Help Me Please

[digital_fish]

Hi, I have had a 15 gallon Salt Water Aquarium for about a year that I got for free. I didn't know anything about SW aquariums prior to putting this one together but I did uising the 2 cheap aquaflow filters that it came with and just wung it. And for one year I had a perfect system. I had 2 clowns, 2 B/W damsels and a blue tang. Also a red shrimp I picked up somewhere.

Until just recently I wanted a nicer Aquarium and I bought a 32 gallon with a Fluvial 205 filter. My lights are the basic cheap florecent ones that say they're good enough for SW Fish but I know I want nice Cora Life ones because I want to get into the coral reef tanks. I moved everything over slowly and all was perfect (except my shrimp died randomly) until I put in a Yellow Tang and a new Cleaner Shrimp. My blue tang developed white spots a couple weeks after I put the yellow tang in and the guy at the fish store said it could be SW Ick and to give the ifsh a fresh water dip and that could help and I thought it must have worked because for a few days the fish looked good.

But last night it looked like more spots were back and today my blue tang was dead when I woke up. And I suspect the yellow tang might have small spots starting now but it is hard to tell. What should I be doing now? Will my other fish get it? Should I have a protien Skimmer by now? Can anyone tell me any other things I should be doing to make a healthier tank? Now many fish should a 32 gallon tank have? Does SW Ick wreck my live rock?

Sorry for a zillion questions, and I hope someone can help me?!

[kwirky]

I think the first step to moving in the right direction of a "nice" tank would be to make sure you own good quality test kits and that you're testing them on a regular basis when you're first starting off in the hobby. That way you know what happens to your tank when you miss a water change and things like that. Also it'll make you more satisfied knowing exactly how your protein skimmer is benefiting should you get one. And if you know your tank is not producing nitrates then you could possibly add another fish without a whole lot of worry. That's one of the first steps.

Another important step is quarantining your new fish. Set aside a tank that will only be used for quarantining fish because you might be using copper based chemicals which are deadly for invertebrates. Quarantine your new fish purchases until you know for sure they don't have any diseases, and if they do treat them in the quarantine tank to make sure your existing fish don't get sick.

Another thing I'd recommend is READ READ READ. There is an extensive library on the canreef forums alone. When you're first starting off I think reading is a good place to start because there's a LOT to learn. More than what can be typed in a single forum post. Start reading through the "beginner" or "newcomer" sections of the canreef library. That'll answer lots of your questions.

Oh and you have a small tank. Not all of the equipment used in larger aquariums like protein skimmers and calcium reactors have to be used in a small tank. Your research will show you alternative methods to keep healthy reef aquariums.

[EmilyB]

A 32g tank cannot house one tang, let alone two.

[mark]

Read up on SW ich.

Spots will appear then drop off but the ich is never really gone just moved along in it's lifecycle, nor is FWD alone a cure.

Seems a lot of us probably have ich in our tanks but often never shows as fish can handle it if they're kept under good conditions. Having a couple of Tangs in a small tank might have caused enough stress to allow the ich to take hold.

Might also be a factor is setting up a new tank then quickly adding stock you got a little cycle going (spike of ammonia).

[Salmon King]

All fish have ick on them.It is dorment till something happens/stress/health.You should quaratine any new fish if you can before putting in your maine tank as you risk losing all your fish by not doing this.Rubbermaid tote is a cheap quaratine tank.Just add powerhead heater and airstone if you have one.Ps use cupramine in your quaratine but dont overdose.

[rigger11]

Originally Posted by Salmon King

All fish have ick on them.It is dorment till something happens/stress/health.You should quaratine any new fish if you can before putting in your maine tank as you risk losing all your fish by not doing this.Rubbermaid tote is a cheap quaratine tank.Just add powerhead heater and airstone if you have one.Ps use cupramine in your quaratine but dont overdose.

really is this true??? never heard that befor

[mark]

Originally Posted by Salmon King

All fish have ick on them.It is dorment till something happens/stress/health.You should quaratine any new fish if you can before putting in your maine tank as you risk losing all your fish by not doing this.Rubbermaid tote is a cheap quaratine tank.Just add powerhead heater and airstone if you have one.Ps use cupramine in your quaratine but dont overdose.

Maybe, maybe not they have ich but a good idea to quarantine. I'm being a little hypocritical here in saying QT stuff as I haven't always, but looking by me not, I brought something into my system. Now I'm looking at some major work breaking down a 145g display, disrupting fish and corals, where as it all could have been prevented by setting up a small little 10g (size depending on fish) with a heater and HOB filter or even a plastic tub.

As for cupramine, it can be harmful even if done right so wouldn't suggest using it unless for sure the fish in QT show signs and then probably only after trying hypo-salinity and finding that unsuccessful.