two weeks into the hobby! I need all the help I can get (: - Page 2

jrp1588 · 07/15/2015, 03:21 PM

The coral may make it, especially if it looks ok now.

fridaibarria · 07/15/2015, 03:29 PM

two weeks..... i put them all in a few days apart... but they i have a week since i added anything because i'm scared of killing them... i'm feeding them the A and B liquid stuff from red sea, i think its protein and vitamins if im correct? so far the zoas and mushrooms have been growing, idk how but now im just really scared that im going to come home and find them dead ):

moondoggy4 · 07/15/2015, 03:41 PM

Sorry I missed that part w/Red Sea or Cad Lights both great tanks I was thinking of the traditional size tanks.
Since you are So cal you could do a Will Call and pickup your Cad Lights on a Sat in Ontario. Save on shipping maybe gets a nice deals as well, I would call first.

If you can hold out Reef A Palooza is in Oct in the OC at the fair grounds, there are some real nice deals to be had with tanks and equipment.

GilliganReef · 07/15/2015, 03:44 PM

I wouldn't worry about dosing right now. I would purchase the red sea test kit for Alk, Cal, and Mag. Save up and get the Hanna Low range Phos checker and get API kit for Nit, Amm, and Nat.

I have GSP, 3 different Zoas, and 6 LPS I dont even dose. I check my Cal, Mag, and Alk every other day and Nit, Nat, and Amm once a week. If your Alk is out of wack then you should check your PH. I only check my phos when I start to notice significant algae growth. Usually I do that maybe once a week to once two weeks. Your weekly 10% and Bi-weekly 20% changes will keep up with the trace elements and Cal/Mag/Alk.

I have an app on my phone to help chart my info. So once I start noticing Cal, Mag, and Alk getting sucked up then I will start dosing the Part A and Part B. Dont dose anythign unless you have kits for it or you will end up not knowing where everything at.

Your mushroom/ Ricorda will tell you if there is any balancing issues in your tank chemistry.

shelbyville · 07/15/2015, 04:36 PM

Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeead. You must read more. I noticed that you had posted earlier about not knowing how to test the water's salinity. You have jumped into this way too fast. Sorry to say so bluntly, but take everything down, take it all back, and try again in a few months. It will be much more rewarding.

ShesEasy · 07/15/2015, 04:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shelbyville

Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeead. You must read more. I noticed that you had posted earlier about not knowing how to test the water's salinity. You have jumped into this way too fast. Sorry to say so bluntly, but take everything down, take it all back, and try again in a few months. It will be much more rewarding.

Watch ot you don't want to be to, to the point around here might get your posts deleted

kegogut · 07/15/2015, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shelbyville

Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeead. You must read more. I noticed that you had posted earlier about not knowing how to test the water's salinity. You have jumped into this way too fast. Sorry to say so bluntly, but take everything down, take it all back, and try again in a few months. It will be much more rewarding.

I wouldnt say take it all back and try again later. Just take it back a notch and start reading these forums and ask questions about anything your not sure about. There is no stupid questions when it comes to learning in this hobby. Before long youll be the one answering the questions!

Your tank will thank you.

slief · 07/15/2015, 05:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fridaibarria

The person i've been going to advice with is a guy from one of the stores i've been to, he told me in the fish looks like it has a dent in his stomach that it's starving and that they usually live up to six month with out eating before dying. if i were to want to cycle my tank again how would i go about doing so? lol properly???

The guy isn't giving you very good information. A Mandarin or any other fish will not live 6 months if it's starving.. Mandarins are tough to keep in any tank let alone a newly cycled tank. Heck, I have trouble keeping them in my 480 gallon reef despite it being being up for a long long time.

As for your tank cycling again.. Not sure where that idea came from but just leave the tank alone and let it do it's thing. If your salinity is good, just feed your fish and add a very small amount of coral food every few days to once a week. Don't overdo that though because your tank likely doesn't have enough bacteria to handle the excess food and you will have excess nutrient issues down the line if you feed too much. Do some small water changes once a week to help keep the water clean and avoid using tap water. Also make sure to add fresh water to replace water that evaporates. Otherwise your salinity will climb which you don't want to happen.

fridaibarria · 07/16/2015, 02:09 PM

for those of you that have told me to read, i did read i went as far as buying the salt water aquarium for dummies, i believe that is the title (i currently don't have it on hand); however, i went on youtube and google and i read other wise. obviously being impatient i went based off of real people instead of what i read, that being the case i really don't appreciate certain inputs i've received. Most of them are helpful and i am taking the fish back today because i dont want to starve a living thing, and i joined this website because it's people with real life experience that i can communicate with aan ask for opinions, as for forums and things like that i've been on a few of them and some seem a bit controversial so i thought it would be easier for me to get the answers directly for people who want to take the time to help me out. By the way as for the event happening in orange county it sounds like something i would be interested in attending. so thank you for that bit of information highly appreciate it

jrp1588 · 07/16/2015, 02:54 PM

We've just seen too many people start the hobby in a hurry, throw a ton of money at it, kill everything, and leave. We're a bit jaded.

• It's never good practice to take advice from anyone selling you something at face value (true of life in general, never ask a used car salesman for car advice). Many fish stores desperately need to make a buck. It's not a big money business, and many will tell you what you want to hear to make a sale.

• Never underestimate how much there is to learn in this hobby. I'd been keeping freshwater tanks for 15 years by the time I got into the SW side (I got my first 10gal when I was 5, and I've always had an an aquarium since, got into reefing at 20). I've kept african cichlids, bred a number of species of fish, had a high tech planted tank.

Even with all that experience, I still researched for about 3 months almost every night before I started even buying equipment.

• It's impossible to convey tone on the internet. I try to assume people aren't being jerks unless it's outright undeniable. haha

• You're already on the right track by coming here and returning the mandarin. Take it slow from here, keep reading, and you'll do fine.

GilliganReef · 07/16/2015, 03:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fridaibarria

for those of you that have told me to read, i did read i went as far as buying the salt water aquarium for dummies, i believe that is the title (i currently don't have it on hand); however, i went on youtube and google and i read other wise. obviously being impatient i went based off of real people instead of what i read, that being the case i really don't appreciate certain inputs i've received. Most of them are helpful and i am taking the fish back today because i dont want to starve a living thing, and i joined this website because it's people with real life experience that i can communicate with aan ask for opinions, as for forums and things like that i've been on a few of them and some seem a bit controversial so i thought it would be easier for me to get the answers directly for people who want to take the time to help me out. By the way as for the event happening in orange county it sounds like something i would be interested in attending. so thank you for that bit of information highly appreciate it

Dont worry to much about what peoples tune is on here. Like JRP said, I read constantly about my reef tank everyday. There is always new useful information out there on how to maintain a reef. I started like you did with my very first SW tank 10+ years ago. I couldn't wait and I ended up with tons of issues. My new tank I am trying to take it slow, but had to rush a few things I didn't want to. Because of time frame from moving. Hang in there and always come here for help. There are few people who chime in when they should just read and continue on and not reply. Good luck!!

Rob6311 · 07/16/2015, 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fridaibarria

two weeks..... i put them all in a few days apart... but they i have a week since i added anything because i'm scared of killing them... i'm feeding them the A and B liquid stuff from red sea, i think its protein and vitamins if im correct? so far the zoas and mushrooms have been growing, idk how but now im just really scared that im going to come home and find them dead ):

I know the feeling of coming home and finding things dead and yes it is really sad but you can not rush into this hobby, you need to take it slow. If you try to rush everything things will go wrong, trust me when I first thought about doing this hobby I didn't know about cycling the tank and I just wanted a beautiful tank, I didn't know you had to sit there with an empty tank for a month or so. I just wanted to rush everything as well, and of course things went wrong. But you need to just take it slow, ask questions and listen to the people on this forum. But did you return the mandarin? Because your afraid of coming home and finding coral dead, well I don't mean to repeat everything already said but it most likely won't survive, wait until your more experienced, trust me you'll appreciate the beauty of the mandarin a lot more if you do because if it's well fed it will be happy and have vibrant colors, and plus you'll have the pride of keeping a hard to keep fish alive. And Zoas are very hardy I know people who have gotten live rock online and when they get the rocks and after curing them and everything had some cool Zoas on them

07/15/2015, 03:44 PM	#29
GilliganReef Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 379	I wouldn't worry about dosing right now. I would purchase the red sea test kit for Alk, Cal, and Mag. Save up and get the Hanna Low range Phos checker and get API kit for Nit, Amm, and Nat. I have GSP, 3 different Zoas, and 6 LPS I dont even dose. I check my Cal, Mag, and Alk every other day and Nit, Nat, and Amm once a week. If your Alk is out of wack then you should check your PH. I only check my phos when I start to notice significant algae growth. Usually I do that maybe once a week to once two weeks. Your weekly 10% and Bi-weekly 20% changes will keep up with the trace elements and Cal/Mag/Alk. I have an app on my phone to help chart my info. So once I start noticing Cal, Mag, and Alk getting sucked up then I will start dosing the Part A and Part B. Dont dose anythign unless you have kits for it or you will end up not knowing where everything at. Your mushroom/ Ricorda will tell you if there is any balancing issues in your tank chemistry. __________________ 65G mixed reef tank, 20L sump & 29g refugium sump. Tank build thread: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2511413 Current Tank Info: 65g Mixed Reef

07/15/2015, 03:21 PM	#26
jrp1588 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Evansville, IN Posts: 1,864	The coral may make it, especially if it looks ok now.

07/15/2015, 03:29 PM	#27
fridaibarria Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Burbank, CA Posts: 19	two weeks..... i put them all in a few days apart... but they i have a week since i added anything because i'm scared of killing them... i'm feeding them the A and B liquid stuff from red sea, i think its protein and vitamins if im correct? so far the zoas and mushrooms have been growing, idk how but now im just really scared that im going to come home and find them dead ):

07/15/2015, 03:41 PM	#28
moondoggy4 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: menifee So cal Posts: 11,042	Sorry I missed that part w/Red Sea or Cad Lights both great tanks I was thinking of the traditional size tanks. Since you are So cal you could do a Will Call and pickup your Cad Lights on a Sat in Ontario. Save on shipping maybe gets a nice deals as well, I would call first. If you can hold out Reef A Palooza is in Oct in the OC at the fair grounds, there are some real nice deals to be had with tanks and equipment.

07/15/2015, 04:36 PM	#30
shelbyville Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Boulder, Colorado Posts: 210	Reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeead. You must read more. I noticed that you had posted earlier about not knowing how to test the water's salinity. You have jumped into this way too fast. Sorry to say so bluntly, but take everything down, take it all back, and try again in a few months. It will be much more rewarding.

07/16/2015, 02:09 PM	#34
fridaibarria Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2015 Location: Burbank, CA Posts: 19	for those of you that have told me to read, i did read i went as far as buying the salt water aquarium for dummies, i believe that is the title (i currently don't have it on hand); however, i went on youtube and google and i read other wise. obviously being impatient i went based off of real people instead of what i read, that being the case i really don't appreciate certain inputs i've received. Most of them are helpful and i am taking the fish back today because i dont want to starve a living thing, and i joined this website because it's people with real life experience that i can communicate with aan ask for opinions, as for forums and things like that i've been on a few of them and some seem a bit controversial so i thought it would be easier for me to get the answers directly for people who want to take the time to help me out. By the way as for the event happening in orange county it sounds like something i would be interested in attending. so thank you for that bit of information highly appreciate it

07/16/2015, 02:54 PM	#35
jrp1588 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Evansville, IN Posts: 1,864	We've just seen too many people start the hobby in a hurry, throw a ton of money at it, kill everything, and leave. We're a bit jaded. • It's never good practice to take advice from anyone selling you something at face value (true of life in general, never ask a used car salesman for car advice). Many fish stores desperately need to make a buck. It's not a big money business, and many will tell you what you want to hear to make a sale. • Never underestimate how much there is to learn in this hobby. I'd been keeping freshwater tanks for 15 years by the time I got into the SW side (I got my first 10gal when I was 5, and I've always had an an aquarium since, got into reefing at 20). I've kept african cichlids, bred a number of species of fish, had a high tech planted tank. Even with all that experience, I still researched for about 3 months almost every night before I started even buying equipment. • It's impossible to convey tone on the internet. I try to assume people aren't being jerks unless it's outright undeniable. haha • You're already on the right track by coming here and returning the mandarin. Take it slow from here, keep reading, and you'll do fine.