Ok, I read that whole post, but please realize that most people won't read a post that long, so you will miss out on a lot of valuable input.

I am sure that it was a painful lesson for you to save a little money on that barrel, then end up losing so much money and heartache in all that livestock. I hope that lesson has taken root, because it symbolizes so much in this hobby. Most attempts to cut corners end up biting you tenfold in the end.

I have a couple of concerns about your current setup. It is very new for a mandarin. If this fish is not eating frozen food, it will probably only last a few weeks to a few months until it has depleted your entire copepod population and will starve to death. Please keep a close eye on the fish's eating and its belly. It might be better to offer this fish to someone else. The VERY least you can be doing is ordering a couple of bottles of copepods a month to supplement and give it a fighting chance.

Also, your flame scallop and flower pot coral will probably not live. Very few do. I hope that you are doing a lot of reading and planning before you purchase livestock. It will save you from making other painful and expensive mistakes.

You have a beautiful tank and I really wish you all the best with it. Hope my post has not sounded discouraging, just trying to help you out. Best of luck and let us know if you have any questions or future concerns. If you had posted your plans about that toxic barrel, I'm pretty sure some of the veterans on here would have steered you away from it.