*LEFTY$LOK*

I started of small, I have a six gallon Nano cube fish tank (saltwater) but i m having trouble keeping my fish alive. I keep it at a ph level between 7.0 to 8.0 and never have more than 5 fish but still they keep dieing! Is there something else I should add besides buffer? The only things that stay strong are the snails & crabs what should I do? This is something I always wanted & can't wait till I get something super way bigger but I need to crawl before I walk right. Check this out, how about I had a animity that ate three of my fish! One of them was a clownfish how weird is that. Well I'd like some helpfull tips from anybody willing to help me get to the big dog level LEFTY LOK saying peace!!!!!!!

dlee9707

I've never kept a saltwater tank but i can still offer some of my knowlege. First, too many fish to start with. Especially in a salt water tank you wont be as stocked as a fresh.

Second: Do you have a test kit? Get us some readings. If not take a water sample to your LFS and have them test it. Make sure they know its salt. Post ammonia nitrite nitrate and gravity here.

I would guess the tank might not be cycled. Read the stickied article on cycling. Not sure what section its in off the top of my head. You'll need to introduce the necesary bacteria in some way, weather it be a supplement you buy or some gravel from an already established tank. You can do it without adding either but it will take alot longer.

Also i've heard for the first 6 months a salt tank can be pretty unstable so if you have infact cycled and your ammonia nitrite and nitrate levels are fine then it oculd just be that, but i don't think so personally, but who am i.

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55 Gallon Tank:
4X yellow lab
Breeding pair of Red Empress
Female OB peacock
S. Fryeri
Syno. Catfish
Blue Batia
Generic Pleco
One Tinfoil Barb (i couldnt get the thing out with a net or anything else, so i guess its there to stay...)

Loman

dlee9707 may not have a slat tank but the questions are certainly on target. Give us the water parameteres and a brief history. What all livestock has been in the tank and what the outcome was. I get the sense you are rushing the cycle and severly over crowding but really need some more data to be sure. I should also point out that a 6 gallon nano salt is going to be a rough experiance for your fist tank. While there are limits bigger is better and more stable. SO in a 6 gallon tank if you have some toxin accumulating it gets to a high level much quicker than say a 20 gallon tank. Your pH is way low too it should be 8.4

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Loman

24 Gallon Salt Aquapod
20 Gallon Freshwater
Various QT tanks
2 x 75 Gallon Reefs in planning stage

Tommy Gun

Welcome to the forum lefty!

Sorry to hear about your troubles though. Unfortunetly, with saltwater fish tanks, the old addage of 'bigger is better' really applies, even more so than in freshwater tanks. However, your goals here are not out of reach completely and so I would just say dont give up and keep your chin up. I am also interested in hearing more about the water parameters and history as well so that you can get some specific answers to your tank in particular rather than a bunch of general information that may or may not apply to you.

Again, welcome to the forum. I think you will find that this is going to be a great resource for you and I hope you can feel free to ask anything that pops up. I assure you that you will get the right answers based upon information and experience.

P.S. There is also a saltwater thread in this forum, and while this is not a bad place to post a question like this one, IMO, you may find better, faster, and more specific answers in the saltwater thread. To help you out, I will copy this thread there for you and as soon as you find it, let me know and I will move this one completely, ok?

Chitown1

You have way to much of a bioload, the general rule for stocking is 1 inch of fish for every 5 gallons of water, a six gallon tank should have no more that one 1" fish. As for walking, it is much more difficult to maintain a small tank so you actually began running instead of crawling. That small of a tank requires a ton of maintanence because there is no dilution of issues, when even the smallest change takes place it hits big. That is a huge challange you have set for yourself. There is some info I would like to know before I start offering more advice on what and how to keep the tank.

1) Are you running a skimmer and what kind?

2) what kind of lighting do you have?

3) Are you using RO/DI filtered water or treated tap water?

4) How long has the tank been set up?

5) Do you have Live Rock and how much?

6) What are the water parameters, nitrite, nitrate, ammonia etc.?

WhoDey

Hey Lefty,

Another point to add that wasn't mentioned already... If you have PH swings from 7.0 - 8.0 you are going to kill just about everything in your tank. You need to find a way to keep the PH more stable. I would suggest adding a couple small pieces of LR. Good luck!

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-Nate
55 Gallon Saltwater Reef Tank

alexfevery

if you want to keep a 6 gallon nano with ease just cheat and put in a 20 gallon sump.