Ahhhhhh. Crud.

[Morel]

Well, I jumped into it.. I couldn't resist... I wanted a marine tank for so long, and having 4 Freshwater tanks (2 30's and 2 tens) I thought I was ready to at least start on it.. Given time to save up the cash..

Then it happen..

My friend called me up and asked "Hey! You want a 75 gallon tank with light and stand? We had a lizard in it, but we're moving, so you want it?"

I almost dropped the phone.. Well.. gee.. lemme think here..

YES!!!! Yes yes yes yes!!

Ok, Got the thing home (who knew a Eclipse could carry that big of a thing? heh heh)

Built a stand for it THAT night ( I have a carpender friend and we got plans, and it's about ohh. 7 times stronger then ANY thing you could buy. Prolly could sit my car on top and it'll hold :) )

Check tank for seals? Wow, this thing looks brand new. All seals are good, and clean, hood looks nice, lights work.. Wow, fantastic!) Time to run to the best priced fish place I know of, only an hour drive.. I get things for like 40% cheaper there then anyplace around my house) So, after doing some research (And since I've wanted one and reading about them for like years) I have my check list..

Instant Ocean - Enough for a 100 gallon tank

55 lbs Artificial Coral - (or dead?) Didn't want to get into live rock at the get-go)

White Play Sand -Sifted, and a HECK of alot cheaper then FS "Live sand"

Canister Filter - they had a sale.. 89 bucks for a Fluval 404 Filter!oh rapture!

A 48watt 10k Bulb - Good for now I hope

Test Kits for Marine - All my freshwater stuff is no good.. Sigh..

2 Bubble Strips - Good until I wait for a sale on Power heads.

A backup Powerfilter/Protein Skimmer - Always good to have a backup, and the protein skimmer add on was sweet.

Ebo Jager Heater 250 Watt Heater - 20 bucks, not to shabby

Quality Hydrometer of course..

Rush home at 90 mph, Water in, Treat it, Pour Sand, Add salt, add rock, (mixing salt in bucket and then adding it in, which took FOREVER thank you very much!) arrange rocks in creative fashion, set up filter, heater, bubble strips, and all that neat stuff. And then!

Wait.. Ugh. that's right... Stupid cycle.. siiiiiigh..

sooooo.. 4.5 weeks go by, do the standard nitrates, nitrites, ammonia, ect ect ect.. makes my place smell like a fish factory.. ugh.. ok.. BOOM 0/0 levels.. Check Salinity, 1.204 EXACTLY, PH? 8.2 on the nose, (checked over the course of the 4 weeks, it's been rock steady for 2 weeks) woohoo! ok, lets wait 2 more days to make sure.. sure enough, my levels are now ready for fish..

Go the LFS.. ok.. get a clown fish? Yea! I want one, but nooo. Don't want to risk it dieing on me.. something I won't be too attached to. ( I really like clown fishes, even BEFORE nemo thank you very much) so, i'll get 1 blue devil, and 1 oh crud, I forgot to get the name.. Little guy, black and white stripes..

Anyways, The black and white stripe fish is having fun, swimming around, even ate already. checking out all the caves I created. but the blue devil (little blue starter fish) is kinda just hanging at the top of the tank, not moving much.. now i'm starting to get scared. did I do everything right? I acclimated them according to what i've always done and what i've read. never had a problem with it before.. come on little guy.. swim! So I turn off the light again (having done it earlier when I added them into the tank) and now I'm sitting here, hoping he's just scared..

As you can see. I take my fish hobby very seriously. I HATE losing fish, any fish, even a guppy. So did I do everything right? Or did I make a big mistake along my trek of trying to finally have a marine tank that i've always wanted? Any suggestions?

I eventually want to have some anemones (clown fish! heh) And MAYBE some corals in a few months once my knowlage level is up to snuff. I don't want to rush this. I just want to have a great looking tank with alot of happy fish..

My Wish list for fish include

3-4 clownfish,
2-3 other little guys (starter fishes)
a couple of "scooters" (love those heh)
and EVENTUALLY a lion fish..

Anything wrong with the above? feel free to lemme know!

Thanks for reading this long email, It's been a fun ride so far! hehe.. Take care.

[always learning]

I like your set-up, you have good equipment (which is key) so I wouldn't be too worried about that. you lucky ******* gettin' a fluval 404 for $89, all I ever see em' for is $100+

sorry I can't help you with you'r fish loss, maybe it required different water parameters, or it could have just been sick, it happens

About your fish wish-list looks good but one problem.
You love clowns and thats cool their nice fish, but you said eventually a lion, big mistake (like throwing a great white shark into a tank of helpless people)

If you want clowns then stick with clowns and gobies, peaceful fish, but if you want the lionfish and other predators like that then you'r clownfish will go bye-bye. Lionfish are beautiful though so I suggest gettingthose but if you want those clowns you can really have some nice schools of fish, so it's up to you.


If you ever looking for exotic fish and good fish info check out this site:

www.liveaquaria.com

[MonoSebaelover]

Agree on the lion. Most lion won't eat fish though. Not in captivity anyway. I would wait at LEAST a year on the Scooters. They require tons of copepods and other small creatures that come on the live rock, but takes about a year to get the population high enough that they are reproducing fast enough that the Scooter can't kill off the population but is still feeding all the time. BTW, a great site for info about the marine hobby is www.wetwebmedia.com It is run by Robert Fenner one of the best aquariusts in the hobby. Also if you are ever interested in getting fish over the internet spend the extra bucks to buy fish/inverts from www.themarinecenter.com They take the time to quarentine all fish, make sure they are eating, and make sure they aren't sick before they ship or else they won't ship. They get many many more rare fish than live aquaria these days. Before Flying Fish Express combined with Foster and Smith they had a lot more cool rare fish but now they have semi common rare fish. Oh well, there is still TMC. Anyway, hope this helps.

[Morel]

Well, the blue Damsel is still alive amazingly. Kinda still just floating around the top playing with the bubbles.. hehe.. Still trying to get him to eat.

Right now, the Black and white one (Which is a Blacktail Damsel I found out heh) sucks in the food and the spits it back out.. So I donno what he's doing =p

What would you recommend feeding them? I got some frozen brine shrimp at the LFS, anything else you'd recommend? And if anyone wants to be an answer guy feel free to MSG me on my various IM handles.. heh..

I also want to add some color to my set up. But like I said, i'm a bit away from getting coral. My Lighting needs to be majorly upgraded. Maybe i'll break down and add some live rock. Can you add it to a tank that already has non-live rock? Any suggestions? Thanks!

Thanks again for the replies, helpful as always this place is. heh

Jezz. And I thought the FW people were asked alot of questions.. hehe.

[MonoSebaelover]

I think salt people are asked more cause I get asked tons of quesitons bout fresh, brackish, and salt. I think your damsel might be 3 stripe (I know you supplied a name but I think this is a bit more common. I think the reason the blue is up top is the other damsel is dominating the tank. The problem with only having two damsels is one is dominant and one is submissive. The dominant will constantly harass the submissive which is why the blue is at the top while the other is patrolling the area. I feed all of my fish frozen Ocean Nutrition foods. The best and most widely used is the Formula One which all fish should eat. Try this and see if they like it. Live rock will still live with out a bunch of light, it just won't be as live as with more light. Most of the coraline algae won't grow under normal lighting. But the copepods, sponges, etc will still grow so is very well worth it to have it in your tank. Hope this helps and good luck.

[Morel]

I'm thinking I want to go and find some "Seed" live sand and a few lb's of live rock to add into it. And find the most powerful light I can have currently for my tank. Any suggestions on a good choice to seed my tank? (so it'll spread to the dead rock and sand)..

Also, anyone near the Allentown PA area, give me a shout, i'd love to know someone around here knows stuff! hehe


Thanks again.

[Sting]

Ouch, well you're setup looks good- if it's working- great, but a general-not necessarily a "rule"-but a guidline is that you don't even need a filter for a saltwater tank! If everything is working for you- I wouldn't worry, but the reason I say Ouch is your fish selection. I know it seems wise because they were the cheap, hardy fish, but a Blue Devil, and especially a 3/4 Stripe Damsel are not good for nearly any tank. You want to know why the 4 Stripe is looking around the tank? To Stake his territory. Try and add more fish and he'll whip out his woopin' stick on that poor fish. If they survive, they might be well to help establish the tank, and unless you've grown attached to them, you may want to try and return them to the FLS (if you can catch them). Now, you don't have to take my advice, but I know those 2 Damsels have the potential to unleash hell in your tank. Be wise, and make decisions that will beenfit your specific tank. If you do want another damsel in replace, or a cheap ahrdy fish, a Yellow Tail may be a good solution. They are cheap, hardy, and of the less aggressive damsels. Good luck! If you have ay questions- feel free to ask :D

[Morel]

Today, a 175 gph one. Took out the bubble curtains (though, I do kinda like the look they give heh)

I also picked up a few small peices of live rock to "seed" the tank. Hopefull it'll spread and i'll have all live rock in a few months at 1/3 the cost.. I just hope my lighting is strong enough. 48watt 50/50 6500k Antic..

Also, update the one IS a yellow tail, and the other one is a Blacktail Damsel. =p

Soooo. Now i'm lookin at more fish. What to get.. What to get... hehe..

[Walrus]

i would personally wait on adding more fish. If your going to introduce more LR to your tank you might run the chance of having your tank go through another mini cycle.

What are your future plans for your tank? The answer to that question will help guide you in your lighting decision. You said earlier that you want anemones, they require very high light and very pristine water conditions. Also, if you want clown fish, you do not have to have an anemone for them. Most clownfish are breed in captivity and have never used an anemone for a host. The lighting decision also comes down to your budget, hang on because lights are expensive!