Guys I'm so discouraged, P***** Off, ready to give up

[Coleus]

what brand of carbon are you running? if i were me i just run lots of carbon for now until water clear up. Then start gfo again. Also make sure you power head does not pointing at the sand

[daniella3d]

did you leave that clam without light all this time?

It needs light to survive.

Could it be a bacteria bloom? if you left the lights out for a month, maybe some corals on the liverock died?

Hard to tell where the cloudy water is coming from, bacteria bloom or calcium precipitation, or something else.

[mandyplo]

Originally Posted by daniella3d

did you leave that clam without light all this time?

It needs light to survive.

Could it be a bacteria bloom? if you left the lights out for a month, maybe some corals on the liverock died?

Hard to tell where the cloudy water is coming from, bacteria bloom or calcium precipitation, or something else.

Hi daniela, when I had the tank lights out for a month we had no coral or clams yet only fish - the corals and clams are a new addition. Probably should have waited on them, I'm going to try and find a sitter.

[Skimmerking]

Originally Posted by mandyplo

Hi daniela, when I had the tank lights out for a month we had no coral or clams yet only fish - the corals and clams are a new addition. Probably should have waited on them, I'm going to try and find a sitter.

mandy you never told me that you had the lights out for a month and no live stock........


shame on you how is your tank doing today i will call you later ok.

[shootingstar]

Hey Mandy,
you know where I am
Call if you need a critter-sitter.
Cathy

[mandyplo]

Originally Posted by shootingstar

Hey Mandy,
you know where I am
Call if you need a critter-sitter.
Cathy

Hey Cathy, thanks a ton - Frank called me right away and I brought my corals&clams to his place. Thank you though I know I can always count on you for help and advice!!

[mandyplo]

Update: I'm feeling a little better guys - SkimmerKing (Mike) has been holding my hand through this daily and really helping me along. I'd still be extremely lost without him! The tank isn't looking any better yet but I've learned patience is key if you want to survive in this hobby. I currently have the tank wrapped up, filtering with carbon, GFO and filter floss like crazy, as well as cutting back the lights. I'm going to let it run it's course for now and not do any big water changes just yet. Tests are still coming back fine - I double tested today and still very low nitrates and undetectable phosphates.... Weird, I know but that's how my life seems to work out. Nothing ever makes sense. But I'm hoping we have this thing under control finally. Thank you again so much Mike, I'd probably be drowning myself in my sump by now if it weren't for you saving me from madness. Thanks to everyone on canreef aswell for lending a helping hand and giving your advice in my time of need!!

To answer any questions: no I do not have or know anyone with a UV sterilizer. Yes my tank is definitely very very very green, not just cloudy. I do not have the money right now for a better skimmer but when the time comes that I plan to replace this one I will not trade out price for quality, I will get a skimmer/pump that can fully handle my system, I promise.

Thanks again everyone.

[whatcaneyedo]

Am I the only one who thinks that the skimmer is grossly inadequate for this tank? Based upon the picture it also looks quite immature, especially for coral and clams.

[ScubaSteve]

Originally Posted by whatcaneyedo

Am I the only one who thinks that the skimmer is grossly inadequate for this tank? Based upon the picture it also looks quite immature, especially for coral and clams.

I couldn't find an exact spec on the skimmer but it looks to be of a CPR BakPak style design, which for this tank I wouldn't call grossly inadequate but certainly on the lower end. That said, I grew SPS happily for many years skimmerless and with a CPR skimmer on a similar sized tank.

Mandyplo: what kind of skimmer are you running there?

I agree with you though: tank looks young. I don't think that's the problem at hand but without the tank's "immune system" at full speed, it's more of a battle keeping things in check.

I bet the clams are lovin' the excess phyto though

[whatcaneyedo]

I've yet to see a tank with a good skimmer turn into green soup. I've also run the CPR BakPak, Aqua C Urchin Pro, Red Sea Prism, and some other horrible piece of crap that no one else has heard of. They're alright for aerating a nano but I'd spend the money on good liverock before I'd purchase one again.