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Unread 11/24/2006, 05:56 AM   #1
Nuuze
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Please help me help a friend with fish only tank

Hi All,

I'm helping a friend with a marine fish only tank. I was wondering what parameters should he test for in a fish only tank. Since he has been loosing fish he asked me to help with any info...

-The tank is a 90G fish only with protien skimmer and two 50/50 T5.
-He feeds the tank a frozen cube or less a day.
-Does weekly 10% water changes and tops off daily with RO/DI from LFS.
-Has/Had less than five fish a shrimp and some hermits.

For the heck of it I took a cup of tank water home to test some parameters.

Temp - 78-80
pH - 8.0
Nitrate - 50
Nitrite - .05
Phosphate - 2.5
KH/ALK - 8.0/2.86
Ca - 310
Mg - 1200
Salinity - 1.025

So his Nitrate and Phosphates are pretty high up there. I'm guessing this is whats killing the fish. So I wonder if its coming from the food or the RO/DI? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Nuuze


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Unread 11/24/2006, 06:01 AM   #2
virginiabreeze6
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Test the water HE is getting from the LFS. Although these numbers are higher than you would like to see, it not so high as to cause fish loss

You say 5 fish, what is the type and size of these fish, that makes a huge difference in the amount of waste created.


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Unread 11/24/2006, 06:02 AM   #3
virginiabreeze6
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There should be no nitrites, how old is the tank? Has he added new rock?


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Unread 11/24/2006, 06:07 AM   #4
Nuuze
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I was thinking the same on testing the LFS water...

The tank has been up over 5 months. The fish is a medium yellow tank, medium maroon clown, domino damsel, trigger and a dottyback...

I will get a sample of the fresh water and saltwater he is using...


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Unread 11/24/2006, 06:13 AM   #5
a4twenty
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Re: Please help me help a friend with fish only tank

Quote:
Originally posted by Nuuze
For the heck of it I took a cup of tank water home to test some parameters.

Temp - 78-80
pH - 8.0
Nitrate - 50
Nitrite - .05
Phosphate - 2.5
KH/ALK - 8.0/2.86
Ca - 310
Mg - 1200
Salinity - 1.025

Nuuze
how old is this tank? if you have nitrites ( toxic ) i'm wondering how established the tank is. did you test for ammonia? how fast did he add the fish ( all at once ..... one every month ... )

how much LR and any other type of filtration ( bio balls, hang on, canister ........ )

get some RO/DI form your LFS then go back in with it and have them test it.

the nitrates and phosphates may not be the problem but they will become a problem. he needs to do some larger water changes ( after he confirms his water source is good ) and find the source of his phosphates.


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Unread 11/24/2006, 06:21 AM   #6
Nuuze
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Sorry, Ammonia is 0. Rock he is using is the cement looking decoratives ones they have in the bins at the LFS and about an inch of crushed coral. His sump does have bio balls and a protien skimmer. He did not add all the fish all at once, maybe a fish a week. The only source of water flow in the tank is the return pump from the sump to the megaflow. Should he add some powerheads? I will also ask him what brand foods he is using when I get the other water samples...



Last edited by Nuuze; 11/24/2006 at 06:34 AM.
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Unread 11/24/2006, 06:38 AM   #7
a4twenty
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cement looking ones? find out what they are actually made of.

depending on the material it may be leeching unwanted chems. into the tank. did he cure it before placing it in the tank?

do you mean lava rock? the general consensus on this is that it can / could leech metals back into the tank water. while this hasn't been proven in a lab, it has been discussed thoroughly here on RC.


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Unread 11/24/2006, 08:37 AM   #8
Shagsbeard
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Tell him he should save his pennies and invest in a couple really important things for his tank. First is, about 130 lbs of live rock. He could save a bundle by using 40lbs of live rock and 90 lbs of base rock... not lava rock though. Second investment is to get his own RO/DI unit. This one will really pay for itself over time.

Flow shouldn't be his problem. More power heads aren't where I'd advise him to go.


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