New fish never seem to eat for me

In the last several months I've bought 5 fish total from 2 different lfs. The first 3 I didn't see them feed before I bought them and i nevet saw them eat anything i tried feeding. All of them died 3-5 weeks after going in my tank.

On Saturday I sold 2 fish I'd had for a while and then bought 2 new fish on Sunday (a 4+" fox face and a 2" flame angel) I saw them both at the lfs 5 days before i bought them and the day i bought them the lfs put some pellets in for them and they ate really well. Since I've brought them home a full 3 days ago now I haven't seen them eat anything.
I've tried frozen mysis, spirulina brine, the same pellets as the lfs, flake, and nori sheets.
Anytime I drop food in the fox face turns a mottled color and hides in a rock or the corner. The flame just spends almost 100% of the time hiding I rocks.
Both still look fat and healthy but is there anything else I can do before they waste away and die like all 3 of the other store bought fish I had?

 

Can you post your parameters (sg/salinity, temp, ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, phosphate)?

Also, are you using ro/di water or tap, and what do you use to check your sg/salinity?

 

Foxfaces can be pretty shy at first, and what you're seeing are its sleeping/stress colors...you're scaring the fish. IME, foxfaces can take a good week or more to become adjusted to the point where they stay out and about.

I suspect the same for the angel.

Just let them be for a bit...neither fish will starve unless your tank is completely sterile. if you want, you can add a nori clip, but then back off and let the fish adjust. Observe them from a distance with the room darkened.

I know it's cool to get new fish, but being netted, moved, and plopped into a strange tank is stressful, not to mention the fish have been sent from the wholesaler to the LFS not terribly long before you bought them.

I'd follow thru with your water testing as suggested, and if it checks out OK, you might consider adding some vitamin C to the tank if the fish don't come around.

 

salinity 1.024 measured with 2 different hydrometers
temp 79
ammonia 0
nitrite 0
nitrate less then 5 but not quite 0
phosphate 0.25

I use ro/di water and my test kit is API
Most of the time the fox face is normal color and out of the rocks. Just when I try to feed he turns mottled and hides. I'm not too worried about him though cause the nori strip on the side of the tank he is normally on is gone way faster then usual.
I put a nori strip on the flame angel's side this morning and it's still there.
My tang and blenny are trained to go to the other side (by the fox face) for their nori

 

Your water looks almost perfect except for the phosphate. It won't affect the fish, but you might start having algae problems if it's not addressed soon.

Back on topic, I agree with Greg, the foxface and angel can by quite shy at first and may not eat at feeding time for several days, although they may start nibbling sooner than that at night.

Still curious though, what were the first ones that didn't eat and died? And did they come from the same LFS?

 

The first 3 were:
1. Copper banded butterfly (I know now that was a bad fish to try as a newb)
2. Flame angel
3. Sailfin tang
Those 3 were all from the same lfs. They have very limited hours (only open for walk ins for a couple hours on fri and sat) and most of their fish arrive the day before they are sold. I accept a lot of the blame though cause I didn't know enough to make sure they were eating before I bought them.
The 2 I just got were from a different store and I went and saw them several days before I went and bought them. Both also ate just fine at the store.

My phosphates have been at the same level for months. I did have algae problems but it seems to be getting better lately. My glass stays much cleaner And I only have 2 small patches where algae is growing in my DT now

 

Yeah, those are more sensitive species, and wild-caught specimens usually have a fairly high mortality rate due to all the stress. They tend to adapt a bit easier if the LFS QTs them, giving them a break between moves.

As for the new ones, again, they'll probably be fine once they adapt to their new environment, having been given enough rest to start feeding before you brought them home.

 

How big is your tank and do you have a rockwork setup that the fish can hide themselves well in? If it's too small or they always feel stressed from being out in the open even when you approach, it could lead to them not eating and their death.

Probably just bad luck with fish that are hard to adapt though.

 

It's a hard lesson learned, but always, always, always see the fish eat before you buy it. 95% of the fish that will eat in the shop have a fighting chance in your tank. It also doesn't hurt to get fish that have been QT'd, even for two weeks. 30 days is better, but then I'm biased

Good luck!

 

Of all of the fish I have purchased, I don't think any ate anything until at least the 3rd day, some took almost a week. I would turn off the powerheads when feeding. Try sprinkling in some pellets (hopefully smaller ones for the FA) and walk away. But only try a little bit of food, once per day. That way you won't compromise water quality with uneaten food. The nori clips are great as well as you have seen already (although not sure if the FA would even pick at nori; they are definitely more on the carnivore side than herbivore IMO).