Hello all,
after keeping every type of animal under the sun I decided to break into the world of saltwater aquariums. I purchased a 29 gallon tank and put in about 2 inches of sand, along with some fake decor. I then mixed up my water and powered the whole thing up. After running it for about 3 days I added 2 damsels to get everything running. At this point my salinity was at 1.022, temp of 78, pH 8.2, nitrates undetectable. I then was required to leave for a week due to an emergency. I left my newly started tank in the hands of my friend, he diligently fed my fish and checked salinity. When I came back 1 of my damsels died, I immediately checked the pH and discovered it had jumped to 8.6. After using Proper pH it dropped to 8.2 before jumping back again. Its been running for nearly 2 weeks, the other damsel is fine. Suggestions? Help? All would be appreciated....
-Ryan