Disease?

[toastdude]

Hey everyone I am new to the hobby and just got my first tank set up. It has been up for about a month with a small amount of rock. Awwek and a half ago I added about 100 lbs of TBS rock. Today I came home and my yellow tailed damsel has an eye that is all swelled up and it has like a thick clear coating over it with a white spot on it. I also cannot find one of my anemones.I would also like any suggestions on lowering nitrates. I read that skimming wetter helps so I have started doing the today.I would appreciate any help I can get.

65g w/overflow
950gph magdrive
440 watts pc lighting
120lbs LR
euro-reef skimmer
1 yellow tail damsel
1 serpent star
5 turbo snails
2 hatian anemones (freebies)

water specs
1.023 salinity
pH 8.3
ammonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates 20
75-79F depending on time of day

[skeety]

first off..WELCOME!!!!!

you're gonna LOVE it here!

now...on to the bad news.

Can you give us details on the rock you added? Was it cured? mailed to you? taken directly from another tank? etc?

Also...what ELSE is currently in the tank?

if it was NOT taken directly from another tank (with air time of <10 minutes), then you made a big boo-boo.

Everytime you add new rock, there is a potential for that rock to start off another Cycle. (I'll briefly go over what a cycle is...but I encourage you to search this forum for the word Cycle and do lots of reading).

Live rock is called that cause there's critters on it. Most microscopic, and a good bit are not.

When any rock is removed/transported/etc...some of those critters die.

This can cause a new cycle.

Not sure how much you know, so if you already know this...sorry to go in to it again, but just in case:

Dead things/living things wastes create ammonia.

Certain bacteria eat (so to speak) ammonia, and create Nitrites.

There are OTHER bacteria that eat (so to speak) Nitrites, and create Nitrates.

until the population of all of those reaches an equilibrium, your tank is in what's known as a cycle. This is where ammonia is created...and the bacteria that eat that start to populate. In doing so, since their waste product is Nitrites, the Nitrite level starts to rise, and the ammonia level starts to drop.

Then...the bacteria that like Nitrties start to populate, and as a result the level of Nitrates start to rise, and the NitrIte level starts to drop.

When there is almost NO detectable amount of ammonia and NitrItes in the tank, and Nitrates are at a tolerable level (<20ppm), then your cycle is complete...and then..and ONLY then, is it safe to add fish/corals/etc.

Ammonia and Nitrites are toxic to these critters.

Everytime you have something die in the tank, add new rock, etc...you have *potential* to kick off another cycle. Cause the equilibrium of bacteria becomes out of balance.

The potential is based on HOW much die off. Was it a tiny fish? a lot of rock that was overnighted to you from Guam, etc.

While that doesn't explain your fish's eye problem directly...if your tank is in the middle of a cycle, the stress of these chemicals on your fish will weaken it's immune system...making it very suseptable to any disease.

[toastdude]

yes i understand the concept of cycling and that it stress all the creatures in the tank and what causes it. My tank has been stable for at least a week now and then developed in just about a day everything else in the tank is still doing great and the fish has no other symtoms.

[skeety]

Originally Posted by toastdude

yes i understand the concept of cycling and that it stress all the creatures in the tank and what causes it. My tank has been stable for at least a week now and then developed in just about a day everything else in the tank is still doing great and the fish has no other symtoms.

okay. But if the new rock you added was transported, it COULD cycle again, which could take a week to start. Just in case, tell us how you got the new LR.

if that's not it...I'm sure someone here will chime in on the disease.

[Ms. K]

I noticed a bulging eye on my yellow tailed damsel one day. I just let him be, and now it's gone.

[Ms. K]

The problem, not the eye. What I'm saying is, he's better

[suzstephens]

Often eye problems are simply caused by scratches from silt, rocks, fighting, etc. and will heal up on their own.

[VWD]

I am going to add one thing to what had been mentioned here and that 1 month. You are sdding thing's in Your take too early, anenome no way on that young of tank. take thing slow. 1 month to me is still in the cycle stage of a tank. just to young to be stable

[toastdude]

The rock was cured but was in transit for about 36 hour submerged in water and I understand that this is a really new tank and it wouldn't have an anemone in it except that the anamone was given to me when I picked up the rock. Thanks for all the input though and I think the eye problem is probably just a scratch or something because the white spot is gone and the sweeling has gone down some. Thanks for all the help though.

[Loverotties]

You shouldn't get a anemone till you had the tank running smooth for over 6 months.

[skeety]

The anemone's I understand that. Freebies...still taking a risk, but better than someone flushing them or something.

Even in transit w/water, there will still be *some* die off...hopefully your cycle won't be too severe.

VERY glad to hear your fish is doing better.

I truly hope it was something minor, and your fish recovers. If not, you'll probably have to look into setting up an quarantine tank, or doing a dip of some kind.

Sorry if your original problem seemed to have gotten ignored in this thread. hehee.

Keep us posted.