- Location
- Upper East Side
pretty fishies! 
Good luck getting them to pair up.
Good luck getting them to pair up.
Matt's 225g Build Thread
- Thread starter meschaefer
- Start date
Welcome to Manhattan Reefs. This is a great site with allot of people that will help you out.
Sorry for being long winded, but I want to give as much information as possible.
Tragedy has struck, as I have lost the larger of the two Lammarcks Angels. This happened the night before last, but the smaller of the two is doing great. He is active and eagerly eats when fed.
I am a bit concerned about why I lost the larger one. Although I had less than 48 hours when he passed, he seemed to be doing much better than the smaller one and if one of them was not going to make it I thought it would have been the smaller.
Both fish where in quarantine, I have always had trouble QT fish so any help would be appreciated.
I used a a 20 gallon long glass tank, with a tunze nanostream for circulation and a small heater that I had lying around (I don't know the size). Also in the tank where three lengths of PVC (2 x 2" and 1 x 1.5") that where bundled together to give them a place to hide.
I filled the tank with water from my display tank. Before using the water I tested it for Ammonia and Nitrite both of which tested zero on two little fishes test kits. Salinity was 1.021. I acclimated both fish over an approximate three hour period, by placing each into a large container with the water from the LFS. Approximately every 15-20 minutes I added some water from my diplay tank. The fish then went into the QT along with the water that I acclimated them in. When all was done, the QT had about 15 gallons of water in it.
Fish seemed to be doing very well, so I tried feeding them a little mysis shrimp later that night and while they both chased down the food they promptly spit it back out. I then took a small net and scooped out most if not all of the food I had fed them.
When I went to bed that night the smaller of the two seemed a little sluggish, but the larger was actively swimming around the QT tank, same thing when I woke up the next morning. I checked on them early afternoon, the smaller fish still seemed sluggish but the larger one was "breathing" very heavily and appeared to be "panting". I once again tested the water. Ammonia was now at .25 and Nitrite was 0. I changed out 1/3 of the water in the QT. When I checked back 1/2 hour later, the larger of the two was laying on its side, there was no change in the smaller.
At this point I kind of freaked out and decided that the best thing to do was to place both fish into the display tank. As I said above I have always had problems with QT and in the past had abandoned them all together. I was trying to turn a new leaf with this tank, but when tragedy struck I fell back to a comfortable position.
About an hour later they both appeared to be doing better. The smaller was more active and the larger was no longer lying on its side, but it still appeared to be breathing heavy. I checked on them multiple time throughout the day, without any improvement. When I checked on them before going to bed the though, the large one had died but the smaller one seemed no worse for wear. The next morning (yeasterday) and last night he was out and about in the display tank and eagerly eating mysis and cyclopeze.
As stated above I completely forgot to check PH throughout this event. Otherwise I am not sure what it is that I did wrong. As I said, I have always had problems with QT. Since I am just starting to stock a fairly large tank I wanted to "do it right" and QT everything that went into the tank.
Any thought would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Tragedy has struck, as I have lost the larger of the two Lammarcks Angels. This happened the night before last, but the smaller of the two is doing great. He is active and eagerly eats when fed.
I am a bit concerned about why I lost the larger one. Although I had less than 48 hours when he passed, he seemed to be doing much better than the smaller one and if one of them was not going to make it I thought it would have been the smaller.
Both fish where in quarantine, I have always had trouble QT fish so any help would be appreciated.
I used a a 20 gallon long glass tank, with a tunze nanostream for circulation and a small heater that I had lying around (I don't know the size). Also in the tank where three lengths of PVC (2 x 2" and 1 x 1.5") that where bundled together to give them a place to hide.
I filled the tank with water from my display tank. Before using the water I tested it for Ammonia and Nitrite both of which tested zero on two little fishes test kits. Salinity was 1.021. I acclimated both fish over an approximate three hour period, by placing each into a large container with the water from the LFS. Approximately every 15-20 minutes I added some water from my diplay tank. The fish then went into the QT along with the water that I acclimated them in. When all was done, the QT had about 15 gallons of water in it.
Fish seemed to be doing very well, so I tried feeding them a little mysis shrimp later that night and while they both chased down the food they promptly spit it back out. I then took a small net and scooped out most if not all of the food I had fed them.
When I went to bed that night the smaller of the two seemed a little sluggish, but the larger was actively swimming around the QT tank, same thing when I woke up the next morning. I checked on them early afternoon, the smaller fish still seemed sluggish but the larger one was "breathing" very heavily and appeared to be "panting". I once again tested the water. Ammonia was now at .25 and Nitrite was 0. I changed out 1/3 of the water in the QT. When I checked back 1/2 hour later, the larger of the two was laying on its side, there was no change in the smaller.
At this point I kind of freaked out and decided that the best thing to do was to place both fish into the display tank. As I said above I have always had problems with QT and in the past had abandoned them all together. I was trying to turn a new leaf with this tank, but when tragedy struck I fell back to a comfortable position.
About an hour later they both appeared to be doing better. The smaller was more active and the larger was no longer lying on its side, but it still appeared to be breathing heavy. I checked on them multiple time throughout the day, without any improvement. When I checked on them before going to bed the though, the large one had died but the smaller one seemed no worse for wear. The next morning (yeasterday) and last night he was out and about in the display tank and eagerly eating mysis and cyclopeze.
As stated above I completely forgot to check PH throughout this event. Otherwise I am not sure what it is that I did wrong. As I said, I have always had problems with QT. Since I am just starting to stock a fairly large tank I wanted to "do it right" and QT everything that went into the tank.
Any thought would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
- Location
- Upper East Side
That's too bad. I have to say that I have always had trouble with QT as well. I have non-affectionately named my QT tank the fish graveyard, and the last time I lost fish in it I gave up, emptied it out, and put it into storage.
Maybe the ammonia spike stressed out the larger of the two fish and then the shock of being moved into the larger tank stressed him out more to the point where he died? Just a guess.
I have to say that I have always had trouble with QT as well. I have non-affectionately named my QT tank the fish graveyard, and the last time I lost fish in it I gave up, emptied it out, and put it into storage. Maybe the ammonia spike stressed out the larger of the two fish and then the shock of being moved into the larger tank stressed him out more to the point where he died? Just a guess.
Matt, I don't use QT, don't have enough tanks for that. I do try to put new fish in one of my holding tanks for a week or two, it is connected to the main tank upstairs. I try to get them used to the water and eating before letting them out n the and get chased around in the display. I don't believe I can get rid of ich in any of my tanks so I am not too concern about them bring in any, I already have them.
Next time, check the salinity and PH of the water in the bag before you start the acclimating process, I find most stores kept their fish in low salinity and high PH to reduce the stress on the fish. You need to long drip them to properly bring them back to the correct salinity.
. I do try to put new fish in one of my holding tanks for a week or two, it is connected to the main tank upstairs. I try to get them used to the water and eating before letting them out n the and get chased around in the display. I don't believe I can get rid of ich in any of my tanks so I am not too concern about them bring in any, I already have them.Next time, check the salinity and PH of the water in the bag before you start the acclimating process, I find most stores kept their fish in low salinity and high PH to reduce the stress on the fish. You need to long drip them to properly bring them back to the correct salinity.
Been awhile since I updated the thread, but I have been busy and few strides have been made. This past weekend I put together a filter sock rack, made from 3/4 inch PVC. It is fairly simple in design and concept, as you can see the "top" of the rack is a bit smaller than the ring on the filter sock, which keeps it from falling through.
What you see is really version #2. The first concept was to use a piece of eggcrate as a top, which had a hole cut out of it that was to hold the collar on the sock. The problem was that the filter sock was to easily caught on the eggcrate as you removed it.
What you see is really version #2. The first concept was to use a piece of eggcrate as a top, which had a hole cut out of it that was to hold the collar on the sock. The problem was that the filter sock was to easily caught on the eggcrate as you removed it.
Matt, to go back to the QT, if you really want to do it, set up a good sized tank, and let the filter establish itself. I would use a 55 gallon tank if you have the room, they are cheap and have enough volume for most fish. use a hang on box filter and some of the sponge air driven filters. that will give enough bacteria and let you have a place to keep media.
in my experience you can't rely on water changes to keep the levels correct in a QT. things can go wrong quickly if a fish happens to die and you do not notice it right away. treat the QT like any other tank you put fish into from the cycle standpoint. I think with this method you will have success.
in my experience you can't rely on water changes to keep the levels correct in a QT. things can go wrong quickly if a fish happens to die and you do not notice it right away. treat the QT like any other tank you put fish into from the cycle standpoint. I think with this method you will have success.
I reset up my quarantine. I want to take some pictures of it but haven't had the chance. I am currently still using the 20 gallon long. I have a 55gallon tank, but I need to retrieve it I just need to find the time.
I have a 100watt heater in it and a small maxijet for some circulation. I put in two semi large pieces of live rock to act as filtration. I had them in my sump for lack of anything better to do with them. If they should become "infected" I can always dry them out and stick them in the oven at 350 and then recycle them.
I have a 100watt heater in it and a small maxijet for some circulation. I put in two semi large pieces of live rock to act as filtration. I had them in my sump for lack of anything better to do with them. If they should become "infected" I can always dry them out and stick them in the oven at 350 and then recycle them.
I hadn't seen your post regarding the QT tank and your loss of the angel. So sorry.
What I did notice about the QT tank was that while you had the Tunze for circulation it was pointing across the lower section of the tank and possibly not doing near enough to disturb the surface of the water for oxygen exchange. That may well be why the larger of the angels was the first to experience a problem.
As you stated he perked up somewhat in your main tank, probably due to the higher level of oxygen, but it seems the damage was already done.
Of course, I could be totally incorrect but IMO it seems to be a good guess at what happened to an otherwise seemingly healthy fish.
Jon's suggestion of air driven sponge filters is an excellent one to provide the necessary oxygenation and the addition of a hob filter will allow you to swap out the sponges as they get dirty and not loose all of your beneficial bacteria in the exchange.
What I did notice about the QT tank was that while you had the Tunze for circulation it was pointing across the lower section of the tank and possibly not doing near enough to disturb the surface of the water for oxygen exchange. That may well be why the larger of the angels was the first to experience a problem.
As you stated he perked up somewhat in your main tank, probably due to the higher level of oxygen, but it seems the damage was already done.
Of course, I could be totally incorrect but IMO it seems to be a good guess at what happened to an otherwise seemingly healthy fish.
Jon's suggestion of air driven sponge filters is an excellent one to provide the necessary oxygenation and the addition of a hob filter will allow you to swap out the sponges as they get dirty and not loose all of your beneficial bacteria in the exchange.
It has been awhile and an update is long overdue. The tank has been up and running for about five months now. The tank went through the same algae cycle that can be expected with new tanks, I started with diatoms, then hair algae , and finally cyano (Not really algae). If you look closely at the shots, you can see that I have not completely won the war but I am definitely headed for victory.
First the full tank shot.
Right then Left
Finally some of the inhabitants
First the full tank shot.
Right then Left
Finally some of the inhabitants
- Location
- NY
Matt, I'm really 'feeling' it. Looks awesome. Keep up the good work. And don't let the 'normal' cycles get to you. They are expected.
swimmer
swimmer
Some information on the algae cycles. I am constantly telling people who post about algae problems in their tank to take some corrective action and just wait it out as it is the natural progression of the tank. It was no different with this tank.
In this case, the tank went through a couple stages of algae. The first to pop up was a diatom bloom. Everything turned brown, the glass the rock and the substrate. This did not last very long until hair algae took over. I had hair algae growing as thick as grass on my substrate and over the better portion of rock.
It was at this point that I took some corrective action. I sucked all the hair algae off of my substrate and got as much of it off of my rocks as possible. It was at this point that cyano broke out in the tank in a big way. Although this was a problem in itself, it did cover and kill the remaining hair alage. The Cyan was the biggest problem, and I am just getting over it now. It covered everything, and I mean everything. It was in high flow areas, and low flow areas. It was in high light areas and low light areas. At one point it was even living in my sump.
Admittedly the problems I experienced could have been kept under better control. Since the tank has been set up I have done only one water change and a small one at that. I have been running GFO and carbon aggressively, and been keeping my skimmer nice and clean so that it works more efficiently. (IME a dirty skimmer neck cuts down on performance). As with the hair algae, I was vacuuming the cyano out of the tank. I was doing this about every two days for two weeks or so.
These measures alone, got my tank to the point where I could see that the cyano was not spreading as quickly and was even starting to die back in certain areas. With that I Cut the lights off my system for four days, and it all but disappeared. That was about a week ago, and I have not cleaned the tank at all in the FTS shot above since then (I lie, I cleaned the front glass last Friday) \
You can still see some alage in the tank. Their is a brown type of alage, on some of the substrate and the back glass and a little bit of hair alage on some of the rock. But it seems to be improving by the day. Nitrates are at less than 5 and Phosphate is at .03.
You will notice that my rocks are stark white, which really made the algae pop. But I have strated to see a new type of algae spreading to some of my rocks. Any idea what it is... here is a pic.
In this case, the tank went through a couple stages of algae. The first to pop up was a diatom bloom. Everything turned brown, the glass the rock and the substrate. This did not last very long until hair algae took over. I had hair algae growing as thick as grass on my substrate and over the better portion of rock.
It was at this point that I took some corrective action. I sucked all the hair algae off of my substrate and got as much of it off of my rocks as possible. It was at this point that cyano broke out in the tank in a big way. Although this was a problem in itself, it did cover and kill the remaining hair alage. The Cyan was the biggest problem, and I am just getting over it now. It covered everything, and I mean everything. It was in high flow areas, and low flow areas. It was in high light areas and low light areas. At one point it was even living in my sump.
Admittedly the problems I experienced could have been kept under better control. Since the tank has been set up I have done only one water change and a small one at that. I have been running GFO and carbon aggressively, and been keeping my skimmer nice and clean so that it works more efficiently. (IME a dirty skimmer neck cuts down on performance). As with the hair algae, I was vacuuming the cyano out of the tank. I was doing this about every two days for two weeks or so.
These measures alone, got my tank to the point where I could see that the cyano was not spreading as quickly and was even starting to die back in certain areas. With that I Cut the lights off my system for four days, and it all but disappeared. That was about a week ago, and I have not cleaned the tank at all in the FTS shot above since then (I lie, I cleaned the front glass last Friday) \
You can still see some alage in the tank. Their is a brown type of alage, on some of the substrate and the back glass and a little bit of hair alage on some of the rock. But it seems to be improving by the day. Nitrates are at less than 5 and Phosphate is at .03.
You will notice that my rocks are stark white, which really made the algae pop. But I have strated to see a new type of algae spreading to some of my rocks. Any idea what it is... here is a pic.
Sorry, that was my lame attempt at being funny. The two spots are some the first "outbreaks" of Coraline Algae.
Yes patience is key. luckily I have more patience than time, so it is easy to wait things out.
Yes. But don't confuse what we are referring to as an algae cycle, with "cycling" generally. The first has to do with tank maturation, as opposed to the build up a beneficial bacteria that break down waste.
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