Errol

X

xavier

Joined
29 Feb 2008
Posts
5
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Location
Nairobi
Hi there I just registered recently and this is what I've got , 5 ft / 2ft /2 ft , had the tank running for about two months , got a bit of live rock as well , did the ph test & nitrate , and than to double check gave the water sample to the guys at the petshop to test , all was good , and I introduced my first dusted tang , have had it for about three weeks also monitered the feeding habits which are perfect , than added a Yellow Tang which has also adjusted well and has a healthy appetite , its been two months and I have noticed the dusted Tang swimming as if trying to brush against the gravel , I have done the tests such as Ph , Nitrate , Amonia which was a bit high so have cut down feeding to twice and done a thorough filter clean up ,water change every two weeks .I have an Sera external filter with super carbon and amonia remover with a Fluval power -head for added ariation.
Any suggestions ?.
 
masahello Errol, I see you are all the way from Nairobi:thumbup:

Ok I am assuming that the SERA external filter is a canister filter?

Are you pumping bubbles into the tank for aeration? does the Fluval have a pre filter on it.

When you say all parameters are OK could you tell us what they are? Ammonia is a no no so we must figure out what is causing it, I think you may still be cycling.

What substrate have you got and what live rock are you using?

Sorry for the 20 questions:) But to help you we will have to know a bit more, also photos often help as we might spot something we wernt asking.
 
The tang sounds like it has a white spot infection, if it is "flicking" off the gravel, it is most likely trying to rub something off it's side.

Welcome to MASA
 
Hey Errol welcome to MASA. With Amonia and Nitrites on the high side you dont want to clean your filter too much as you need the bacteria to build up in the media. When you cleaned it, how did you do this? Under tap water or with water from your system. Fish disease is almost always caused buy the fish being under some sort of stress and i would bet that the elevated Amonia and Nitrite readings would cause stress. please try give water parameters, like PH and Temp as all these parameters stress fish.
 
Welcome to Masa Errol, pics and more pics of tank and what drives it(filters etc) - the guys will help you but we also need to see your setup.:wave2:
 
Welcome Errol, in sure someone hear will be able to help you.
 
Welcome Errol, Get us answers to the questions above and we will be able to assist getting your tank right.

PS: Everything cool in Kenya?
 
Hi Alan , Thankyou for the prompt response , now the Ph was 8.2 with temp at 24 degrees , alkalinity was 1.6 and amonia was 1.0 , I am using the Red Sea Marine Lab , as for cleaning the filter system I was advised to check if there are any blockages in it as that may cause the amonia to rise and it was cleaned with the aquarium water .I am in the process of getting a skimmer as well and waiting for the petshop to take delivery as there arent many marine systems setup here .
Rgds
Errol.
 
Hi Errol/xavier, welcome to the forum, we'll get your tank in tip top shape :thumbup:

First off an ammonia reading of 1.0 is a no-no, you have to get that down to absolute zero as well as nitrites. This is probably why your fish is flicking on the rocks, his skin is irritated and unless you get your ammonia and other parameters in check you could possibly lose the fish.

Do you have a sump?

Try and get yourself a decent Protein Skimmer, they really do help, especially for guys just starting out in the hobby. Any idea what protein skimmer the shop is getting for you?

Your bacteria needs to settle down and start working in order to process the ammonia, nitrites, nitrates etc. How much live rock do you have in the tank?
 
Hello Xavier -

Many welcome to MASA! Hope you enjoy our company! As everyone has said =
- canister filter = high ammonia/nitrites/nitrates = stress on fish

I believe in that one should have the following types of filtration:
- DSB (Deep Sand Bed = sand bed with particle size between 0.01mm and 1.5mm varied - and bed being of 120mm to 150mm deep)
- algae scrubber filter (some macro algae that is "harvested" often to remove bound nutrients that the macro algae use)
- skimmer for the overall cleansing of the tank
- phosphate remover
- activated carbon (that does not contain phosphates - or contains very little phosphates)

That is basically the filtration you should have, in my opinion, to have a decent running marine system.

So - you now know what to do in order to get this issue resolved. Hope it works for you.
 
temp at 24 degrees
Click to expand...
Try raising the temp to about 26/27 deg. A couple of things will happen here:
The immune system of the fish will be raised
The metobolism of the fish will speed up so it will eat more.
The life cycle of the white spot bug will speed up as well so it would have to find a host far faster.
The reading on the ammonia is way too high, but then again it may be your test kit try have this reading verified by the LFS.
 
Welcome to MASA!
 
Are there any courier services to Kenya? If so, I'm sure sponsors here would send anything you need
 
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