Pictures and a question

[witmerboarder]

Here are some pictures of my tank and my Zebra Eel. I was also wanting to know if the Black spots (maybe dark green) are good algae? My tank has been running for 4 weeks now and by my monitoring the cycle is complete. Nitrite is only at trace levels.

 

[Reefscape]

If your refering to the one's i can see on the back wall of the tank, then its pretty normal to have these, as you'll be hitting a diatom algae bloom soon...

You only mention Nitrite at trace levels, what is your ammonia and nitrATES reading at mate??

Niko

 

[witmerboarder]

Thanks, yes i was talking about the ones on the back of the tank. What is a Diatom Algae bloom? Ammonia has been at zero and I keep getting Nitrites and Nitrates mixed up name wise. It is my Nitrates that are with in the acceptable range on my test kits scale. I have already seen the Ammonia and Nitrite spike and level off. I plan to wait at least two more weeks before adding more fish. (yellow tang, and clown fish) I was toying with doing a water change in the next week but not sure if I should wait a while longer.

 

[Reefscape]

What size of tank is this mate??

have you seen the nitrates spike at all yet? if not, then your still going through your cycle...If they have peaked, then your due a good 50% water change..

I would not add a clown fish to the tank, not with the eel, and would preferable only add a good sized tang....If adding the tang, then ensure there is plenty of nori available for it, as the tank is pretty clean from algae.

Diatom algae is a single celled algae which is common in new aquariums, it gives an overall brown coloured coating appearance, and will adequate flow and low nutrient levels, usually passes after a few weeks..

Niko

 

[witmerboarder]

it is a 75 gallon tank. Yes Nitrates spiked about a week ago and have dropped down to zero.

I have seen this brown algae on the front of the tank, very faint but there, I have been cleaning it off every few days.

Why no Clown fish with the Eel. He pays little to no attention to the Damsels, and the owner of the LFS told me they would be fine. Yes I know.... Like to hear others opinions thats why i started posting on here, want to make informed decisions and keep tank happy and healthy.

 

[Reefscape]

Well, its just my opinion of course, but i would not want to put any potential risk to tank mates..Refer to captive tank mates and feeding in this article for advice on tank mates..Of course, it all depends on the size of the eel...

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/zebramor.htm

Niko

 

[Grins]

Why no Clown fish with the Eel. He pays little to no attention to the Damsels, and the owner of the LFS told me they would be fine. Yes I know.... Like to hear others opinions thats why i started posting on here, want to make informed decisions and keep tank happy and healthy.

Did you cycle with the eel and or damsel? If so the LFS wasn't giving good advice in my opinion.

If you didn't cycle with them and you've only had them in there for the few days since your cycle completed there really hasn't been enough time to say how the damsel will fare with the eel.

 

[cyclops23]

the zebra will be fine with the clown, IMO. the zebra moray is actually considered peaceful and great for community tanks. i plan on getting one for my 125g, and i will be putting in 3 clowns. i have read all i can find and talked to people that have them, i have yet to hear of a zebra attacking a fish. if you don't feed it enough, though, you may have problems keeping a cleaning crew or shrimp.
very nice eel! i'm jealous! the only other thing i would suggest is to get some more LR or rearrange(not reccomended) the LR you have and make a large cave for him. the zebra's are a larger eel (can get between 3-5 feet long). make sure you have good filtration and a good skimmer.

 

[cyclops23]

BTW, i would worry more about the damsel harassing the clown than the eel. i had a couple blue damsels beat up my clown in my old 55g. they were really hard to catch. i guess if it happens, it all comes down to what fish you like better. i loved my old clown, favorite fish in the tank. HTH

 

[witmerboarder]

Eel and Damsels were used to cycle the tank. They were all added 12/7/07 and have show no aggression toward each other. Damsels attack my hand anytime I come close to there territories but pretty much ignore the Eel and he hardly looks at them.

I have 4 other Freshwater tanks that I started by using same method so I did not question LSF on this. Grins, I have read some of your other posts and understand your opinion. I intend to keep the damsels so they should never have to undergo cycling again.

This entire tank and fish selection were a gift from my wife and was set up and running when I returned from a business trip. Having done research on this website and others I probably would have done things a little different and consulted, as I am doing now, people with experience in Marine aquariums.

I do appreciate all the feed back, and timely responses from the members of this forum.