LovingIT

I have a 2 blue green damsels one yellowtail and one domino fishand a cleaner shrimp . One of the bluegreen damsel is breathing very hard and fast, and is grazing the floor of the tank .Salinity is 1.022 PH 8.2 amm 0 nitrite 2.0 nitrate 20 i am alittle over three weeks ,so almost cyclied but not yet. Whats going on ??

agsansoo

How long have the fish been in the tank ? What size in your tank ?

LovingIT

Sorry its a 55 gallon two bluegreen damsels since i started about 3 weeks, domino about a week and the cleaner shrimp about 4 days

susitna-flower

Your fish should not have been added until your cycle is finished.

You will know when the ammonia and nitrite go back down to 0 and nitrate goes up to 5 +.

The fish that is acting oddly is reacting to the high nitrite level. This is toxic to fish, and even though you are using prime, it may not be protecting as expected.

I would do a 50% water change, and use bio-spira for saltwater.

You can use prime also, but the fish that is currently stressed, may not make it. So sorry you are having this problem.

If you haven't already you should read all the articles at the top of this page on saltwater tank set up, beginning with saltwater, and the nitrogen cycle. Good Luck

LovingIT

I have fish because I cycled with fish (one method) and my nitrates already peak and have been going down, but I did notice that he was getting bullied and some tail nipping is going on .(from a domino)

agsansoo

Ammonia and nitrite must be 0 and then nitrates start to climb. That's when the cycle is finished. Doing a water change will cause a mini cycle, prolonging the process (unless the fish is dying). I agree with susitna-flower on using bio-spira. It will boost your good bacteria immediately. As for the domino damsel ... They're just mean and territorial. Most damsels grow from a docile juvenile into an aggressive adult.

LovingIT

Ok thank you . Will a LFS take the domino back or is that like an unwritten rule? Add bio-spira and water change ?

sgould

Water changes are a sort of "quick fix" for fish tanks. Many, many, many of the issues that come up trace back ultimately to poor water quality, which you fix by changing part of the water in order to gradually dilute out whatever is causing the problem. In this case nitrite. To agsansoo's point, water changes during the cycle do slow the process down. However, because your fish is showing signs of stress, if you have access to bio-spira I would actually go ahead and do a partial water change first, THEN add the bio-spira immediately afterwards. That will give you the best of both worlds...a reduction in the amount of nitrite in the water along with a quick boost in bacteria population.

It is luck of the draw as to whether or not your LFS will take the fish back. Some do, some don't. You will need to call them and ask.

LovingIT

Sean thanks a lot, very good explanation especially for a beginner like me. That damsel did not make it though and now the domino is chasing my other fish . All the research I did basically states damsels are touch and go, maybe they will get along maybe they wont. Too bad, his is a nice looking fish(domino fish). I was basically got them to cycling but I definitely cannot keep this fish ,cause stress to the rest. The fish store I ended up buying most of my equipment from would you believe does not have a phone. Don (owner) states to many issue and to busy for a phone likes customer's to come in ,but he is the closet store to me (15 minute's) but still a pain in the ass when I need a simple question answered.