Fish Might Be Sick ?? Help Please

[Civicdemon]

Please, show me where "most people" said that the butterflies would be okay to keep. Because these are the quotes I found from previous posts -- pretty much everyone said to take the butterflies back. In spite of what you may think, you didn't do what people suggested...

ok you proved my point only one person was saying to take the butterflys back. most of the other people where talking about the blue tang and the sailfin witch get to big they did not say take the butterflys back they where just warning me they might not make it and telling me how hard they are to keep.

 

[little_fish]

That means you should return them :)

If you cant care for them properly, dont keep them around

 

[FishyReef]

+1 LF

I think most of us were trying to be gentle by warning you how hard they were to keep. I will be more direct next time. Please keep us posted on how your clowns and b/w heniochus do. I am glad to hear you returned the two tangs! I strongly believe you can turn your tank around and will be curious to see how it progress!

 

[Civicdemon]

Well I hope it does turn around, Im really tired of fresh water and i dont want to go back to it. I Must say do this is a hole difrent ball game. But hey live and learn. im going to go pick up a protein skimmer tomorrow and im planning on a sump for when i move. Right now with the tank the way it is i cant fit one in the stand untill i can move it and put one in thru the back. But i plan on getting one so i can have a refugium and also stick all the heaters and stuff down there.

 

[Civicdemon]

Got a protein skimmer going to install it in the morning yey

 

[little_fish]

what kind of protein skimmer? there are lots of bad protein skimmers out there

 

[Bifferwine]

Beware of the SeaClone and Red Sea Prizm skimmers... They do not work and are not worth the plastic they are made of. Like livestock, equipment should be researched before purchasing. There are a lot of duds out there that just rip people off.

 

[FishyReef]

On the flip side, Reef Octopus are great skimmers and I've also heard good things about the Aqua Remora line of skimmers

 

[Bifferwine]

On the flip side, Reef Octopus are great skimmers and I've also heard good things about the Aqua Remora line of skimmers

Yes, those are probably some of the best skimmers for the money. They are on the lower end price-wise and work fantastically. Of course, you can get into the $1,000s when it comes to buying a skimmer, but for most people, that's out of their budget. :)

 

[Civicdemon]

Well i did some searching and only javing about 4 1/2 inch clerance betwen my tank and the wall i went with a cpr back pack skimmer. I got a really good deal on it so im happy. And the guy had one on his tank in the shop and it was getting all nasty and gunky in the colection cup.

 

[Bifferwine]

I beleive the BakPaks are only rated for tanks up to 60 gallons. When buying a skimmer you should buy one that is rated for twice your tank volume. Having a skimmer that small on a tank that size may help a little, but it might not make a difference at all.

Are you continuing to take advice from the fish store that sold you all those fish and misled you into wasting a lot of money in the first place? Or is this a different store? Watch out who you shop from -- some LFS (not all) are unscrupulous and just want to make a buck. You keep coming back into their store and giving them your hard-earned money though. Any LFS that sold you all those fish and told you they'd be okay in a new tank knew better and was taking you for a ride. Don't reward them with more of your business.

Also for equipment, you can find stuff for a fraction of the price online. LFS typically markup equipment and dry goods 2x what you can buy it for at sites like Drs. Foster and Smith, Marine Depot or Bulk Reef Supply. Shopping for stuff like skimmers online will give you a much better deal -- and you can read user reviews instead of relying on the words of a salesperson.

 

[Civicdemon]

No the one i got is the aero force 2, i picked it up of some guy for 50$ still in the box. I touht it couldnt hurt any, its actually rated at 75gl i might try and pick up another one for the other side. But at the same time i think i might just wait, the polishing pads i have in my filters take care of alot of the gunk and i started cleaning them out every 4 days. So i think i might just wait untill i move. ( Might be Soon ) That way i can just get a sump refugium and put it under my stand. With a in sump Skimmer.

On Another note i just set up a 10gl tank to breed copepods, i took water out of my tank 5gl, and about 1 lb of the rubble rock along with a 8lb rock i got at the lfs. also a bit of the sand from my Tank. I Bought to bottles of copepods, One for my tank and one to pore into the 10gl, also got some of that green plant to put in the 10gl along with some phytoplankton for the copepods to eat. hopefully i can get the reproducing so i can be ready in a Few months for a mandarin and a Sandsifter goby.

 

[Bifferwine]

Yeah, just wait and see. What you got may do the trick, no point in getting more than you need.

Don't buy a mandarin or a goby unless they are eating frozen food. There will be no way for you to breed enough copepods to keep them fed. Even if you try to breed them in a separate tank, those guys will wipe out thousands of pods in no time. Many mandarins and gobies eat frozen foods and you can avoid the live food situation altogether. If they are not eating frozen foods at the time that you buy them, it's almost a certainty that they will just starve to death in your tank over a period of a couple months.

When you are interested in any fish (but mandarins and gobies especially), ask the person at the fish store to feed them in front of you. If they eat the prepared food, you are good to go. If the fish does not eat in front of you, do not buy that fish, no matter how tempting it is.

Sand sifting gobies and mandarins are another fish that are not well suited to a new tank, but if you buy ones that eat frozen foods, they are much easier to adapt to their new surroundings and much easier for you to take care of.

 

[Kelz88]

Also make sure they are fat! beeguiles has a big chunky one :)

If the fish stomach looks pinched in dont bother, the poor little soul is probebly too fargone. :(