do I start over?

Ok So I am defiantly new to this. But I have had my fish tank for two weeks now. Both of the fish died by the next day I had it. I bought it from a friend and he didn't take good care of it the last couple of months. So I have three snails and a crab still alive. I tested the ph level and the salt level is good. Do you think I can try a fish in it yet or let it sit for a while yet? Also I cleaned the tank some but it still looks really dirty? I have some green hair-type moss stuff growing. Do you think I am better off just starting over? Any advise would be great

 

have you checked ammonia, nitrite, nitrate?

 

Test it for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. When Nitrite and ammonia are 0, wait a couple days, then you an add to the tank.

 

No, I wouldn't start over. Here check out this guide I wrote, it will help answer pretty much any question you have and explains what you should do as a new tank owner.

Newbie Guide

 

Answer crew to the rescue on every thread LOL

 

Great job guys

 

lol. good one, raven.

Stacie, you say you have had your tank for 2 weeks. Is this running with fish for 2 weeks, from when you first got it from your friend? Or did you let it cycle first?

 

Oh and please lower your font size.

 

You guys forgot to ask her if she acclimated those fish properly...

 

Personally, if this were my tank that I had just gotten from a friend, I would start over. All you've done is inherited their problems. I would start a new. I would empty the tank and throw away the old sand or substrate. Keep the rock that's in there. Then I would soak the rock in a solution of RO/DI water and bleach for a few days, or at least overnight. Rinse it in RO/DI water, then soak in baking soda for a few days, rinse again and let it dry. This will eliminate any and all unwanted hitchhikers and nuisance algae. (It may sound difficult or time consuming, but it's really not). While that is going on, gather the equipment you need and clean everything with vinegar or warm water. Clean the inside of the tank with vinegar and IMO, replace the substrate with a fine grained sand.

After that is all done, add the rock back to the tank, fill with RO/DI water or premixed salt water and let the tank cycle for a few weeks. You can cycle with 1 damsel, preferably a yellow tailed damsel as they are not that aggressive IMO and IME compared to other damsels. Test your water every few days or so to see where your cycle is at. When your ammonia and nitrite are at 0, you can begin to add livestock, but slowly. Only had 1 or 2 small fish, depending on the size of the tank at a time and allow the bacteria population to grow to account for the increased bioload.

Again, this is just what I would do. You can just continue from where you're at, but IMO, you will have more issues down the road. Good luck.