished your cycle, doubt ammonia would cause the fish death. However, if you tested after the fish died, then yes, it will show in such a small system.

I have run a 6g for years and any little thing can be very bad. However, if your cuc are still alive, that is good news. Hopefully the hammer will come back.

Did you have anything on your hands? Lotion, soap? It can have a bad outcome in these little systems.

It was a tailspin blenny, I would feed him once per week and everywhere I did research and each LFS I spoke to said they can live off of algae. And this guys grazed off of my algae all day every day. It was actually really impressive. So I was kind of giving him the shrimp as a treat and to keep him away from the corals while they ate.

 

[ians pico]

A beginner should know that 2ppm ammonia is highly toxic. Sorry, no excuse for that.
This has nothing to do with common mistakes we've all made.

Hence my advice to the OP to do some reading.

When did I say anything about not knowing about ammonia or the nitrogen cycle?

 

[DeniseAndy]

The blenny could have starved. Hate to say it, but these guys do not always come in healthy and even if he was pecking around, he may not have been getting what it needed. He needs more than what that little 5g can give. Not trying to make you feel bad, but we learn as we go lots of times. LFS may mean well, but most fish need supplemental feedings by us.

If you go that route again, make sure to feed a little every day. I would suggest items such as roe, oyster feast, plankton, PE Calanus, TDO B2 (very small food pellets). These are great for smaller fish and do not muck up the water too much.

I feed my 6g every day sometimes more with these types and all is happy for years.

Edit: Sometimes what is suppose to be the case, just isn't. Referring to the research. Glad you did it though. Keep at it.

 

[ians pico]

The blenny could have starved. Hate to say it, but these guys do not always come in healthy and even if he was pecking around, he may not have been getting what it needed. He needs more than what that little 5g can give. Not trying to make you feel bad, but we learn as we go lots of times. LFS may mean well, but most fish need supplemental feedings by us.

If you go that route again, make sure to feed a little every day. I would suggest items such as roe, oyster feast, plankton, PE Calanus, TDO B2 (very small food pellets). These are great for smaller fish and do not muck up the water too much.

I feed my 6g every day sometimes more with these types and all is happy for years.

Edit: Sometimes what is suppose to be the case, just isn't. Referring to the research. Glad you did it though. Keep at it.

I may not put a fish in this tank for another couple of months. I’ll let it settle down and I’ll let the corals grow in

 

[DeniseAndy]

Sounds like a plan. If you do add some, think about the genuses: Trimma, Eviota, Elacatinus. These are all very small gobies and you can keep multiples in the 5g.

 

[ians pico]

People killing fish&corals because they didn't take the time to learn some basic essentials before starting a reeftank, there is no excuse for that.
I'm caring for the animals, there are wáy too much being killed in this hobby because of our stupidities. To be honest i'm sick and tired of this.
LFS should only sell animals to people who know at least some basics.

Also, if you read my post, everything was fine Friday, I fed the blenny and the corals, my water was fine I did my water change and when I woke up Saturday that’s when he had died. I found the amonia after the blenny had died. In a 5 gallon it wouldn’t suprise me if the amonia spike came from him over night.

The blenny could have starved. Hate to say it, but these guys do not always come in healthy and even if he was pecking around, he may not have been getting what it needed. He needs more than what that little 5g can give. Not trying to make you feel bad, but we learn as we go lots of times. LFS may mean well, but most fish need supplemental feedings by us.

If you go that route again, make sure to feed a little every day. I would suggest items such as roe, oyster feast, plankton, PE Calanus, TDO B2 (very small food pellets). These are great for smaller fish and do not muck up the water too much.

I feed my 6g every day sometimes more with these types and all is happy for years.

Edit: Sometimes what is suppose to be the case, just isn't. Referring to the research. Glad you did it though. Keep at it.

thank you

 

[DanC40]

I may not put a fish in this tank for another couple of months. I’ll let it settle down and I’ll let the corals grow in

Probably a good move. Just test test test until the parameters are good. Don't worry happens to all of us sometimes they die and I can't find a reason why.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Again, I have seen this happen with fish that one day they seem to be great and even eating, and dead from starvation the next day. I have seen it most in blennies and tangs. Good luck on the corals, and any future fish!

 

[NS Mike D]

A beginner should know that 2ppm ammonia is highly toxic. Sorry, no excuse for that.
This has nothing to do with common mistakes we've all made.

Hence my advice to the OP to do some reading.

after you slammed the OP (shouldn't be in the hobby) who posted here for guidance and your comment about needing to read more was empty advice - read what? - you made no mention of the nitrogen cycle - why a cycled tank shouldn't be 2ppm NH3 etc. IMO, it was lazy post that provided little to no help and loaded up with a personal attack.

You even hid behind justifying your attack after the fact by taking aim at the LFS. IMO, a member should not be held accountable for a bad LFS (and yes there are many).

Credit to the OP for posting here and seeking knowledge and to the members who are helping without passing gratuitous judgment.

 

[NS Mike D]

I may not put a fish in this tank for another couple of months. I’ll let it settle down and I’ll let the corals grow in

+1 on good plan. A pico can be extremely hard to keep. I have a 29 gal nano with two sumps ( a HOB and a underneath one) just to help keep things stable given my busy schedule. I've seen Pico tanks that just have a shrimp or a snail to provide nutrients to a number of small corals like zoas. A hammer if healthy would outgrow a 5 gal in no time. But it should be very nice before it needs a new home.

There is a good Pico forum that you can keep a thread with regular updates that members with similar tanks can help provide guidance as you go along.

@brandon429 was tagged in this thread earlier. If he drops in, pay attention to him. He has a pico (several ?) and is well informed on the nuances of the nitrogen cycle, false test readings and sand washing, rip cleaning etc

 

[11f150]

yeah being 5 gallons things could swing pretty fast.

 

[Chrisv.]

Wow. Ammonia isn't the only toxic thing in this thread.

Pay them no mind, OP. I am on the "your ammonia spiked after the blenny died" team. I don't think you have any kind of stuck cycle based on the evidence presented. Not sure if you're running any chemical filtration but in a small tank like this, chemipure blue is a really good insurance policy. Maybe the blenny needed more food, or maybe it was something else. You mentioned it was a pretty recent addition. Could have easily come in with something. Because your tank is pretty small, I suggest that you buy one of the sealed 5 gallon containers of premade salt water that they sell at the big box pet stores and keep it as a backup. In the future WHEN disasters strike, it will be very nice to be able to easily change 3 gal or something.

As the others said, the API tests are not the best, but honestly, they should be close enough for a simple set up as long as you're not going for high end acros or something. People love to push the better test kits, and don't get me wrong, they are considerably better-- but people can't even agree to what the levels should be these days. If your nitrates are 5 or zero, it's probably a good plan to feed your fish more. If they are 20 or 30, it's probably a good idea to get to that water change sooner than later. If people knew and agreed that "x" was the perfect nutrient level, then sure, test down to as many significant digits as you can. But this sounds like a low tech set up, and a ball park is probably close enough for many entry level corals.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Tank is not mature for many of these corals in fact most any coral to mention quite a bit of stocking in a short amount of time. Not criticism but awareness
You listed some parameters. WHAT TEST KITS ARE YOU USING ?
Additionally, your phos if correct extremely high as you want < .04. one reason for High phos may be the feeding of Reef Roids which is notorious for raising Phosphate to high levels.
I would cease anymore stocking and focus on water quality.
As for Blenny - its a myth that they are algae eaters and as mentioned may have starved, but depending on water quality, there may be other variables.

Typical numbers you want are :

Temp 77-79
ph 8.1-8.3
salinity 1.025
nitrate < .10
phos < .04
Ammonia < .03
mG 1300
Alk 8-11
CA 400- 440

 

[Rmckoy]

A beginner should know that 2ppm ammonia is highly toxic. Sorry, no excuse for that.
This has nothing to do with common mistakes we've all made.

Hence my advice to the OP to do some reading.

Knowing it is one thing .
moving forward is the reason for posting here .
Why be that guy ?

How many years have you been reefing ?

have you ever lost a coral frag ?
lost a fish not knowing it was already sick ?

 

[Rmckoy]

Wow. Ammonia isn't the only toxic thing in this thread.

Pay them no mind, OP. I am on the "your ammonia spiked after the blenny died" team. I don't think you have any kind of stuck cycle based on the evidence presented. Not sure if you're running any chemical filtration but in a small tank like this, chemipure blue is a really good insurance policy. Maybe the blenny needed more food, or maybe it was something else. You mentioned it was a pretty recent addition. Could have easily come in with something. Because your tank is pretty small, I suggest that you buy one of the sealed 5 gallon containers of premade salt water that they sell at the big box pet stores and keep it as a backup. In the future WHEN disasters strike, it will be very nice to be able to easily change 3 gal or something.

As the others said, the API tests are not the best, but honestly, they should be close enough for a simple set up as long as you're not going for high end acros or something. People love to push the better test kits, and don't get me wrong, they are considerably better-- but people can't even agree to what the levels should be these days. If your nitrates are 5 or zero, it's probably a good plan to feed your fish more. If they are 20 or 30, it's probably a good idea to get to that water change sooner than later. If people knew and agreed that "x" was the perfect nutrient level, then sure, test down to as many significant digits as you can. But this sounds like a low tech set up, and a ball park is probably close enough for many entry level corals.

Before Hanna ,
api was trusted upon by many of us to get levels close as possible .
Imaging prior to digital or refractometer for measuring salinity. .

floating hydrometers were cheap
And a swing arm hydrometer was used y everyone .

I agree with the ball park theory being close enough for now .

 

[Chrisv.]

Before Hanna ,
api was trusted upon by many of us to get levels close as possible .
Imaging prior to digital or refractometer for measuring salinity. .

floating hydrometers were cheap
And a swing arm hydrometer was used y everyone .

I agree with the ball park theory being close enough for now .

That being said, my god I love my Hanna checkers and I am never going back. I test so much more frequently now that I actually believe the results.

 

[Rmckoy]

+1 on good plan. A pico can be extremely hard to keep. I have a 29 gal nano with two sumps ( a HOB and a underneath one) just to help keep things stable given my busy schedule. I've seen Pico tanks that just have a shrimp or a snail to provide nutrients to a number of small corals like zoas. A hammer if healthy would outgrow a 5 gal in no time. But it should be very nice before it needs a new home.

There is a good Pico forum that you can keep a thread with regular updates that members with similar tanks can help provide guidance as you go along.

@brandon429 was tagged in this thread earlier. If he drops in, pay attention to him. He has a pico (several ?) and is well informed on the nuances of the nitrogen cycle, false test readings and sand washing, rip cleaning etc

I tagged him for this exact reason .
My coffee cup is bigger than his dt lol
But he is very knowledgable when it comes to cycles , false tests ,
Now
He’s been tagged 2x hope
Everyone likes reading

 

[Rmckoy]

That being said, my god I love my Hanna checkers and I am never going back. I test so much more frequently now that I actually believe the results.

They are convenient for sure .
I’m a little frustrated with false results from the alk tester and considering going back to salifert .

 

[ians pico]

+1 on good plan. A pico can be extremely hard to keep. I have a 29 gal nano with two sumps ( a HOB and a underneath one) just to help keep things stable given my busy schedule. I've seen Pico tanks that just have a shrimp or a snail to provide nutrients to a number of small corals like zoas. A hammer if healthy would outgrow a 5 gal in no time. But it should be very nice before it needs a new home.

There is a good Pico forum that you can keep a thread with regular updates that members with similar tanks can help provide guidance as you go along.

@brandon429 was tagged in this thread earlier. If he drops in, pay attention to him. He has a pico (several ?) and is well informed on the nuances of the nitrogen cycle, false test readings and sand washing, rip cleaning etc

Thank you thank you thank you