What type of fish do I need?

eschlarb · 01/31/2011, 09:24 PM

Hi,

I bought a used tank a couple of months ago. Everything has been running well, and all of the livestock that came with the tank is looking great. I am still having a few problems though and after reading some posts, I thought I could probably get a fish to act as a clean up crew to take care of everything. So before I head to my LFS tomorrow I was wondering what I should look for, so my question is this...

What type of fish eats all kinds of algae, cyanobacteria, detritus, aiptasia, majano, bristleworms, ick, all types of fungus, nuisance crabs, and flatworms?

It would need to be pretty, because my wife does not like me to put ugly things in the tank. It also can't be territorial and mess with the other fish, my invertebrates, or bother my corals. And under $20, cause my budget is tight... Thanks in advance for your help.

Ok, sorry, I just needed a break from the daily requisite 4 hours of reading RC... Another 6 months and I think I might start to get the hang of this. Seriously thanks for all of the real posts that are on here, and sorry for wasting that 60 seconds of your life. Those are all of my real problems, but all of the answers are here, if I could only focus on one topic long enough... the cool tanks builds and colorful pictures are so distracting.

olemiss reb · 01/31/2011, 09:28 PM

does not exist.

jamgar · 01/31/2011, 09:30 PM

Nice, very nice

THEDLO · 01/31/2011, 09:41 PM

maintaining good water quality will take care of your cyno/algae problem. aptasia and majano can be removed with kalk paste or joe's juice. bristle worms are good scavengers. ich is a touchy subject use the search function for this.....i personally do nothing but feed well and keep the water clean and it eventually goes away er subsides.

as for crabs....i manually caught the ones i had in my tank. one thing u can so is take a tall glass cup and place it in the sand with rocks about its (kinda like a volcano with the cup in the center) and place a silverside or some other meaty food. crabs being most active at night will climb the rock pile and get into the cup to eat and will get stuck inside provided the walls of the cup are slick.

and for flatworms there are a number of methods u can use like buying a specific type of wrasse or using drugs that target flatworms. again using the search function will give u access to threads that can help u know how and what to get this taken care of.

david

eschlarb · 01/31/2011, 09:59 PM

Thanks THEDLO,

Reading, reading, reading. it seems there is no shortage of really great info here. Luckily, I got the Tang with ick out quickly and into a hospital tank. He is 3 weeks in hypo now, and have not seen any ick since his 2nd day in. No one else ever showed any sings of it. I am thinking one or two more weeks and he can start to come back up to regular salinity.

I wish I had followed my inital instinct when I decided to get back into the hobby, which was to nuke the tank and start fresh. I got a great deal on a nice used tank, but the hidden cost of time and frustration makes me question the value. I guess I would have come across most of these problems eventually, and I am getting a great crash course in reefkeeping. I am starting to feel like I am making the transition from "newbie" to "just ignorant"... another month and hopefully I graduate to "sucker with money to spend" then by the summer I can move up to "Novice".

THEDLO · 01/31/2011, 11:53 PM

HAHA the that last part greatly amused me

as for ur tang. its going to get ich again once its back in the main tank. things to do; nothing, treat the whole tank, or cross your fingers and hope your tang overcomes the ich that will come (this is possible but not with our a few sleepless nights).

eschlarb · 02/01/2011, 07:05 AM

THEDLO,

Why the assumption that he will get it again when he goes back to the main tank? Am I doing something wrong in QT? I have read everything from 4 weeks, to forever in hypo, but the general consensus from what i read was 4 to 6 weeks. I figured I would split the difference and go 5. Should I keep him there longer?

PMUnprotected · 02/01/2011, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschlarb

THEDLO,

Why the assumption that he will get it again when he goes back to the main tank? Am I doing something wrong in QT? I have read everything from 4 weeks, to forever in hypo, but the general consensus from what i read was 4 to 6 weeks. I figured I would split the difference and go 5. Should I keep him there longer?

THEDLO may be saying your tang will get ich not because of your QT time but the fact that you initially noticed it in your DT. Meaning the parasite could still be thriving in your DT, and will affect your tang once it returns to the DT.

HTH!

eschlarb · 02/01/2011, 10:28 AM

Bummer... so, in my reading, it looked like if there were no signs of ick after about 6 weeks, it was very likely gone... you think not so?

crazy4salt · 02/01/2011, 11:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschlarb

Bummer... so, in my reading, it looked like if there were no signs of ick after about 6 weeks, it was very likely gone... you think not so?

If you have no other fish in the display, then likely true. If there are other fish ( I think you mentioned there are) then it will have hosted on them, seen or unseen, and will still be very much alive in the tank.

eschlarb · 02/01/2011, 12:56 PM

Oh Joy... Well, I guess if he goes back in and it looks like it is back, I will have to get a bigger QT and put the lot of them in there. I have had my 90 for almost 3 months now, so it is about time to step up to something bigger anyway. Maybe buy a 240 and use it as my qt for a couple of months, then put them back into the 90 after it has had a chance to be fishless for a couple of months, then since I already have it, I can get the 240 up and running. Sounds like a good plan, now to get the wife on board. It is after all "for the fish".

amanofego · 02/01/2011, 01:12 PM

under 20..i would say sea urchants..your best choice..

otherwise...if you go cheap thats what happens..

Angel*Fish · 02/01/2011, 01:24 PM

You don't want your bristle worms eaten - they are beneficial to your system.

chimmike · 02/01/2011, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschlarb

I wish I had followed my inital instinct when I decided to get back into the hobby, which was to nuke the tank and start fresh. I got a great deal on a nice used tank, but the hidden cost of time and frustration makes me question the value. I guess I would have come across most of these problems eventually, and I am getting a great crash course in reefkeeping. I am starting to feel like I am making the transition from "newbie" to "just ignorant"... another month and hopefully I graduate to "sucker with money to spend" then by the summer I can move up to "Novice".

This is a guy who knows he's in the right hobby!

chimmike · 02/01/2011, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by amanofego

under 20..i would say sea urchants..your best choice..

otherwise...if you go cheap thats what happens..

I don't like urchins because they tend to bowl over stuff and pick up corals as they move along. Other than that, they're voracious algae eaters.

amanofego · 02/01/2011, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chimmike

I don't like urchins because they tend to bowl over stuff and pick up corals as they move along. Other than that, they're voracious algae eaters.

i got a lil one in my tank now..and i took it out over night but decided i didnt wanna kill it it was only 5 dollars..

it eats alge's but lately its been trying to eat off my live rocks..

THEDLO · 02/02/2011, 09:29 AM

thanks for claering tha up for me PMUnprotected.

what tang do u have not sure if u said the sp.

01/31/2011, 09:24 PM	#1
eschlarb Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 20	What type of fish do I need? Hi, I bought a used tank a couple of months ago. Everything has been running well, and all of the livestock that came with the tank is looking great. I am still having a few problems though and after reading some posts, I thought I could probably get a fish to act as a clean up crew to take care of everything. So before I head to my LFS tomorrow I was wondering what I should look for, so my question is this... What type of fish eats all kinds of algae, cyanobacteria, detritus, aiptasia, majano, bristleworms, ick, all types of fungus, nuisance crabs, and flatworms? It would need to be pretty, because my wife does not like me to put ugly things in the tank. It also can't be territorial and mess with the other fish, my invertebrates, or bother my corals. And under $20, cause my budget is tight... Thanks in advance for your help. Ok, sorry, I just needed a break from the daily requisite 4 hours of reading RC... Another 6 months and I think I might start to get the hang of this. Seriously thanks for all of the real posts that are on here, and sorry for wasting that 60 seconds of your life. Those are all of my real problems, but all of the answers are here, if I could only focus on one topic long enough... the cool tanks builds and colorful pictures are so distracting. __________________ Newbie - 90 Gallon that I bought used and is full of problems - it is fun trying to fix them though, getting there - one step at a time.

01/31/2011, 09:28 PM	#2
olemiss reb Molon Labe Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Louisiana Posts: 1,550	does not exist. __________________ secesh

01/31/2011, 09:41 PM	#4
THEDLO Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 879	maintaining good water quality will take care of your cyno/algae problem. aptasia and majano can be removed with kalk paste or joe's juice. bristle worms are good scavengers. ich is a touchy subject use the search function for this.....i personally do nothing but feed well and keep the water clean and it eventually goes away er subsides. as for crabs....i manually caught the ones i had in my tank. one thing u can so is take a tall glass cup and place it in the sand with rocks about its (kinda like a volcano with the cup in the center) and place a silverside or some other meaty food. crabs being most active at night will climb the rock pile and get into the cup to eat and will get stuck inside provided the walls of the cup are slick. and for flatworms there are a number of methods u can use like buying a specific type of wrasse or using drugs that target flatworms. again using the search function will give u access to threads that can help u know how and what to get this taken care of. david __________________ NY Reef Club Member "reefing is like religion, everyone has their opinion and way of practicing it, and because they feel that their way is the right way they insist on force their beliefs and practices on others." - Me Current Tank Info: 120g mixed reef.

01/31/2011, 09:59 PM	#5
eschlarb Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 20	Thanks THEDLO, Reading, reading, reading. it seems there is no shortage of really great info here. Luckily, I got the Tang with ick out quickly and into a hospital tank. He is 3 weeks in hypo now, and have not seen any ick since his 2nd day in. No one else ever showed any sings of it. I am thinking one or two more weeks and he can start to come back up to regular salinity. I wish I had followed my inital instinct when I decided to get back into the hobby, which was to nuke the tank and start fresh. I got a great deal on a nice used tank, but the hidden cost of time and frustration makes me question the value. I guess I would have come across most of these problems eventually, and I am getting a great crash course in reefkeeping. I am starting to feel like I am making the transition from "newbie" to "just ignorant"... another month and hopefully I graduate to "sucker with money to spend" then by the summer I can move up to "Novice". __________________ Newbie - 90 Gallon that I bought used and is full of problems - it is fun trying to fix them though, getting there - one step at a time.

01/31/2011, 11:53 PM	#6
THEDLO Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 879	HAHA the that last part greatly amused me as for ur tang. its going to get ich again once its back in the main tank. things to do; nothing, treat the whole tank, or cross your fingers and hope your tang overcomes the ich that will come (this is possible but not with our a few sleepless nights). __________________ NY Reef Club Member "reefing is like religion, everyone has their opinion and way of practicing it, and because they feel that their way is the right way they insist on force their beliefs and practices on others." - Me Current Tank Info: 120g mixed reef.

01/31/2011, 09:30 PM	#3
jamgar Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 207	Nice, very nice

02/01/2011, 07:05 AM	#7
eschlarb Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 20	THEDLO, Why the assumption that he will get it again when he goes back to the main tank? Am I doing something wrong in QT? I have read everything from 4 weeks, to forever in hypo, but the general consensus from what i read was 4 to 6 weeks. I figured I would split the difference and go 5. Should I keep him there longer? __________________ Newbie - 90 Gallon that I bought used and is full of problems - it is fun trying to fix them though, getting there - one step at a time.

02/01/2011, 10:28 AM	#9
eschlarb Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 20	Bummer... so, in my reading, it looked like if there were no signs of ick after about 6 weeks, it was very likely gone... you think not so? __________________ Newbie - 90 Gallon that I bought used and is full of problems - it is fun trying to fix them though, getting there - one step at a time.

02/01/2011, 12:56 PM	#11
eschlarb Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 20	Oh Joy... Well, I guess if he goes back in and it looks like it is back, I will have to get a bigger QT and put the lot of them in there. I have had my 90 for almost 3 months now, so it is about time to step up to something bigger anyway. Maybe buy a 240 and use it as my qt for a couple of months, then put them back into the 90 after it has had a chance to be fishless for a couple of months, then since I already have it, I can get the 240 up and running. Sounds like a good plan, now to get the wife on board. It is after all "for the fish". __________________ Newbie - 90 Gallon that I bought used and is full of problems - it is fun trying to fix them though, getting there - one step at a time.

02/01/2011, 01:12 PM	#12
amanofego Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Milwaukee,wi Posts: 53	under 20..i would say sea urchants..your best choice.. otherwise...if you go cheap thats what happens..

02/01/2011, 01:24 PM	#13
Angel*Fish cats and large squashes Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Houston Posts: 5,951 Blog Entries: 1	You don't want your bristle worms eaten - they are beneficial to your system. __________________ Marie So long, & thanks for all the fish! __________________________ Current Tank Info: Pairs: flame angels, cherub angels, Red Sea mimic blennies, yellow fin fairy wrasses, clowns, mandarins, blackcap basslets, shrimp gobies, damsels, dispar anthias, yellow clown gobies, threadfin cardinals --- Tanks: 100g reef, 2 x 30g refugiums

02/02/2011, 09:29 AM	#17
THEDLO Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2010 Posts: 879	thanks for claering tha up for me PMUnprotected. what tang do u have not sure if u said the sp. __________________ NY Reef Club Member "reefing is like religion, everyone has their opinion and way of practicing it, and because they feel that their way is the right way they insist on force their beliefs and practices on others." - Me Current Tank Info: 120g mixed reef.

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