OK, so it's been a while since I posted about my tank. As many of you predicted I had a bad ammonia spike, and my poor fish started to go toxic, swimming on their side etc., and I felt like :pooh:. I decided I was going to get a smaller tank to temporarily move them while I redid the 55 gal, and planned that if the smaller tank went toxic too quick I would just bring all my fish to the LFS with no expectation of compensation, just to save them. As "luck" would have it, the day I picked up a 20g tank, my 55g began to leak at the bottom seams (yay Petsmart brand products):grumble: so it was convenient I had already gotten everything for another tank. I put the whole thing together but because of the sand the water was too cloudy initially. By morning it was clear enough, thanks to a 75g HOB filter on a 20g tank. I moved all my critters, and 20-30lbs of the LR (which by now had gone through any die off), and took down the 55g and returned it for another.
In the meantime ALL the critters got better (:death:though I had lost all my snails, the sea urchin, one shrimp, 2 small coral, and one damsel to the other tank:frustrat:), and all the levels were perfect, so I waited. Long story short (too late, I know) it has been over a month, ALL levels are perfect :bounce:, no ammonia or nitrite, and less than 20ppm nitrate, PH 8.0, and ALK 300ppm, so I decided why fix what ain't broke? Recently tested my calcium, because I still want to go reef, and it too is perfect at about 460-480.
So now I have a 20g long tank, with 20-30lbs LR, 2 Clownfish, a blue damsel, a Firefish Goby, 9 red/blue hermit crabs, a Scarlet shrimp, and recently added 2 Mexican Turbo Snails, and an Astrea snail. Started out with 4 Astrea, but the hermits ate 3, which is why I got the BIG guys (the Turbo's are about 3 inches).
I started THIS tank, on April 3rd, so it has been over a month with NO fluctuation in levels, so tomorrow I think I will get a hardy mushroom coral and cross my fingers.
I learned a very valuable lesson in this, and I am ashamed at the loss of life as a result. However, the fact is I did learn, and hope to have a very successful future in this hobby as a result.:Cheers: