AJ_Tsin Posted January 13, 2014 Author Share Posted January 13, 2014 One of my pair (the smaller one) sometimes hovers in the corner every so often picking up one stone with its mouth and moving it. They spend 1/2 the day swimming around picking off pods the other have doing weird stuff around the corners and walls of the tank. I think once I add another fish this kind of behaviour sort of tapers off as they chose an area and kinda stick to it.Speaking of adding another fish... I have my next addition in quarantine right now... picked up over the weekend. He had 1 spot of what I think was ich on him on the day I put him in QT which is now gone. Breathing seems maybe a tad fast but nothing alarming and is swimming around eating like a pig and being relatively comfortable in the PVC pipes. I left the tank running post clownfish QT and have added the occasional drop of ZEObak, so I think its cycled as the fish has been in there 2 days with no detectable Ammonia but I still plan on changing water every couple days to keep the system clear. I am dosing Cupramine to eliminate any Protozoa. In about 14 days assuming this guy is healthy he's going in. Stay tuned for what it is when I get a chance to take a picture, didn't want to jinx it until he got comfortable in QT and settles in... 1 Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 14, 2014 Author Share Posted January 14, 2014 Good news, the bloom has finally subsided. I have been dosing 0.1 ml x2 daily of start for past two days and the water is crystal clear and my skimmer is finally pulling out a ton of thick greenish grey crud.Seems like it was just normal bacterial swings and new tank syndrome. Planning on ramping up to 0.2 ml x2 daily by end of the week. My quarantang... I mean quarantined fish is looking great and eating everything I put in there. I will be keeping up with water changes and doing my best to keep the environment stress free while I run out a Curpramine copper treatment. Unsure if I will be doing a 14 day treatment, or 21 time will tell. While things are all settling in and getting going, I am also planning on adding a bunch more live rock to the sump. A friend of mine tore down his tank a few years ago and just dropped off 2 buckets of live rock, one bucked was submerged in water with the lid on for almost 2 years, the other was completely dry. Needless to say the rock will need a bit of work before its tank ready. In an effort to add this to my system without unbalancing the the cycle or leeching PO4/other nutrients I plan on slowly rejuvenating this rock. I have read several threads on Bleach and Acid washing rocks however I am not a fan of using unnecessary chemicals nor do I want to risk any of this stuff heading into my tank. Instead to clean it out and bring it back to life, I started by rinsing and shaking off the rocks in 2 buckets of RO water. A ton of crap and dirt came off right away and turned both buckets to an opaque browny green. I am currently soaking the rock in a large tub with a power head and RO water, I have done 2 100% water changes on the bucket and plan on testing for PO4 in a couple days, I plan on soaking the rock for a week or two this way before adding salt to the mix and curing the rock. The idea is to let as much leech out into the RO water as possible, both to save $$ by not wasting salt water, but also because its a lot easier to do 100% water changes this way. Each time a water change is performed I am also aggressively shaking and brushing off the rock before adding it back to the bin with fresh RO. Once things are looking ok on the Phosphate front, then a heater and salt comes into play. While letting the rock cure I plan on slowly adding rocks to the sump (maybe 1 or two to the display) every few days. This way not only will bacteria be forming in the tub on the rock but it will give the rock a bit of time to catch up when added to the system. I figure if all goes well in about 1 month's time I will have added all of this rock into the system with no real die off or noticeable nutrient spike. Keep in mind this is on the ZEOvit timeline and I plan on adding bacterial to the tub to speed things along. Quote Link to comment
Reefmaster1996 Posted January 14, 2014 Share Posted January 14, 2014 Nice, good to hear all is well and I'm planning on getting a "fish" for my tank aswell probably a desjardini or sailfin, one larger fish to keep all the smaller ones in order. Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 14, 2014 Author Share Posted January 14, 2014 Yep excited. I really hate quarantining its a tough call as sometimes it seems more stressful for the fish, but in this instance my water is pristine and disease free, so I want to take the time to keep it that way. Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 15, 2014 Author Share Posted January 15, 2014 Although Quarantine photos always seems to suck here is a shot of what will be the newest addition and likely centrepiece of my reef.This is one of the smallest purple tangs I have ever seen as its only about 2 inches total from nose to tail. He has a couple spots of ich that came from the LFS, a bit of heavy breathing but seemingly active and stress free. I am dosing Cupramine and I hope that after a few days the symptoms will subside. The good news its its eating everything, Nori, NLS Pellets, Mysis, Broccoli Florets, Flakes and Brine Shrimp. So with the proper balance of vitamins, good quarantine husbandry and copper this amazing little fish hopefully will make it into the display ich free in 2-3 weeks. My quarantine was up and running prior for the clowns I added and I kept it going so even after 4 full days and heavy feeding in the QT I have absolutely no detectable ammonia which is awesome news as it seems the QT is cycled. I have done a fair bit of research regarding wether this guy will be happy in a 50g ish display, but I figure due to the open scape and shallow footprint it will likely thrive for a few years. Tang police may chime in here. The display is basically 9 square feet and the cubic footprint allows fish to swim in circles indefinitely. Bioload is a non issue as I am running zeovit and the water quality is always pristine. I guess only time will tell but there are a ton of local reefers who would love to take it off my hands in a few years if/when it outgrows my reef. Still unsure if I will be adding any fish after this... we will see. I plan on getting it in and settled and moving onto some coral... Quote Link to comment
TheKleinReef Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 Do it. F--- the tang police. you know what you're doing. 4 Quote Link to comment
RK_tek Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 As before, the tank already looks amazing. I can't wait to see it filled with growing frags. 2 Quote Link to comment
Reefmaster1996 Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 Your tank is more like 6.25 sq ft, no prob though as its the same foot print as a 90 mine was 30x30 but after the coast to coast I'm at 26 x30 so about 5.4 sq ft. Which should put me in your position plus I have a 14in hieght instead of 12in. Also a thing to consider is that the tang might not grow as fast or to full size as it would in the wild. One of the desjardini tangs in one of the lfs frag tanks has not grown over 5in and has been in their for 3 yrs without showing much growth. Weird Considering the tank is a 150 and is feed twice a day Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 15, 2014 Author Share Posted January 15, 2014 Do it. F--- the tang police. you know what you're doing. I will. As before, the tank already looks amazing. I can't wait to see it filled with growing frags. Thanks I can't wait to get some coral in there as well, honestly I am more into that part of the hobby anyways, but I feel like while the tank is still relatively empty its a good time to try and get my fish in and happy, it also leaves me more room to problem solve with the fish's health while I don't have coral to work with. 2 Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 16, 2014 Author Share Posted January 16, 2014 Thanks. The tang seems to be doing well, there are about 6 visible Ich cysts on its skin that look like they are about to fall off which will be nice, his breathing and twitching has slowed down a bit so it seems the infection is subsiding. I test copper daily so hopefully these buggers die when they rupture and don't find their way back to the gills. Its been in copper and in QT for 6 days now.I have noticed that anytime the tang eats it seems to be bothered more in the gills. It eats like a pig and goes nuts for anything I put in the tank however, after it eats it seems to be a bit more itchy or twitchy, I think because the vigourous motion of chewing and ripping off pieces of nori is irritating its gills. Anyone seen this kind of behaviour or reaction before? I have yet to see it go to the surface for oxygen or any real scratching on the bottom or the tank or the PVC pipe. Just flicking its fins and stretching out its mouth and gills every so often.I tend to become a hypochondriac for my fish... Quote Link to comment
Arkayology Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 GL with the tank. With your footprint it should be ok for awhile. Can't comment on the ich though as I have never had a fish with it *knock on wood* Quote Link to comment
frags Posted January 16, 2014 Share Posted January 16, 2014 tang should be fine with the with of the tank... Ijust added a kole to mine today pss.. dont tell the tang popos! 1 Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 GL with the tank. With your footprint it should be ok for awhile. Can't comment on the ich though as I have never had a fish with it *knock on wood* tang should be fine with the with of the tank... Ijust added a kole to mine today pss.. dont tell the tang popos! Thanks guys. Tang is looking better a few of the cysts fell off over night but there are still a few more, I am sure its gills are full of it though. It seems to only twitch when I come near the tank, it is stretching its fins out and getting twitchy. I have never really had a Zebrasoma Tang before is this normal? Quote Link to comment
Arkayology Posted January 17, 2014 Share Posted January 17, 2014 As long as it eating and you are using copper it should get better. A good appetite is a good sign. Very nice looking tang BTW. 1 Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 17, 2014 Author Share Posted January 17, 2014 As long as it eating and you are using copper it should get better. A good appetite is a good sign. Very nice looking tang BTW. Thanks it is an awesome looking fish. Light was not on in Quarantine before I left for work but I took a look in and it looked like all but 1 cyst fell off overnight. This should provide some relief. Meanwhile in display tank things are looking great, I had a bit of brown film on glass which I think is a either a result of two much Zeo Spongepower or too much ZEOstart 3, will adjust each accordingly, starting with sponge power to see if it has an effect, nothing worth even really noting, just typical symptoms while really dialling in a ZEOvit dosing regime. Phosphate was checked last night with a Hanna Checker which had the awesome 0.00 result flash on the screen. All other parameters are in check its crazy how easy it is to begin and stay in the ULNS range when you start a system from scratch with ZEOvit. 1 Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 19, 2014 Author Share Posted January 19, 2014 So several weeks in, parameters are spot on but the pair of clowns in the display are showing signs of what looks to be gill flukes. They were not treated for flukes in QT just copper for ich,Clowns have no ich and they were fed Metronidozole for internal parasites a couple weeks ago which had cleared up 100%, however they were still acting lethargic in the corner maybe 50% of the day and go up for air bubbles once in a while. Other 50% of the time they are swimming around picking off pods etc. They eat no matter what and swim around when I approach the tank. They aren't really breathing too heavy but I can see their gills move and they are yawning from time to time. I have seen each one scratch on the sand once and only once but not frequently at all. However something was not right. Its common knowledge clowns act weird in general, however you can just tell when a fish is not well. There is no coral in the system yet, and no feather dusters so if Prazipro in the display is a solution, now was the time. Reason I wanted to dose the display is because in my quarantine tank I already have a Tang that is 7 days into a copper treatment for ich. I didn't want to expose my clowns to unnecessary copper and ich nor do I want to throw 2 more fish into an already crowded 20 gallon hospital tank. Not to mention the display, if left untreated, would have to stay fallow for 4-8 weeks to eradicate flukes. So I would have to keep all the fish in QT for months...Ideally before I add the Tang bioload to the display I dose the Prazipro for the clowns for the 5-7 days x2 with no skimmer and carbon. While this treatment is playing out I plan on keeping the Tang is QT for an extra week after the copper treatment to dose Prazipro in there for it. If all goes well Flukes should be gone in about 2 weeks in time to bring ZEOvit system back online and add a few more rocks. In another week or so I will add the Tang to the display disease free and be on my way. SOO, I did it and it looks like it is working. Amazingly. Heres what was done. #1. Do a 25% water change.#2. Take off Skimmer cup (Keep skimmer running for aeration)#3. Remove Carbon #4. Shake Prazipro bottle like crazy #5. Add half the recommended dosage. #6. observe fish for several hours or a day #7. Add the other half of the recommended dosage What to do next: #8. Treat 5-7 days #9. Do a 25% water change and run carbon for 24hrs #10 Start at #2. and begin second round of dosing. I added the Prazipro yesterday and immediately my fish reacted (within minutes) which confirmed Flukes. Almost instantly I saw a bunch of little white things falling off into the water column. The fish were absolutely irritated as the dying worms dig their heads in all at once which caused a great deal of twitching scratching and discomfort to the fish, but the good news is its working and now when they are scratching things are falling off or coming loose. They seemed quite lethargic and annoyed for the first several hours of the treatment but eventually by the end of the night they were out swimming around eating etc. The light has yet to come on this morning however I assume they will be exponentially better today. Hopefully... 1 Quote Link to comment
Reefmaster1996 Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Hate to see you hit a speed bump, my tank is winning the race so to speak with 10 fish, in the display, all from work and no signs of illness knock on wood, and params are great too, proud of my LFS for having top notch livestock, haven't quarintined a fish which is out of the ordinary for me. Hope all is well for you form this point forward, wish you the best of luck, Happy reefing Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 20, 2014 Author Share Posted January 20, 2014 Hate to see you hit a speed bump, my tank is winning the race so to speak with 10 fish, in the display, all from work and no signs of illness knock on wood, and params are great too, proud of my LFS for having top notch livestock, haven't quarintined a fish which is out of the ordinary for me. Hope all is well for you form this point forward, wish you the best of luck, Happy reefing I don't really see it as a speed bump anyways, there is no real slowdown in the timeline or anything as my Tang would still be in QT for a couple weeks and Prazipro is proving to be an awesome product. I definitely got the clowns from a questionable LFS but the price was right and they were relatively healthy, the Tang however was from an awesome shop but I have yet to buy a fish there. They told me it was in QT for 3 weeks with copper so the fact it had ich coming into my QT doesn't really make sense, however I guess thats the point of QT, I trust no one for fish livestock. In a couple weeks all three should be in the display healthy and happy and then I will start buying up some coral. I am making a conscious effort to do things very slow and steady this time around anyways. I have never really started a system from scratch like this while having the knowledge I do now. My past reef was a Frankenstein of sorts with several smaller past tanks being moved and relocated continually. So this time around I am taking the time to get into all the little details and taking it slow. I will be living at this house for minimum 5 years so I'm in this for the long haul. I really hope it works out for you with the 10 fish, I would be hesitant to do things that fast, but you seem like you know what you're doing so good luck. Haha also slow and steady wins the race in this hobby particularly, just wait, this setup is eventually going to obliterate my old reef. 1 Quote Link to comment
4x5 Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Beautiful tang. Looking forward to seeing this all unfold. 1 Quote Link to comment
Reefmaster1996 Posted January 20, 2014 Share Posted January 20, 2014 Yeah I'm surprised how well the reef octopus pov dc1 works. With 10 fish, and feeding three imes a day heavily, it still stops producing skimate for part of the day because it cleans out the water too fast. This seems to be the beginning of the best problem I've had so far in this hobby, the only solution is you guessed it, more fish lol! Yeah I'm not going to add more fish till next month so this is it for now. Slow and steady certainly wins the race, I'm going to wait until this tank is at least 1.5months old until I start to add some coral. Good luck Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 21, 2014 Author Share Posted January 21, 2014 Beautiful tang. Looking forward to seeing this all unfold. Thanks. Its pretty hard to resist throwing him into the display now. Patience is key. Yeah I'm surprised how well the reef octopus pov dc1 works. With 10 fish, and feeding three imes a day heavily, it still stops producing skimate for part of the day because it cleans out the water too fast. This seems to be the beginning of the best problem I've had so far in this hobby, the only solution is you guessed it, more fish lol! Yeah I'm not going to add more fish till next month so this is it for now. Slow and steady certainly wins the race, I'm going to wait until this tank is at least 1.5months old until I start to add some coral. Good luck Thanks. Look forward to your updates. 1 Quote Link to comment
Reefmaster1996 Posted January 22, 2014 Share Posted January 22, 2014 Posted a bunch of pics, if we're interested in updates Quote Link to comment
AJ_Tsin Posted January 27, 2014 Author Share Posted January 27, 2014 Well Prazipro treatment finished and the clowns seem ok however, I am battling ammonia in the display right now. I think taking carbon and the skimmer offline for Prazi soo early in the system's life was too abrupt. Skimmer and Carbon are back in as well as a new load of ZeoLite and things seemed to be stabilizing again. In the meantime I am doing large water changes.As far as the Quarantine of the Tang is concerned I still see signs of Ich after 14 days of Copper, not sure if its getting worse or the cysts are just becoming visible now. The tang seems to be breathing better so I will see after these cysts drop if any reappear. I have Copper running at (according to the tests is 0.5) so it should be effective. I also began Prazio pro in the QT which also seems to be helping as I noticed signs of worms a week or so ago in the Tang's stool. All in all I think there is a light at the end of this tunnel, however I have never had such a hard time with a few fish. Its very frustrating, but the good husbandry and dedication hopefully will eventually pay off with 3 very healthy fish... Quote Link to comment
buddythelion Posted January 27, 2014 Share Posted January 27, 2014 Wow... this tank is going to be so sexy. 1 Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.