Acclimating and Lighting, Marine  3/30/06 Hi everybody, <Hey there, Adam J with you.> Hope you are all well. <At the moment; yes. Thanks for asking.> Just a couple of quick questions if I may - <Of course.> 1. I have read the FAQs & articles relating to this & would like to clarify my understanding if I may. <Sure.>   For acclimation of snails & hermits (which have been shipped overnight) am I right in thinking that the combination of ammonia & probable decline in ph in the shipping water combined with the increased toxicity of ammonia as ph rises makes it better to place these directly into the new system water (without acclimation) <I disagree.> so long as salinity & ph are not too dissimilar? <Well see'¦invertebrates are quite sensitive to such things as (including but not limited to) pH, ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, salinity and temperature'¦that even a slight change can be fatal. I recommend a drip acclimation for such animals over a long period of time to allow them to slowly adjust'¦.see here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/acclimcoralslight.htm .> what is an acceptable difference here? or is there a wiser acclimation technique for this? <See above.> 2. In a 2 foot cube aquarium with a 21" water depth with a 150w 10,000k Metal halide lamp 6" above water how likely is it that I can limit myself to stony corals & achieve placement down to the substrate level - any species that I should look at for these lower depths? <Most Montipora sp. should be fine at that depth, if your still looking for those in the stony class.> or am I more likely to have to go for a mixed population of softies & mushrooms below with some SPS on top? <No I would avoid that mix.> maybe some LPS on the sand <That may work if placed appropriately.> - basically I'm unsure what I can do with this quantity/quality of light at this depth of water column <See above.> Many thanks <Anytime.> P <Adam J.> Re: Saltwater die off Thanks for the reply Bob. I will pass on the info to my customer. BTW, since using your medicated bath from the "Guerilla Acclimation Techniques" I've had a huge improvement in the health of fish coming into my store. You and the rest of the crew have done wonders for the aquatic community, and I know of many fish who would thank you as well if they could speak. :) Regards, James Foley Thunder Bay Aquascapes www.tbaquascapes.com <Ahh, thank you my friend. BobF>

Acclimation/Dip Order Bob, Just a quick question for you, Do I acclimate the fish in the tank first then do a freshwater dip? or do I put the fish in the freshwater dip right away from the Pet store then put in the main tank or hospital ? (Hmm. Good question... depends on the health of the livestock... If it 'good initial health´, the dip-bath and then to the hospital-quarantine system... if not in great shape... the opposite protocol) Thanks again bob your always a great help. by the way how did you like the Philippines ? (You're welcome, and very much... very good people there... kind, hard-working, honest... much like in Mexico where I am currently visiting. Wish you were here to go diving... Bob Fenner)

Acclimating during dip I'm sort of confused on dips. If you have a new fish, how do you acclimate and do a dip at the same time. Do you just forget the acclimation, and just dip and put in the new tank. I read the FAQ , I didn't see anything on acclimating during dip. <Hmm, well, these are two different operations in many cases... If you "do" dips, then use them as the acclimation process to the quarantine system if possible... otherwise if risking placing new livestock directly into a main system... use the acclimation procedures to ready the specimens for the dip itself... with the conditions of the dip (temperature, pH...) approximating the main/display system water... All covered I think in articles, FAQs on the site: Home Page > Also do you have a suggestion for a colorful fish to go with a dogfaced puffer and blue boxfish in a 75 gal tank. Something slow moving and not to difficult to keep. I was considering a powder blue, till I read you didn't recommend it. Thanks Bob for the site. >> <You're welcome, and I would look into one of the Surgeonfishes of the genera Zebrasoma or Ctenochaetus for right now... they're also covered on the site. Bob Fenner>

Copper from Store Water I don't know if this is something to worry about or not. I'm new to keeping reef aquaria, and have 1 month ago, started to set up a 15-gallon. I added 20 lb live rock along with aragonite sand bed that I seeded with live sand from my LFS. The tank cycled, and I added some turbo snails, red leg hermits, emerald crab. Everything looked OK for 2.5 weeks. Then I added a Percula. I didn't find your web site until I started searching for the reason the following happened. Of course, my LFS suggested I acclimate and add directly to the tank. Unfortunately, that's what I did. Two days later, the fish showed a white cotton-like film. They suggested I add copper, which I did not do. <Good instincts> I gave him a freshwater dip and placed him back in the tank. The next day he died. I've learned my lesson about a quarantine tank. I've since gone on and added a red open brain that appears to be doing OK (11-days ago). Unfortunately, I just discovered today that my LFS adds copper to their tanks which means when I added the Perc to my tank, I got some of their water in my system. How concerned should I be about the copper that was in their water in my tank. While I realize its a very low concentration, is it going to be a problem for future inverts? <Hopefully not, but a good reminder to never add any water to your system from any store. I always drip acclimate all additions and then scoop out the fish and place in the tank. I then discard all the shipping and dripped in water. You can find more info on acclimation on WWM.> Thanks for your input. <You are welcome. -Steven Pro>

Help!!!!! (Icky ich, crypto, and what else!?) I have my own tank maintenance company and have been having a big problem with saltwater fish in general. I have a resale license so I pick up fish for my customers. I have had a big problem with them staying alive in the holding tanks that I have. I have tried everything and I am pulling my hair out. They look great the first day or two, then they start breathing fast break out with Ick and die soon after that. I have tried meds, freshwater dip, and probably ten other things and nothing works. I have even torn the tanks down cleaned them out and set them back up and that doesn't work. Tangs are the worst and clowns run a close second. Any ideas? Any thoughts that you might have would be great. Jim <Sounds like they are beginning with Amyloodinium and progressing to Cryptocaryon or Brooklynella. Bob has written extensively on treatment and receiving protocols. Begin reading here for ideas and follow out to other articles and FAQ's http://www.wetwebmedia.com/acclimat.htm You may wish to consider another wholesaler, too. -Steven Pro>