Lay off the lights?

my suggestion is to take it slow. 5 fish at 3.5 weeks is really pushing it. Plus, nitrates at 80 ppm is quite high. I'd be doing some immediate water changes. When that algae bloom hits, its going to hit hard with your nitrates being that high. Get it down to 20 or so by doing a 15-20% water change daily for a few days. (your fish and inverts will appreciate it too).

 

go back and read his other threads. a MORON sold him the fish so it's not his fault and he has slowed down. As for the algae, you can get the nitrates down dude but it's gonna take some time. 20 percent water changes daily will be more stressful on your fish than the nitrates IMO. I would keep up with your water change regimine (you seem to be doing pretty good given the situation) and cut the lights back a bit. Your nitrates will take care of themselves with the water changes. They are this high because adding so many fish to a fresh system shocked it. So to sum it up: Keep up the good work, keep up with water changes, go beat the hell out of that lfs owner, turn light cycle back, throw in a punch for me, and enjoy;D

 

Sounds like good advice, my only concern is that he's still cycling and by doing WC, he's going to prolong his cycling period. I would take out all the fish except one(damsel) and return them to that moron who sold it to you in the first place. Tell him to hold them for you until you FINISH cycling. Read through this web-site, it will help you alot. Saltwater Aquarium Setup Guide Luna

 

This is normally really good advice IMO but I wouldn't give this guy my pooper scooper to hold for me. As long as the ammonia isn't up, the fish are ok IMO. I'm still not concerned about the nitrates, as most fish seem to deal with them well. Sincer there's no coral in the tank, I think he's on a good road.