Help please!

[head_stock]

My daughter has a 80-100l marine aquarium. She is getting confused and disillusioned as things don't seem to be progressing as hoped. I have been leaving her to 'get on with it' as she's a smart girl and it's her aquarium not mine! but I can see how things are progressing and unless we make some major changes/improvements I can see it all ending badly.
The aquarium has been running for about 3-4 months now and the situation is as follows:
We have one clown fish which seems relatively happy, one cleaner shrimp left (out of two) again seems relatively happy, various hermit crabs, normal crabs and snails and a starfish again all apparently happy. Now the bad news - two fish died (disappeared) in the last month (possibly called neon's - small blue metalic fish?) the water has a nasty scum on it (I'm guessing we havn't got the skimmer working effectively/properly), all coral has died in the last 8 weeks, and the anenomie is a very sick animal, but literally only in the last week.
My daughter tells me she tests the water regularly and it's OK but I know there are various types of test and I'm not sure which ones she is doing, she changes out the required amount of marine water every 2 weeks and cleans the filters - althought we have never changed the carbon filter just rinsed it out with marine water. All dead fish have disappeared promptly - possibly due to the cleaner shrimp?, but as I said the Anenomie looks to be on its last legs.
Any help, guidance, instruction would be appreciated, I can supply more information / photographs if necessary.
Thanks in advance - Tom

 

[Civicdemon]

Well not everyones ok is actually ok lol.

What are the Parameters ???

Temp
PH
Salinity

Nitrates
Nitrites
Ammonia

Do you have corals ??? IF so

Ca.
MG
KH

Also how much water is she actually changing ??

We need as much detail as posible.

Some people actually change 10 to 15 % of the water volume evry week when first starting out a tank to keep everything in check. I know i useto do water changes every week when i first started and about 2 months back sawitched over to every 2 weeks, this is 7 months after initial start.

What lights are you using ???

All info and as detailed as posible is best here for us to help you out as much as we can.

And Welcome to the Forum !!!!

 

[Ted]

Welcome to the forum. Ok well.....To soon for a anemone. Tank should be at least a year old and stable. They also need very high lighting. Carbon should be changed every few weeks.Think two if it is a cartridge/pad. Weekly would be better.

Need a great deal more information. Like stated above. Would also like to know what filtration is being used. How much live rock is in the system and....pictures would be very helpful.

If the anemone is dying it should be removed. It will and is possible already poisoning the tank.

 

[head_stock]

OK - I'm on it, I'll get the information and pictures and re-post, might take a couple of days but in the words of Arnie - I'll be back!
If there are anything else please add it to the list!

 

[Civicdemon]

Ok So heres what we need.

Lighting, Filtration, How much Live rock, Do you use RO/DI water for water change?, Flow ( Meaning other pumps other than return pump to circulate water ),
Skimmer Rating, All Paramaters( Temp, Salinity, Ph, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates ) Being as you have a anemone we also need to know KH, Ca, Mg.
Amount of water being changed, are you making sure PH TEMP and SALINITY Match the DT ??

and +1 TED If anemone is Dying You should remove it to a QT tank.

 

[KelliZackMOM]

A lot of good info here. These guys will get you on the right track. I feel for ya, when our tank was 1st starting up, I let my son completely run the show because it was his tank. After a few hundreds dollars of my money went down the tubes I had to step in and take charge. Although, it sounds like your daughter is more on track with things than my son was.

 

[Smitty]

Hello and welcome aboard. We'll get you and your daughter squared away.

 

[head_stock]

Ok So heres what we need.

Lighting, Filtration, How much Live rock, Do you use RO/DI water for water change?, Flow ( Meaning other pumps other than return pump to circulate water ),
Skimmer Rating, All Paramaters( Temp, Salinity, Ph, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates ) Being as you have a anemone we also need to know KH, Ca, Mg.
Amount of water being changed, are you making sure PH TEMP and SALINITY Match the DT ??

and +1 TED If anemone is Dying You should remove it to a QT tank.

OK - I have worked out most of the jargon, except DT?? given the context is this a reference to the water actually in the tank??? or something else? :-)

 

[head_stock]

what does DT stand for: Donor Tank perhaps?? Destination Tank??? Delerium Tremins??

 

[Civicdemon]

Display tank !!

 

[FishyReef]

Also, what type of test kits is she using, how is she measuring her salinity (hydrometer, refractometer), what type of water are you using (tap water, RO/DI), how long has the tank been set up, and what type of fish and corals have you tried that have died?

EDIT: And for the record, I chose both "its not too hard" and "abandon all hope" for the poll - its not hard when you get the basics down, but once you have a thriving tank you will become hopelessly addicted and it will take over your life :D

 

[Bifferwine]

LOL I love the poll. :lol:

I would remove the anemone ASAP. It dying could be causing you some of the problems. They are not appropriate animals for a new tank. As others have said, more info will help. We will get you sorted out. Don't worry! :)

 

[head_stock]

Hi All - OK this might take some time!
The tank is a Kent marine Bioreef LED.
Bio Reef LED Specifications:

Dimensions - 570mm (H) 450mm (W) 510mm (L) capacity of 94 Litres/21 Gallons
Lighting - 1 x 36 watt Power Compact Daylight Lamp - 10,000K Marine white lamp 1 x 36 watt Power Compact Daylight Blue - 50% 10,000K Marine White, 50% Actinic Blue 6 x 1 watt Marine White LED's 4 x 0.5 watt Marine Blue LED's
Circulation - 1 x 1000 LPH circulation pump (15 watts) 1 x 2000 LPH Hi Flow Wave maker pump (3 watts) 1 x Skimmer pump (4 watts)
Heating - 1 x 200 watt heater
We are a bit random in when we put the blue nightime lights on - usually when someone goes to bed - between 9 and 11pm, daylight lights go on at 7am ish.
Filtration
4 stage as follows:
1. Mechanical - filter balls and foam pad (rinsed in RO water)
2. Protein Skimmer
3. Chemical - carbon bag (not been replaced in 6 months but rinsed in RO water)
4. Biological - Bio-media (not sure what this is!)
Live Rock
See photographs but 7 pieces in total, 2 large, 3 medium and 2 small.
Water Readings and info
Salinity: 1,027
Temp: 28 degrees centigrade
Amonia Test: <0.25 (less than)
We have an RO system and replace about 20% of water every 2 weeks currently.
Coral
We have one living coral left - it has three heads, two seem to be healthy and one has died and has long stringy stuff weeping from it.
General
1. Protein skimmer - not sure if it's set up correctly as we keep having to dab the scum off the surface of the water with kitchen towel as it builds up. Not sure of the skimmer rating but it's the one which came with the tank. (called a nano skimmer)
2. The anenome has shrunk to about half it's normal size and looks a bit sick but take a look at the pictures and see what you think, it's still in the tank for the moment.
3. There is algae growing on the inside of the glass which we struggle to remove, but have bought a scrubbing brush which seems to helping.
4. there are bubbles of air forming on some of the live rock - not sure if there is any significance?
5. We have no kit to measure Natrate, Nitrites, Ka, MG, Ch, PH - please advise if any of this is essential/necessary as we will buy the necessary kits - please advise if any particular kit is better/best.

Phew - let me know your thoughts, all guidance greatfully received! Photo's to follow.

Tom

 

[FishyReef]

The tank doesn't look nearly as bad as what I was expecting!

Here's a few initial thoughts:

1. You desperately need stronger lights to maintain that anemone and the coral. power compact lights really aren't strong enough to sustain even the lowest light corals, and anemones have needs for exceptionally high lighting. I would recommend getting a 4-6 bulb T5 fixture for that size tank or a strong LED light (more expensive but you won't have to replace bulbs for 5 years, whereas you need to replace the T5 bulbs every 6-9 months).

2. Algae isn't terrible - get a mag-float (or similar magnetic scraper) to use to scrape off the inside of the glass daily, you can pick one up at petco. Also get yourself a decent clean up crew (look at reefcleaners.org for ideas of how many snails and what variety you will need for your size tank). The bubbles you see on the rocks are likely the start of either hair algae or cyano, which you can take care of via a clean up crew and limiting nutrients in the tank.

3. Test kits - definitely get yourself some test kits, and not the test strip kind. You need the basics - ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH, alkalinity. A couple reputable brands are salifert, seachem, API, and the newer Red Sea kits. Also invest in a refractometer. Your salinity is on the high side and I'm guessing that you are using a hydrometer which means it could even further off than what you are measuring.

4. Lights: Put your lights on a timer, that will make it easier! You can just use a cheap timer like you would use for Christmas lights.

5. Anemone - I'd strongly recommend taking it back to the store while you get the tank sorted out. It doesn't look terrible, but in a new small tank w/o adequate lighting it will not survive. They need not only high lighting, but also need good stable parameters - that means little to no change throughout the day/week/month/year in pH, salinity, temp, and around 0 nitrates at all times. They are very hard animals to keep (even the easy ones) and often don't make it in tanks that are less than a year old. Combine that with a small tank, where parameters naturally fluxuate more than in a larger tank. Same goes for a new tank, where parameters naturally fluxuate a lot more than after the tank has matured. One question that will inevitably come up is whether the clown needs an anemone - it does not and will do perfectly fine without one. Clowns will host all sorts of things and doesn't need the anemone to be healthy and happy in the tank!

6. It looks like you have enough rock, and you should be able to get the coral to come back if you get some decent lights over the tank. When you get new lights, I'd recommend placing the coral on the sand bed and then slowly acclimating it to your new lights.

7. For that size tank, you are pretty limited in the types and total number of fish you can have. The clown is a good choice. I'm guessing that the other fish didn't make it because the tank was either too small for them, resulting in too much stress, or your daughter added them too quickly causing an ammonia/nitrite spike. Take a look at Live Aquaria for good information on what types of fish to get - they have a good nano section and beginner fish section, and tell you the requirements and needs for each fish. For your tank, aim for the nano fish, though you could also add most gobies, blennies, or small wrasses. Total fish for your size tank will be around 3.

8. Water changes: Increase your water changes to 10% every week - that's only 2 gallons a week and very doable. And make sure you are toping off evaporated water with RO/Di water, not saltwater!

I think you can get this turned around pretty easily and will become very happy with the tank!

 

[Civicdemon]

+1 on fishy post. a couple other things i would note.

What are you using to messure the Salinity ??? Refractometer or hydrometer. Hydrometers tend to read low in my exp. So you are already a bit high and if you reading is low then you could be even higher. Being as you dont have many coral or anything like that i would try and get it to 1.024 for now and later as you add more corals and stuff you can bring it up slowly to 1.025 0r 26.

Test Kits ARE A MUST !!! Get them ASAP. You cant tell whats going on unless you have the test kits.

I would go and Get some Prime Detoxifier for the time and add the recomended amount for the mean time.

And the algea can be reduced by bringing down any nitrates or phosfate ( Why you need Test ) and turning of the light sooner. You have your light on over 12 hours it seems and you can grow most corals fine with 6 to 8 hours, i actually do 9 hours for mine but i run actinics 1 hour before and 1 hour after so its not full on lights. If your like me and want to enjoy the tank more during the day then just push back the on time to like 10 am or something slowly. Mine come on at 9am and go of at around 6pm.

GET TEST KITS ASAP !!!!! Thats the big thing right now....

 

[head_stock]

Many thanks to everyone for your advice and kindness! - very helpful! We will take it all on board and start making changes straight away. In answer to CD's question - yes we currently use a hydromiter but will switch to a refractomiter.
In passing what are the 'actinicas' Civicdeamon refers too - in the context of lighting?
Regards to all!

 

[Bifferwine]

Actinics are blue light bulbs. Daylights are white light bulbs.

 

[head_stock]

OK- so we have done the initial readings which are as follows:
PH: 7.8 - 8.0
Nitrate: 10
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Salinity: 1,037 (refractomiter)
Alkalinity: 2.1
We have a timer for the lights, and new active carbon filter, weekly water changes. Hopefully this will get us started on the right road!

 

[Laz]

I'm a newbie myself here, but your Salinity is very high (I think) and your Alkalinity seems very low.

 

[wontonflip]

You're getting good info, head...but side note to civicdemon...are all the ???'s and !!!'s necessary? Makes you sound hotheaded :P

Keep at it, head...tell your daughter not to be discouraged. It's par for the course in this hobby. If we all quit with our tank fails, we wouldn't be in this forum still in the hobby LOL