Super bummed

[jdavid]

Well, I was planning on setting up a larger tank and I jumped the gun and bought two tangs to keep in my 29 gallon biocube until it was ready. I was warned by friends after I bought them that they wouldn't do well, but they were both eating good never leaving any food behind. They gobble up everything I fed them. Main diet was instant ocean algae blend and seaweed, but they would get shrimp every other day which they seemed to really like as well. When I got them I noticed a couple spots of ich on the fins but they were eating really good and seemed happy in the tank and the ich went away (or appeared to)

Until yesterday. I got home from work and the powder blue was covered in ich. I think he was just too stressed out in the small tank, but I don't think the yellow tang had much to do with his stress because they really seemed to get a long well. In fact, I think they were buddies. Anyway I was planning on letting them go as it seems like it is going to be longer for me to get a larger tank set up and one I was planning on buying with my last pay check just wasn't going to be an option for me financially this week. Last night I used this calculator (btw check out this link http://www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/">http://www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/</a>) to plan out water changes to lower the salinity in the tank down to 1.018 and used the same medication I used when I first got the tangs that seemed to work well, But I have heard that anything that is reef safe doesnt really work well. Just now I got home from work and was about to post a thread to see if anybody else wanted to take him and set up a hospital tank but it is too late. I just went to check on him and found this.
[IMG]http://www.atlantareefclub.org/forums/picture.php?albumid=369&pictureid=2382" alt="" />

Not sure if he is completely gone yet. I don't really know what to do.. I haven't taken him out yet, but It doesnt look like he has a chance of recovering and I don't know how to save him. I didnt expect him to go so fast when he was doing well and eating like a pig two days ago. Actually he ate good yesterday too, he never really lost his appetite. I'm super bummed out right now. The yellow tang looks great though.

Edit: He's definitely gone. I just pulled him out.

 

[bycjoe]

Sorry to hear it, but next time just wait until you get the larger tank, waiting sucks I know but even a small tang isn't fit for a 29.

 

[jdavid]

Yeah learned that lesson the hard way.

 

[containerman1]

That stinks sorry to hear also

 

[KrisDeitz]

Invest in a qt ASAP man.

I've learned the hard way to many times. It pays off

 

[jef4y]

PBT's are ich MAGNETS as well as having an aggressive personality. Moral of the story, do your research first, then get the fish.

And trust me, even with that you'll end up losing fish...

 

[jdavid]

I feel like an idiot because I'm sitting here looking at a 90 gallon acrylic tank that just needs to be buffed and a bucket of reef crystals.. I could have just filled it up but not to the overflow and put a powerhead in there and then done water changes with freshwater to slowly bring the level down to 1.018. If I had done that sooner, the fish would probably be ok. But I was planning on buying a stand and canopy so I delayed it. also I have 36 24 and 12 inch 15 watt 8,000k daylight lights for freshwater that would have done fine while I wait for lights. Even without RO/DI I have kept SW fish in larger tanks for a long time before I even knew what a RO/DI filter was.. :doh:

Edit: it would have worked too bc the stand and canopy I am looking at comes with another acrylic tank that just needs to be buffed as well but has less scratches, and they are both the same length so the lights I am getting could work on either tank. I could have had a 90g qt set up.

Edit: I can make a separate thread but if anybody wants the yellow tang he is 4" long (I would say) and a really good looking fish with a great appetite. I can send a video of him eating, I just dropped a sponge with some pods in the tank and he destroyed them. It was maybe 10-20 that i couldnt get to leave the sponge for the pod factory I am setting up. He eats algae packs, seaweed "salad" that you can clip in the tank, and brine shrimp. That's all I have tried to feed him, but he always eats every bit of food that he can find. (or she, idk really)

He doesn't appear to have any ich, but it is in the tank, and every now and then he will have some spots on his fins so he does have it but does not always display it.

 

[porpoiseaquatics]

Sorry to read this JD. I know all to well how it feels. Try loosing $700 worth in a crash. It happens to the best of us no matter how hard we try. There can be many other factors that you don't know about (ie: how it was caught, transported, etc.). I can't say don't sweat it because I don't feel that's the right answer but keep your chin up, it will get better. The biggest secret to success in this hobby is patience and trust me....that's hard.

 

[jdavid]

It was discouraging for sure and yeah it stinks because I really became attached to the fish (I would feel silly for saying that but I know you guys can relate) but I am just going to take it as a lesson learned and do better. I am kind of worried about the tank as well. I was about to start moving corals over, and empty out the 8g biocube that has a small snowflake clown in it. I did tell someone I would sell them the 8g. But now I am worried that the water is infested, and my snowflake isn't going anywhere near that. He has the most personality I have ever seen in a fish (even a puffer) and he is super active thats why I like him the best. I know people say 4-6 weeks fishless to get rid of ich but I have an adult mandarin in the 29 as well that I would like to keep (just got a shipment of pods in today, setting up a pod factory in a 1.5 gallon right now) I just put 20 or so adult amphipods and some copepods in the tank, he ate a few of the adult amphipods which surprised me. I figured they would reproduce and he would eat the young smaller amphipods.

So my options are pretty much to keep the coral in the 8g (its packed) and continue to go through hyposalinity with the 29. But I need to find a new home for the yellow tang. What I want is the snowflake clown and the mandarin and the corals in the 29 and no ich- and a pod factory to supply my mandarin with live food. Eventually when I set up a larger tank the mandarin will go in there. He doesn't seem to mind brine shrimp (frozen) and has been eating that. another fish I shouldn't have bought but I think I can take care of this one buy supplying him with lots of pods. Next I'm gonna order a ton of copepods and just keep breeding the amphipods and netting them daily.

Any suggestions on what I should do with the 29 gallon after I get the yellow tang out to get rid of the ich? I know some believe it is in all tanks but when there is an outbreak usually multiple fish have symptoms at the same time, and then I would consider the tank to have at least "more ich"

I guess hyposalinity would be the way to go. But for how long?

 

[jmike50]

Sorry..JD...belive me I have learned things the hard in this hobby....this is a learning and patience habby...keep your head up and push on. I know its a pain to the saltwater hobby budget.

Edit: If you have no inverts in the tank with the tang and mandrain you need to treat the whole tank with Seachem Metronidazole and get some Seachem Focus to soak the food in to get meds. into their system to fight other things and maybe some Kents garlic for the food also. If anyone knows of other ideas with more experience pls. shime in. No hard feelings.

 

[ralph atl]

JeF4y;852931 wrote: PBT's are ich MAGNETS as well as having an aggressive personality. Moral of the story, do your research first, then get the fish.

And trust me, even with that you'll end up losing fish...

to old age, of course!

 

[ralph atl]

Barbara;852992 wrote: We've all done it. Live and learn. So sorry to hear about your fish, but you will get better at aquarium keeping the longer you do it.

very true!

nice to hear.....scratch that please.......LOVE hearing from you Barb! miss!

 

[cedzaquaddiction]

Sorry to hear this, Man. Hang in there, and get a QT tank. It's worth it. If this happened in your DT, welcome to fallow time, and many more nights of looking at an empty tank. I had to do it for 13 weeks.

Hang in there, and Best of Luck, Man!!!

 

[rdnelson]

Barbara;853152 wrote: Miss you too Ralph! But I get to see you and all your family updates on FB, so I am still keeping an eye on you.:shades:

Oh I am sorry. Hehehehehe


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[ralph atl]

rdnelson99;853155 wrote: Oh I am sorry. Hehehehehe


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reported you! :tongue:

 

[rdnelson]

mysterybox;853191 wrote: reported you! :tongue:

Ignored you. LOL. You know I love ya man.


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[cedzaquaddiction]

alpha;853176 wrote: LOL. they may consider it commercial sales again. God forbid u sell fish I told that you shouldnt put in your biocube. This could have been solved.

Edit: oh and on another note. u failed to mention that you put waste water from an R.O.D.I system in the 29. That could have killed him too.

??????

 

[jdavid]

alpha;853176 wrote: LOL. they may consider it commercial sales again. God forbid u sell fish I told that you shouldnt put in your biocube. This could have been solved.

Edit: oh and on another note. u failed to mention that you put waste water from an R.O.D.I system in the 29. That could have killed him too.

We discussed this? That was before there was any fish. I only put a couple gallons of that batch of water in each tank and both tanks have corals and fish that are fine. When I realized that I MIGHT have done that I ran dechlorinater over the next few days and also used your RODI to change 20 gallons of water out of the 29. You had to have seen me filling buckets and my jugs or maybe you didn't notice?

 

[ripped tide]

Generally, the waste water is dechlorinated and better than tap water. When the water runs through the carbon block, it pulls out chlorine.

 

[jdavid]

I didn't even know there was a waste water line at first, other people ran RO water for me. I'm still not even sure if I used the correct line the first time or not just didn't want to take any chances!