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FAQs about Toxic Water Conditions 8
Related Articles: Marine Toxic Tank Conditions
, General Marine
Maintenance, Related FAQs:
Toxic Situations 1, Toxic Situations
2, Toxic Situations 3, Toxic
Situations 4, Toxic Situations 5,
Toxic Situations 6, Toxic Situations 7,
Toxic Situations 9, & FAQs on Toxic Water Conditions by:
Unknown Causes, & Endogenous
(from inside, e.g. Internal, Organic Causes),
Foods, Nutrients,
Venomous/Poisonous Tankmates,
Wipe-out Syndromes/New Tanks e.g.,
Exogenous (from outside, External, Inorganic, e.g. Metals),
Marine Algaecide Use/Chemical Control,
Toxic Copper Use Situations/Troubleshooting,
Insecticides, Cleaners, &
Troubleshooting/Fixing, A lot of
people won't get no supper tonight.
Cantherhines macrocerus | .JPG)
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Re: fish death, SW diagnosis... env. 8/7/09
Stores no Bob as their is 1 here and the owner knows little, I know a
guy who works at a lab he might be able to help. I should have said the
last group of fish that I lost before this lasted in the tank for almost
6
months
<Ahh, more "fuel to the fire" for my tentative belief/assertion that
some sort of chronic toxicity is at play/fault here>
I added the last fish possibly to quick QT'ed 3 weeks and shortly after
they started to die. that is when I let the tank sit fallow for 10 weeks
this group of fish lasted a few weeks.
<... The Poly Bio-Marine product alluded to in the last email... Could
be very telling... BobF>
Re: fish death, weaning... 8/7/09
Thanks for the quick reply Bob. I just want to make sure I get the right
media here as I have to order it as The LFS doesn't carry any such
animal.
I found a product called Poly Filter Pad made by Poly Bio Marine. Is
this the product and if so what am I going to see when I use it. Thanks
<Is... and please search the product name here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm
B>
Cannot Figure Out What's
Going On/Lack Of Reading/Research Likely... SW... life... 7/14/09
Hi there,
<Hello Jennifer>
I love your site!
<Thank you.>
A little background: my son's Make-A-Wish was a saltwater aquarium and
he received it about 4 mos. ago. This was all new to me and have had a
crash course to say the least. In retrospect we did a lot of things
wrong in the beginning, we added fish too fast, we don't have a
quarantine tank so we lost a lot adding sick fish to what seemed to be a
healthy tank. The last group of fish that died, 4 percula clowns and 4
domino damselfish seemed to have had something, maybe an internal
parasite? They presented with stringy white poo and the damsels would
turn white overnight, the clowns color being off as well just can't put
my finger on how, they wouldn't eat in the morning but would eat fine
later in the day, showed no labored breathing but did some flashing and
shaking as if to get something off. I would lose a fish every couple of
days. I did water changes, put some parasite meds in and either the
"illness" did them in or more likely the "medicine" did them in because
I woke up one morning to a dead tank (except the hermits, and of course
the worms).
<Not a good idea adding medication without identifying the ailment.
Just what was the "medicine"?>
The water parameters at the time: 1.023, nitrites 0, pH 7.8, ammonia 0,
nitrates 20, temp 82.
<The low pH can indicate excess nutrient problems and/or lack of adding
a pH buffer.>
I realize now that I was overfeeding the tank, and after I realized the
bristleworms were the only critter flourishing in this tank have
remedied that (I have no fish in the tank presently, just about 8 dwarf
blue legged hermits, so I wasn't really putting any food in there. The
crabs seemed happy with the live rock and catching up on the
overfeeding) Since I have not been feeding the tank the worms have been
out in the daytime in great numbers. I don't know if they are starving
and have to look more aggressively for food or if some other
environmental problem is forcing them out of the LR. The worms emerging
in the daytime started about 3 days ago.
<Would be a good time to get these worms out, can be problematic.>
Now my beloved blue legged hermits are all dead. A couple died yesterday
(out of shell)
and then this morning they were all dead. A couple were out of shell and
dead, most have just "vanished" shell empty or with a worm. Any ideas
what is going on. Did I starve my bristleworms to the point of predation
or did I starve my hermits even though the tank probably had plenty to
sustain them? Did they die from the nitrate level or vise versa?
<Likely ammonia poisoning.>
When everything started dying I had a nitrate of the above mentioned 20
which shot up the next day to around 100!
<Not good.>
I figured something was dead that I couldn't see so I cleaned gravel,
moved everything to inspect and did a 5 gallon water change (found a
couple dead hermits no larger critters). (All hermits dead the next day)
I feel terrible, these poor animals! I have quickly grown to love this
but I have never had such an emotional rollercoaster! Please help or I
think I may do Oceania a favor and raise a rock (not a live one
either!).
<Jennifer, you provide little information as to your tank size,
filtration, additives used, etc. Makes it difficult for me to try and
diagnose. My first thought was your tank is undersized for the amount of
animals to attempted to keep and you literally poisoned the water.
The Domino Damsels, cute when young, grow to be monsters of the midway,
becoming very aggressive with age. Size and compatibility issues must be
taken into consideration when selecting fish. Dominos and Perculas are
not a good mix. My suggestion to you is to start over by reading here
and related articles posted in the header.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marineSetUp.htm
An index to our articles here.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/index.htm
You are one of many that attempt to set up a marine aquarium with very
little knowledge beforehand as to the basics of setting up and
maintaining a healthy aquarium. Do take the time to read, learn, and
research before buying any more livestock.>
Thank you,
<You're welcome. James (Salty Dog)>
Jennifer
2/18/2009 Toxic Tank Conditions, Stocking, Reading, Disease. (RMF any
other thoughts?)
I desperately need your help WWM! My fish
keep dying! <Uh Oh!> I know you have probably heard this a million times
but I've done a lot of research trying to figure out what is going wrong
and I feel like I can't get an answer from anyone or anywhere. I read
through your site all the time and love it! I'm hoping you can
help.?<Will certainly try.> Here is my situation...
I started a new
tank, 72 gallon bowfront after having great success with my Aquapod. It
has been up and running about 2 months and has about 50lbs of live rock.
I let the tank cycle 3 weeks, the water tested perfect so I began adding
some small, hardy fish, never more then 2 in a week.<A little fast for a
new tank in my opinion> The tank has 2- 2x96 watt lights that are on
from 4pm to 12am <I would go a longer than this, 10 - 12 hours>, Moon
light, a protein skimmer <What kind?>, 20gal. sump, bio balls. <Any
other filtration, particularly chemical filtration?> My temperature
ranges from 78 (lights off) to 82 degrees (lights on). <A bit extreme
for a temperature swing in my opinion> I check the water quality at
least 2 or 3 times a week (mostly in hopes of finding out, it is the
water quality killing the fish, I need a reason!) but it appears the
water is perfect. I check it at home with test strips <Not recommended
as they tend to be very inaccurate> and also take it to a LFS in my area
(I've even gone to different LFS to see if they get different results).
Everything always comes back perfect and nobody knows why the fish die.
Nitrite 0.0
Nitrate 0.0
Ammonia 0.0
Specific Gravity 1.025
PH 8.3
<Alk?>
What is even weirder is I have a cleaner shrimp and
a few corals mostly polyps, mushroom and a colt coral and they are all
doing great! <Hmm...may be something here..Are you running carbon in
your system at all?> I have tried buying hardy fish since I know my tank
is new and probably doesn't have much beneficial bacteria but every fish
I have put in there (except for a black Percula that doesn't seem to
bother anyone) has died. Some last 2 days some last 2 weeks but they all
die. I have had about 7 blue green chromis die, Royal Gramma, Purple
Firefish, yellow tang, six line wrasse... everything! I drip acclimate
them, I feed them properly (they all seem to be eating great even right
before I find them dead), I always wash my hands before putting my hands
in the tank (mostly to scoop out dead fish). What am I doing wrong?! I
really hope you can help me, I am feeling so discouraged with this tank.
<Please STOP adding fish to this tank until the problem can be
determined. You need to start narrowing down the possible causes At
first glance, I am tempted to believe that your polyps/mushrooms/soft
corals are waging chemical warfare with each other and taking your fish
out in the process. That said, there are still several possible causes:
How long were these fish quarantined and\or acclimated to your tank
conditions? Where does your source water come from and did you test it?
What kind of substrate do you have? Is it possible something else in the
house is contaminating your tank? Lastly, is it possible that you are
getting bad fish from your LFS, or are their water conditions toxic?>
P.S. About three days ago, I noticed what looks like ich on the black
Percula right away, <Are you quarantining your fish before introducing
them in the tank?> I started treating the tank with Ich Attack and he
looks better. <Not a useful product in my opinion - I'm skeptical of any
"medicine" that can be added to your display tank, have the dose doubled
in severe cases, does not require water changes after introduction, and
is recommended in 'therapeutic" doses when no disease is present.>
However, I don't think this can be the reason all the other fish have
died because this just happened recently <I agree> and the fish had very
few spots. <Are you sure it was even Crypt?> Like a month ago, I started
the tank with only a few blue green Chromis and even those died, one by
one, only a few days after putting them in.
Any information you can
provide me with, would be so greatly appreciated! I think I covered
everything but if you need any other info please let me know.
<Please
check all of the above as suggested and please start reading here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/toxictk.htm and here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ichartmar.htm>
Thanks,
<You're Welcome,
please let us know your results>
Ernesto
<MikeV.>
<<I do
think you've covered, asked good questions here Mike... I too suspect
there is some sort of Cnidarian warfare at play here mostly... along
with this system not being fully established. Oh, and would you please
insert your carated responses on new lines? Makes all easier to read.
Thanks, BobF> Re: 2/18/2009 Toxic Tank Conditions,
Stocking, Reading, Disease.
Mike,
<Hi Ernesto>
Thank
you so much for your quick response!
<My pleasure>
There was one
thing in particular in your response that I wanted to get more
information on. You mentioned my corals may be waging "chemical warfare"
on each other and taking out my fish in the process. How can I know if
this is the problem and how can I stop this from happening? The exact
corals I have (all small and separate from each other, no spreading or
touching)?are glove polyps, colt corals, small toadstool leather (which
recently turned gray and waxy, I think it is shedding), candy coral,
brown polyps and a small cabbage leather. Are these not compatible? Are
they
killing my fish? =(?
<You do have quite a few noxious
invertebrates in your tank, and if it were me, I would return one or two
of them to the store where you purchased them. These soft corals and
polyps, being unable to move, secrete toxins to keep other corals away,
ensuring that they have adequate living\growing space. Unfortunately,
there is no easy way to test for these chemicals that I am aware of,
other than things suddenly dying in your tank. As an example, palytoxin,
which is released by Zoanthids is dangerous to humans, and I have read
anecdotal stories of a dog licking a piece of live rock that had
Zoanthids living on it, and dying several hours later.
http://bb.wetwebmedia.com/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=525&p=6072&hilit=poison#p6072
So you can see, some of these toxins can and will harm your fish if it
builds up in high enough concentrations. Do a Google search on the
WetWebMedia page for 'Allelopathy' and 'Palytoxin' for more
information.>
Also, since you asked.... I am not using any carbon in
my tank. Should I be?
<In my opinion, if you have soft corals,
especially with fish, you should definitely use carbon in your
filtration system and change it every week to two weeks. The system
should also have vigorous water movement, at least 10 times the volume
of the tank per hour, a good protein skimmer, and 10 - 15% weekly water
changes.>
Thank you so much!
<Again, my pleasure.>
Ernesto
<MikeV> Plate coral poisoned tank? Toxic tk. situation,
endogenous, biol. 3/2/08
Hi,
First, thanks for this fabulous
resource that I've used once or twice :)
<Welcome>
I've scanned
your FAQ's extensively (and have been since March of '06) but am not
finding what I'm looking for exactly, so my apologies if this is a
duplicate question. I couldn't find it in any of the books that I have
either (Calfo's and *The Conscientious Marine Aquarist* the most
frequently referenced ones).
I had a 72 gallon lovely (I thought)
tank setup that was flourishing for quite some time (well, about two
years) containing some basic livestock- a six-lined wrasse (a meanie who
will not be replaced), a clownfish, 12 chromis, 1 Firefish, 2
perpetually pregnant cleaner and 1 peppermint shrimp, a lawnmower
blenny, many polyps and Palythoa, a mysteriously appearing (and
multiplying) tree-type coral,
<Please send a pic of this... could be
a Hydrozoan... trouble>
mushroom corals, in addition to the usual
feather duster worms (3 small), turbo snails (24) and blue legged hermit
crabs (30) with various 'pods in the rocks and sump. Quite a few
hitchhiker opihi's (don't remember the real name for them), small stars,
worms, an emerald crab, etc. came in on the 90+ lbs of live rock that we
had accumulated over time, and our deep sand bed in the sump and display
were full of little wormie guys who build the little calcified tubes.
<Sounds very lively>
A bout of hair algae prompted my husband to stop
at a local aquarium store and purchase a sea hare on the dealer's
recommendation, much to my dismay- but there was enough algae to keep
the guy going and he seemed to be doing quite well in there (based on
his expanding girth). He seemed to be a good fit for our system.
<Mmm, too many of these are inappropriately placed... cold water... too
likely to be unhappy, toxify a system>
Emboldened by his previous
success, my well-intentioned but poorly-informed husband stopped at the
same store that was now having a going-out-of-business sale.
<Not a
good sign...>
He purchased a couple of very small polyp-covered rocks
at $5 apiece and a large coral for a mere $10 :( The oh-so kind dealer
assured him that his purchases would be very easy to keep alive as long
as the large coral was given a piece of fresh fish once in awhile.
<...?>
By the time I had researched the coral and knew that I was
dealing with a nearly impossible to keep alive plate coral (it resembled
an anemone),
<Heliofungia... actiniformis>
it was late into the
evening and the store had closed for good; no other store in town would
take the plate coral. I drove myself bonkers trying to keep the doomed
fellow alive, but die he did, and everything else in the tank died
shortly after he croaked and exuded some kind of slime stuff.
<...>
The tank has run fallow since then, (July of '07) the only survivor a
lone hermit crab.
I'd like to get this tank going again. Attempt #1
was done after several small water changes- testing the water looked ok,
so I went out and purchased 6 small blue-green chromis. They were all
dead the next morning.
All of my basic parameters appeared ok- with
the exception of slightly elevated nitrates and high calcium (which is a
constant problem no matter what we do). I tested and retested and
retested. I bought more test kits and tested again. Still what I thought
was ok (at any rate was what the previous population had appeared to
thrive in before the addition of the plate coral). I assumed there was
something in the water that I was unable to test for- a toxin or
something from the plate coral (grasping at straws, perhaps?).
<Maybe>
Attempt #2- I did a 100% water change, but did not change the
sand in the tank. I drained it a much as I could; in that process I
noticed not one single living thing other than the previously mentioned
hermit crab. As I said, the tank was previously teeming with 'pods and
other critters who came in off the live rock. Even after running fallow
for six months or so, still nothing was showing up, nor has it since the
complete water change that we did four weeks ago. Three weeks after the
water change I purchased 3 more small blue-green chromis. One was dead a
few days later; a few days after that one was caught in the overflow.
That one died the next evening. I've tested the water weekly but again,
nothing looks weird to me except for the slightly high nitrates and very
high calcium that is typical for our tank.
Expected diatom bloom
going on right now. I'm starting to see small bubbles coming off the
rocks which leads me to suspect a possible Cyano outbreak is in my near
future. During this water change, the rocks were exposed to air for
about an hour. I did not rinse them off but misted them with fresh
saltwater (not from the tank).
Should I purchase some 'pods in a
bottle and put then in my sump?
<Mmm, I wouldn't just yet>
I do
not want any more live rock in the tank, but I'd like to re-seed the
tank (only once I know it's safe). Is there something specific that you
think I should test for in my tank before anyone else goes to their doom
in there?
<Mmm, you might try running some filter media...
PolyFilter, GAC... for a few weeks, ahead of the next trial... Or skip
ahead to removing the Hermits... and nuking/bleaching all... draining,
rinsing (repeat) a few times with freshwater... re-filling with marine,
adding some new live rock over the old...>
My smart-alecky daughter
has named the last three fish "dead fish 1, 2, and 3", and I'm starting
to feel like all the fish in the fish store are hiding behind rocks when
I walk through the store's door :(
I'd rather give up the hobby than
keep killing fish... can you help? I'm feeling very nervous for my
hermit crab and lonely chromis.
Below are my test results and
equipment on the tank:
Temp-78
SPG/salinity-1.023-33
ph-7.9
(taken in the afternoon)
alkalinity- 300 (KH 4.8 per Salifert)
ammonia-0
nitrite-0
nitrate-20
calcium- I've used three
different types of kits; they all show the calcium higher than 600.
<Something amiss here... you don't want the biomineral content this
high... at the expense of alkaline reserve>
I don't dose or add
anything to the water other than Dechlor for water changes so I don't
understand this. No calcium precipitation but wondering if the Alk and
ph are somehow suppressing that.
<...?>
This reading has always
been the case with my tank (since June of '06). Is the sand a problem?
<Maybe>
Evap top-offs are done with R/O water.
I haven't been
testing for magnesium, iodine, or strontium, since the big wipe-out.
Equipment/setup:
72 gallon bowfront (Upgraded from 30 gallon in June
06)
15 gallon sump / refugium (below tank) with 6+ inches Oolitic
sand and spaghetti algae, rubble
Chemi-pure and Poly-filter in sump
Aqua C Remora Pro Skimmer with overflow box
Circulating 700-800
gallons per hour
Two powerheads (one rotating) for circulation
TEK
T-5 Light 6 -54 watt bulbs (two actinic)
90+ pounds of live rock
Oolitic sand as substrate- 4 inches in display
Water changes are made
with tap water, Dechlor, and Kent sea salt (mixed a week before)
<I'd
read on WWM re, try another brand>
Many thanks for taking the time to
read this long email,
Stephanie in Santa Cruz
<The choice is up
to you... to try the chemical filtrant, more time going by route... or
the biocide do-over. Bob Fenner>
Heavy metal poisoning, too much heavy metal music? 2/24/08
Dear Crew
I have had a few problems. Last summer my ozone probe went
bad, I guess and the ozone level climbed too high and wiped out
everything but a few fish.
<Really?... How did you figure this?>
I
had a 500 gallon reef tank for the past 2.5 years. I gradually replaced
some soft coral (colt coral and spaghetti leathers), then one day they
closed up and eventually withered away.
<...?>
I checked the
water parameters, and all was fine (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, sp.
gravity, temp, Alk, pH and etc).
<...>
I noticed that one of my
pumps was not working in the sump and pulled it out and some rusty
colored water drained out of it, however there was a backflow valve
hooked up to it, so I'm guessing none of that water leaked out until I
pulled it out. The fish are fine, but the only coral that is still
kicking is a Porites (this one also survived the ozone surge and the
nitrogen cycle).
The green hair algae has died as well, but the
Cyanobacteria is still flourishing.
Did this pump foul things up?
<Can't say from the data presented...>
There is no ozone running and
water parameters are fine. I have placed a poly filter in my sump,
hoping to get rid of something.
Thanks
l.splitter
<... You
have a RedOx meter? Ferrous test kit? Color on the PolyFilter? Your
message makes little sense to me... Bob Fenner>
Water chemistry question... Anomalous invert. SW losses 2/21/08
Hey guys, long time lurker first time e-mailer. I have a 50g mixed
reef with a 20g sump/refuge. My water parameters always test to 0ppm
for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate; phosphates are about 0.05ppm (LFS
test), calcium is between 400 and 450ppm, Alk is 10dkh, lastly my
magnesium is 1350. The tank was upgraded from my 24g nanocube which
ran for 2 years, and now my 50g has been up for about 10 months.
I've been having a bad green hair algae problem and been having a
hard time keeping my Astrea and Mexican Turbos alive for more then a
month.
<Mmm... something... is growing there that is poisoning
the snails...>
I now only have 2 Astraea's, initially I couldn't
figure out why I would lose my Astraea's and Turbos but after
surfing around on WWM I think I'm attributing it to pyramid snails.
<Maybe...>
I see them around the tank and I pick them out by
hand, and now I inspect my two Astraea's and remove the pyramid's
from them.
<Do you see these actually on the dead snails?>
I
don't see the pyramids much anymore. Anyway I did get 2 months ago a
Sixline partially because I wanted to see if it would eat the
pyramids and partially because I like watching them. Anyway he
lasted about 2 weeks and I found him stuck to my maxi-jet 1200 that
I modded for more flow.
<Also likely poisoned...>
I don't know
why he died but he looked great up until I came home and saw him
dead. Anyway because I can't keep snails alive a few weeks after
that I got a sea hare
<Mmm, I would be checking the species, its
biology... too many of these are coldwater, too toxic themselves...>
thinking maybe with the absence of snails or a clam the pyramids
would die. The sea hare did great, he was mowing down the algae but
he lasted 2 weeks as well.
<Something, chemical, biochemical...>
I found him one day behind my rockwork white as a ghost and with his
guts spit out. Lastly a month later I decided to get a tuxedo
urchin. He's been great at eating the algae as well but he just died
today. Is there some type of pest that would take these guys out, or
is there some chemical that both my LFS and my tests aren't looking
for? Oh by the way, I do a water change out of 10g once every week
and a half and for fish I only have 2 ocellaris clowns and they have
been in both tanks since day one and they and my corals don't seem
to be affected at all. This can't just be bad luck can it?
<Again... summat amiss here... Could be a blue-green, other Division
algae, or something else... I would try using a pad of PolyFilter
(please write back re colors you see accumulating on the pad), and
add a good bit of some "other" species of useful algae to your
lighted area of the refugium (Gracilaria or Chaetomorpha are my best
choices)... You need to eliminate whatever the toxicity is here, and
these steps should do it. Bob Fenner>
Re: Water chemistry question... Anomalous invert. SW losses...
Tufa rock 2/21/08
Thank you very much for your
help. I'll pick up some PolyFilter and let you guys know. I do
have some Chaeto in my fuge and it grows fast
<A good sign>
but my fuge is starting to be overcome by the hair algae as
well.
<A bad one... Do you have access to a few hundred power
microscope? I am suspecting that this hair algae is a
Cyanobacteria... no nuclei or other visible endoplasmic
inclusions... See WWM re ID...>
The algae itself is a darker
green and is soft/silky when I pull it out.
<Does it feel
slimy?>
I'm also using about 40 pounds of tufa rock if that
has anything to do with it,
<Erp! Does... See WWM re... use
the search tool and the term... on the "Ask the Crew..." page,
view the cached views... the Tufa rock is VERY likely the source
of trouble here>
the other 30 pounds are Fiji base rocks
transferred from my nano cube. Anyway thank you for your time,
I'll update you in a few days.
<The PolyFilter will help
absorb some of the Tufa issue, but not indefinitely... it needs
to be pulled. BobF>
Re: Water chemistry question... Anomalous invert. SW losses...
Tufa Rock 2/21/08
Aha! Tufa rock, man I wish I
would have read what I just read 10 months ago.
<Ah, you and
I both>
I'm attaching a picture of what the algae looks like
in my tank.
<Nice... except for the...>
I do have to say
that until I got my ATO working in my sump when I was first
setup and cycling the tank my water level ran low and 2 times I
had to top off with tap water because I didn't have an RODI unit
and the grocery store's unit was down for maintenance. The algae
started out as Cyano obviously because of my use of tap water
and after 3 months turned to what you see now in the picture.
It's not really slimy, at least not like what Cyano feels like
but it is kind of close. You can see in the picture that all of
the tufa rock has bad hair algae and non of my established Fiji
rock has it.
<A clue eh?>
I manually pick it out to
battle it, I've gone as far as remove the rocks on the right
side of the tank to scrub them in water from a water change and
then put them back in only to find that the problem got worse.
<More exposed surface area on the Tufa...>
It seems like the
more I pick the algae out the faster it grows back. My dad's
work has an electron microscope that takes pictures he's going
to see if he can bring it home over the weekend because I'll be
up in Cleveland visiting my parents, if not he said I can put
some algae in a test tube and he'll take it to work and email me
the pictures.
<Neat!>
Also to answer a previous question
you asked, I have never seen the so called pyramid snails that I
think I have on a dead Astrea or turbo, but I have seen them on
the live ones. I figured better to be safe then sorry and pick
them out. In my nano-cube they did stay on the glass and algae
all the time but I had a hard time keeping the snails alive
there too, especially Mexican Turbos.
<These may be something
other than Pyramidellids>
I had one live about 8 months but
the replacement one lived 2 or 3 months. The poly-filter is in
my sump, what color would it turn if its a toxic chemical from
the tufa rock? Green?
<We'll see... depends on the nutrients
available, preponderant>
Lastly, my wife and I are closing on
a house tomorrow and will be moving into it on March 2nd.
<Ah, congrats!>
My plans were to first plumb a 50g Rubbermaid
stock tank in our basement and plumb that to the main tank that
would be on the first floor in our family room. My idea for
moving would be to dig my snails out of the sand, and pitch the
sand and start fresh as recommended by my local reef club. To
transport the water I was going to use the orange 5g painter
buckets to get them from my apartment to my new house and setup
my 24g nano until the dust clears in the main tank with the new
sand. If the tufa rock is the culprit, I have about 40lbs in my
main display, if I were to remove it and add 40lbs of Fiji rock
to my main display wouldn't the combination of adding the sand
and rock send my tank into another cycle?
<Quite possibly
so... I'd get the new Fiji LR and cure it ASAP, and move it in
with the big MOVE>
If so should I just keep my nano-cube up
and running to just re-cycle my tank or how would you go about
that whole situation? Also, to clarify, were you referring to my
algae problem being caused by the tufa rock maybe? Or where you
referring to the tufa rock releasing the toxin into my system
killing new additions? Or both?
<Both... or the algae the
Tufa is "sponsoring" in turn producing toxins... The Tufa's got
to go. Bob Fenner>
Re: Water chemistry question... Anomalous invert. SW losses...
Tufa Rock 2/23/08
Just an update, I am going
tomorrow to phishybusiness to pick up about 40 pounds of Eva
live rock and I will cure it in my 24g nanocube. The PolyFilter
pad has started to turn a green/brown color.
Hopefully this
fixes my toxin problem so that I could get some new fish that
I've had my eyes on.
<Ahhh! B> | 
|
|
Reef help, coral wont survive. 2/11/08
Hi, my name is
Bryce. I live in the Cincinnati Ohio area. I have been in the hobby of
saltwater aquariums now for 6 years and have had many reef tanks mostly
nano's. I have been slowly purchasing my equipment for a bigger reef
setup and yet am having trouble. For 2 months I have been struggling
with my reef tank and need some help. Any coral I add never opens at all
and dies or withers away. I first tried a finger leather, then I tried a
silver branch xenia followed by a green star polyp colony and cant get
anything to open. 3 months ago I took down my 150 gallon FOWLR tank and
setup a 75 gallon tank I intend to make a reef. The tank is 48 inches
wide and about 22 inches deep with the water column about 22 inches high
give or take. I moved all my fish, rock, and inverts (no coral)...just
blue and scarlet leg hermits and such once the new 75 gallon was setup.
I moved 75 gallons of water from my 150 to start and two weeks later did
a 25% water change like I usually do. My 75 gallon tank has a 1/2 inch
thick Aragonite based sand bed, about 150 to 200 lbs of live rock and 50
or so hermits and snails. Lighting is supplied by 2, 150 watt 14k metal
halides and 4, 65 watt actinic 03 compact fl's. I change my MH's every 6
months with Ushios, and the actinics with Corallife bulbs every 8
months. The MH's are 12 inches above the water surface, actinics are 6
inches. It is an open top tank. My circulation is from 2 Hydor Koralia
pumps at 1200 gal/hr each and then my sump return of about 500 gal per
hour. I have a siphon box which empties into a refugium tank with just
Chaeto macro algae and a shallow sand bed with 10 lbs of live rock. It
is lighted by a 50/50 65 watt compact fl. bulb. I let hair algae and
green and what ever else grows grow in my refugium tank and clean out
the hair algae once a month. I don't have any nuisance algae in my main
tank. From my refugium my water pours over through a 25 micron filter
bag and into my 20 gallon sump. I have an aqua-c ev180 protein skimmer,
a Corallife 36 watt uv sterilizer, JBJ Arctica 1/10hp chiller, aqua-c
rx-1 calcium reactor, a DIY anaerobic denitrator,
<What is this fed
with? The source of carbon or?>
and an auto top off unit connected to
a solenoid through a ro/di unit recently tested at 7ppm total dissolved
solids. My water changes come from this ro unit and I use reef crystals
as my salt mix at a specific gravity of 1.025 measured with a
hydrometer. My parameters are as such. Water is 79 to 80 degrees,
nitrates 0ppm, nitrites 0ppm, phos 0ppm, magnesium is always around
1250ppm, calcium is about 400 to 420 ppm, ph is 8.3, KH is 10 to 11,
ammonia is always undetectable. I dose with only magnesium and use Carib
sea A.R.M in my reactor. When I got my 75 gallon tank all setup and
running I had 2 ocellaris clowns, 1 blue tang and 1 royal Gramma. All
the fish had been in my 150 gallon tank for at least 6 months, the
clowns over 3 years. My trouble started when I noticed my Gramma was
always in hiding. I thought since the acclimation maybe he was stressed.
He died 2 weeks after the tanks was setup. Then my blue tang died of
what appeared to be an Oodinium infection as did my clowns shortly
after. I have no idea where the Oodinium came from as my newest fish ..
the blue tang ... was quarantined for 3 weeks before going in the 150
gallon tank and lived there for months without any problem.
<Somehow
got by...>
I assume that there must have been a very small number of
the parasite in the water and the immunity of the fish was able to keep
it under control until the stress of a new home maybe lowered their
immune system. I don't know. But that added to all this frustration. It
leads me to believe there is an "unseen" problem with my water quality.
<I agree... Your set-up reads as fine... but there is a chemical,
perhaps bio-chemical anomaly here somewhere>
I had several thoughts
about what may be wrong. I thought maybe H2S from my denitrator was
getting in my water.
<Mmm, this, or...>
Effluent out of the unit
doesn't smell and it is at a constant drip rate into the sump and the
tank is very well circulated. The denitrator has been running now for 4
years on whatever tank setup I have at the time. I have never had any
problems with it.
<This gear can/does change...>
Sand bed is
shallow...so I ruled out h2s in my mind. Plumbing was all new with pvc
and I used aquarium grade silicone with standard pvc cement for all
joints. Perhaps some chemical is getting into my water?
<From? A
cat-box near by? Someone spraying glass et al. cleaner in a too
air-tight house?>
Perhaps the first coral I introduced died and
released some chemical toxin my other subsequent coral attempts did not
like?
<Most real possibility mentioned yet>
I thought maybe my
RO/DI unit was malfunctioning in some way... I tested the water locally
at a dealer of units and total dissolved solids was 7ppm.. id like it at
0 but with Ohio river water as my starting point I think it is working
ok. I changed my carbon pre and post filter every 6 months along with my
DI resin. My skunk cleaner shrimp, all my crabs, my snails, everything
is alive and well and seems to be doing great.
<A good clue>
Just
cant get my corals to open up. I acclimate them slowly using standard
bag floating methods.
<Mmm, see WWM... I'd acclimate Cnidarians
differently. Posted>
I always start with my lights off and proceed
with only actinics for one day. Then each day have my MH's on one more
hour until I am up to the full 8 hour photoperiod. I typically use my
actinics from 8am to 9pm and my MH's from 11am to 7pm. I have had many
corals in the past and have never had a problem quite like this one. I
always had a minimum amount of lighting and equipment though. I have
never had such an elaborate setup as I do now and yet cant get any coral
to live. I don't know if my Oodinium problem was related to bad water
quality in some way or if it was just stress from the move.
<Also
agreed>
Sorry to write a book but I just wanted your professional
help and opinion as to my next move or next thing to test for. I don't
want to keep trying coral without knowing why they don't open up.
Something is not right. Could I be filtering my water so well that it is
devoid of what the coral needs to open and thrive?
<Mmm... not
likely>
Is it all just happening too fast after I setup my 75 gallon
tank and things just are not quite in balance? Please help, thanks
BRYCE.
<Could be the source of the livestock/corals even... I would
try setting up another system to acclimate them in... move some of the
water from the 75 once some are settled in (a few weeks to months)... to
test the "poor water" hypothesis... Then... I would systematically
remove one element at a time... My first choice, the denitrator. Bob
Fenner> Re:
reef help, coral wont survive. 2-12-08
We have a cat box
downstairs about 6 feet from the 30 gallon top-off water tank. I guess
this could be my issue. What is in the cat litter that would cause my
problem?
<Mostly thought to be ammonia getting into solution... can
be measured if present>
I guess I should move one or the other.
<And do consider the systematic water and gear testing protocol
mentioned previously. BobF> |
Dead, and don't know what to do... Read - 1/24/08
<?>
Hi
Ok here is my situation. I have an 85 gallon tank, reef lighting
(Current) , a euro reef protein skimmer, a Megaflow sump filter model 4.
Live rock, two sea anemones,
<... likely trouble. See WWM re
Actinarian comp.>
one brittle star fish, one sea urchin, one fire
shrimp, a cleaner wrasse,
<...>
a six line wrasse, a mandarin Goby
and small clown.
My lights on a timer so 2 hours in the am and then
6 in the evening.
OK so every time I add a fish that is a little
bigger (Naso Tang or an Arugula Butterfly) they die.
<...>
The
last one was a Naso tang, I drip acclimated him and for three days
<!?>
he was great he zipped around the tank and then on the third day
he is on his side no spots or nothing struggling to stay alive and then
dead.
Water levels are all in zone.
<What zone?>
What is
going on ??? help?
Thanks
Jim
<... Water tests? Filtration,
maintenance... Read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/cnidcompppt.htm
and
on to Env. diseases, Marine... You have a toxicity problem... likely
from the Cnidarians here... but... w/o test results, knowing what gear
you have... more data, can only vaguely guess. Bob Fenner>
HELP NEEDED... LR introduction wipe-out...
I have a 55 gallon
salt tank it has been up and running now for a few months. everything
has been fine until last night. I recently bought 16 pounds of new live
rock to add to my existing LR.
<Best by far to sequester, re "cure"
this outside main systems...>
I also did a 10 gallon or so water
change. everything was still fine for about 24 hours then it all
happened. At the stroke of the new year, I seen the tank was cloudy,
checked my ph it was 7.0,
<Yikes!>
checked nitrates they were over
5.0,
<... likely Nitrites... deadly>
then I seen lots of bristle
worms( I had never seen these in my tank before) all the fish were dead
including the sea urchin, however my red starfish, and anemone are still
alive, the anemone is not looking so good but is still alive. I also
seen some cocoon looking white sacks on a live rock. (what could these
be) now today I am doing water changes readily to try to get the
nitrates down. Am I doing this right and what happened to cause this. I
don't want to cause this again, ever.
<?>
I appreciate any
information and help you can give me. I am a nurse who feels like a
murderer to these poor fish. last night it was almost like a code blue
call for me. I even had my husband assisting me in doing emergency cares
for the star and anemone until 5 am this morning.
Sam
<... much
for you to read. Please start here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/lrh2oqualfaq2.htm
and the linked files above.
Bob Fenner> Dead marine
fish... not a joke, but pretty humorous/tragic 12/30/07
Hi,
My fish only tank is almost 3 years old. During most of that time the
tank has been doing great. Recently fish have started to die. First new
fish would die within hours of adding them. Then the other fish began to
die. My PH was quite low.
<How low is low?>
I probably raised it
too quickly
<How much and how?>
and most of the fish died the next
day. Two (Puffer and Snowflake Eel) stopped eating and died 2-3 weeks
later. Water chemistry is perfect.
<What does this mean?>
Added 3
fish yesterday all are dead or dying. Prior to the death of most of my
fish I added a Wrasse. He died within two days of adding him. Same with
a Lion fish. (tails looked torn, poor respiration. Is it possibly my
salt is bad?
<Possibly>
How about RO filter? Mine is one year old.
<What does testing tell/show you?>
I store my RO water in the
basement in a covered 35 gallon rubber garbage can with an air stone and
cover on it. Any ideas?
<All sorts>
What do I do next?
<Likely
read>
My Tank is a 90 gal. with UV, protein skimmer, and sump. I have
never touched the bio balls but I do clean the sump and pads.
My
tank has no ammonia or nitrites. Nitrates are below 20. Temp. is 70
degrees and salt is 1.019.
<Too low...>
There is some copper that
I added .10-.15.
<A very poor idea to have constant exposure>
PH
is 83.
<No>
Please advise!
Thank you"
Roy Pakett
<Please
start reading here: http://wetwebmedia.com/mardisindex.htm
The Yellow
tray... Toxic H2O cond.s... and re the spg, Cu... You're killing these
fishes... need to educate yourself. Bob Fenner>
Re: Dead marine fish... not a joke, but pretty humorous/tragic –
1/2/08
Bob,
<Roy>
Please Help!!
I believe I narrowed
the problem down to the quality of the water that I am adding to the
tank. I also have a 14 gallon nano reef tank and after doing a water
change my healthy clown fish died. (No remaining live fish) I just added
two Chromis fish to my 90 gallon. Both died within 1 day. Added one to
my reef tank- It too died within 2 days. I believe the problem is either
bad salt, bad RO filter (one year old) or bad storage of water- I keep
in basement in 35 gallon rubber garbage cans air stone on all the time.
Tested storage water-T.D.S.= 25 I have had aquariums all my life and I
do know how to acclimate fish.
Please advise- How do I do a complete
water change of a 90 gallon tank without killing the good bacteria?
<Not to worry re... I would drain the water out completely here... add
some chemical filtrants... replace all water...>
I only have one
small snowflake Eel currently in it.
Thank you.
<... Keep reading
where you were referred to. BobF>
Sudden death of Ocellaris Clown, Cleaner Shrimp and Emerald Crab...
Small, overcrowded mis set-up and managed SW system... 12/30/07
Hello WWM crew,
<Rana>
Your site has been a great help as we
established our first tank, a 14gal BioCube. Sorry to say I'm writing
cause we are having tragedy in the last 48 hours. First, some
background. Bought it 'complete' from the LFS, and it had been
established in the store for a little bit of time with reef rock, sand,
corals etc and a couple of fish. Oh yeah, I forgot, bonus thing we
discovered when we got home, a HUGE (10-12 inch) bristleworm. Nice.
<Perhaps for fishing bait>
It started with quite a bit of coral
(different types, polyps etc) and added a frogspawn coral, emerald crab,
a regular hermit, a scarlet hermit and 2 snails. Fish are 2 small (1.5
inch) Ocellaris clowns, 1 Banggai Cardinal, 1 small shrimp goby. First
cleaner shrimp didn't make the trip from the store.
<... this life
needs more room than this>
First problem in the tank after a few
weeks of setup (about 6 months ago) was "red slime". We had quite the
outbreak and it killed 2 corals (pretty delicate purple things). LFS
recommended ChemiPure - which we treated and double-treated. Reduced
amount of light to 8 hours, tank does not get direct sunlight. Long
story short, we barely contain the red slime and when it gets bad we do
a ChemiPure treatment and significant water changes (30-40%). So it's
more or less stable. Deep cleaning was done recently (cleaned bio balls,
reservoir area etc for any detritus, didn't remove from water). Test
kits shows our nitrates go up significantly - we test every 2-3 weeks.
This has been a mystery.
<Less so with a bit of study...>
My best
guess so far is that we have too much 'life' in the tank, the corals are
thriving and growing and things could just be getting crowded.
<Yes>
About 4 weeks ago, found 1 snail dead. And about 3 months ago, added a
cleaner shrimp. About 2 weeks ago, we replaced the snail with a new one,
and added a blue-legged hermit (medium sized). All animals had been
otherwise healthy (shrimp molting etc) and growing.
Then 2 days ago
tragedy struck. The tank has been stable for over a month. Nitrates ok
but we picked up the pace of water changes to 7 days to control it (and
the red slime).
<BGA... very common in small, unstable,
"incompletely" filtered crowded systems as yours... the rule rather than
exception>
Went away on vacation for 5 days and had a friend care for
the tank. The day after we got back, 1 day after last seen healthy, one
of the clowns had flopped into the reservoir and died (despite enough
water being in the reservoir). Best conclusion was stress of some sort
as this clown had not jumped out before like this (the other one had
previously). The other clown was fine. One clown had done this 2 times
before - despite the lid on the tank, managed to flop through the 1 inch
space between the reservoir and the tank.
Then this morning (less
than 48 hours after clown died), found the previously VERY healthy
cleaner shrimp and emerald crab dead (and being consumed or partially
consumed overnight) by worms etc in the tank.
<Are you surprised? I
can't register this>
Tank still looks thriving. Tested water - pH has
dropped a bit from 8.0 to 7.4.
<!!!... Uhh, this is a base ten
logarithm... This drop is more precipitous than the fall of the U.S.
dollar against other world currencies... a bit of humour>
Nitrates
still high (it's been 1 week since water change) - around 50mg/l.
<... disastrous>
Help. Very sad day, since we have been overcoming
these tank issues and all life looked thriving, it's sad to see a third
of our stock just die within 3 days. And all very mysteriously. No fish
or corals or anything shows signs of disease. They eat well and even the
red slime is not present.
Your insight and advice is sorely needed.
Sad in SF,
Rana from SF
<Uhh... you've got some reading to do...
Maybe start here: http://wetwebmedia.com/small.htm
and then on to the
linked files above. BobF in SDiego...>
What happens within the tank when an Anemone dies? 12/20/07
Hi
Crew,
<Hello Bobby, Brenda here!>
I have a question about
Condylactis Anemones.
<Okay!>
If I were to buy a Condylactis, and
it happen to die (obviously not hoping, just sort of planning ahead),
what would happen within the tank? Would this pretty much crash my tank?
<It is a definite possibility, especially in smaller tanks.>
I'm new
to anemones so any information about what happens after their death
would help.
<They can fall to pieces, and are very hard to get out of
the water in one piece. You may need to siphon a lot of it out. It
smells horrible, and will cause an ammonia spike. You will need to do
several large water changes over the next few days. Having a supply of
premixed saltwater is always recommended for emergencies. I recommend
researching their care several months in advance so you can eliminate
the chances of it dying. More information here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemones.htm
>
Thank you very much, Bobby
<You’re welcome! Brenda>
Metal in reef aquaria 12/19/07
Greetings Crew
<Hello Mark.>
I am in the process of starting a new 100 gal reef and would like to get
it right the first time with your help. The lighting is installed, a new
Euro-Reef skimmer is in the sump, and I'm ready for live rock.
<Congratulations>
What I'm not sure about is the use of metallic
objects in reef systems.
The metallic objects I refer to include a
titanium heater, a submersible Mag 12 pump which utilizes stainless
steel screws to fasten the pump chamber to the motor, and an Aqua UV
ultraviolet sterilizer. The sterilizer is my main concern here as it is
equipped with a sleeve wiper actuated by a 1/4" rod about 8" long. All
these items have been used in a previous setup with no appreciable
corrosion so the stainless is of good quality.
I have always made a
point of avoiding metal fasteners and clamps where contact with the
water is likely but these items are supposedly made for this
application.
<Good practice.>
Do I have cause for concern?
<No,
these items can be used no problem.>
Thanks,
Mark P.
<Welcome,
have fun, Scott V.>
Sump Near Oil Furnace - 12/13/07
I have learned a great deal from
your site, thank you. I have not been able to find any mention of what
might be troubling me with my tanks. I have two reef tanks one 72 bow
front in my basement, one 210 on first floor of my home - they run off
the same water system and sump in the basement. The sump, which contains
my protein skimmer, water pumps and heater is in very close proximity of
my oil burning furnace. [Living in Maine - basic necessity.] The sump (
a 45 gallon tote ) is approximately 1 foot away from the furnace. I do
not have a cover on the sump - lots of open water. I use RO water. My
fish are doing great, fat and healthy. My corals are not so great; they
fail to thrive. Do you think it has something to do with the proximity
of the furnace/sump.
<Mmm... might have an influence... I would
likely contact a business in the field of such heat technology, ask what
tools they suggest for testing for contamination here, what compounds
are typically found in association... Perhaps a few calls to a college
with a chemistry department re what they might be able to do for you re
mass spectrophotometry>
My local reefing expert and friend at
AquaCorals in Fairfield, Maine has brainstormed all parameters -
<Mmm, would like to see/hear this...>
thinks all is fine but
questions the
furnace. What do you think?
Jeanine M. Brown
<... Could experiment or just move the sump... try covering it at
least... Bob Fenner>
Disaster...no Clue. AP TWP, some sort of catastrophic cascade poisoning
event Hello! 12/9/07
I have a major problem with my
tank and have spent 3 weeks trying to sort it out. I have searched your
site and just can't seem to find anything that relates to my situation.
<Let's see...>
My set up is a 90 gallon with a Pro Clear 150 series
2.
<This wet-dry?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00061UXXC?smid=AEL917WTFL8PV&tag=msnshop-pet-mp-20&linkCode=asn>
The tank has been up and running for over a year now with no problems.
Nitrates, Nitrites and Ammonia all at zero. PH runs about 8.2. I added
some red Gracilaria to the Sump. (After the skimmer below bio ball
before the return) I was running a light on opposite cycle from the main
tank lights as well. A month after adding the Gracilaria I started to
see copods
<No such thing... Copepods>
down there and when I did a
water change they would sometimes go flying out into the tank. A few of
them took up residence around some of my polyps and pulsing xenia. Life
was good in the tank! I did water changed weekly of about 10 gallons.
This went on for a year with no problems or losses.
<Good>
Rather
than purchase water I decided to invest in a Tap Water Filter by
Aquarium Pharmaceuticals.
<Mmm, please see WWM... this product is
unworthy... a toy if you will... Not cheap or really functional to
produce clean water>
I did some reading and this was supposed to be a
great product. Recommended by Jack Wattley and all.
<Jack...
Wattley... knows better than to have lent/sold his name here. I will say
no more re>
I mixed up my first 5 gallon batch and decided to test it
first since I wanted to be sure the water was good before adding it to
my tank. Testing pre-salt showed 0 nitrates, nitrites, ammonia and
chlorine. I did note the PH was very low. Around a 5.0 but once I added
the salt mix it came right up to the 8.0 level. I added the 5 gallons
and then mixed the next 5 gallons. Testing again gave the same results.
While I was working on the tank I decided that I would add a little of
the bio active sand to the sump. I placed it down with the Gracilaria to
try and keep the pods going strong.
The next morning it looked like a
war zone. Pulsing xenia was withered away and the mushroom leather
corals were all shriveled up. I tested and found my nitrates 20 nitrites
were at .5.
<Yikes...>
Panic set in so I went and did another 10
gallon water change. Again, testing the water before placing it in the
tank. 24 Hours later my nitrates 20 nitrites were at 3.0 and all coral,
blue leg, emerald green, peppermint and cleaner shrimp were dead.
<Yes... poisoned>
I again did another water change, this time I did
30 gallons. The nitrites came down to .5 and I decided to go and
purchase some Prime since it seemed my tank was in a cycle. Odd thing is
ammonia was 0 or .5 during this whole ordeal.
<Not all microbes
mal-affected evidently>
Day 4 I tested and now the nitrates 20,
nitrites were at 5.0 I lost a chromis ammonia was .05. I did another 30
gallon water change and got nitrites down to 1.0. I decided that perhaps
too many water changes were causing a cycle. I had to go away for 3 days
and the tank just sat. I turned off the lights as to try not to stress
the remaining fish. Upon my return the nitrites were back up, but to
10.0 this time! Nitrates were 40 and believe it or not 2 false Percs,
yellow tail blue tang and lawnmower were still alive. Ok, so the tank is
clear I thought maybe it's my test kit. I got a brand new kit and
tested. Nitrates 40 Nitrites 10.0 and ammonia at .5. Two test kits same
readings.
So a week after using the new water filter and adding the
sand I am in a mess. I did water changes of 10 gallons every day for a
week. That kept the nitrites at about 3.0 all week. I then tried cycle
to see if somehow it would help balance things out. Day 14 I added the
cycle nitrites were 3.0 nitrates at 10. The next morning I was looking
at Nitrates over 200 and nitrites over 10 ! All 4 fish were still alive.
I tried both test kits same readings.
<Yes... a cascade effect...
the nitrogenous materials are/were derived from the rapidly decomposing
biota...>
I know it seems like I am just throwing stuff at the tank
to make something stick but I tried water changes I am starting to think
that it's the water I am using from that filter.
<Likely this is/was
the origin here>
(Perhaps I am being stubborn and I could just go buy
water again but after shelling out the money for the water filter and
testing the water and it being fine I figured that can't be the cause) I
DID test each batch before placing it into the tank and it was fine.
<... for what you were measuring...>
Perhaps my local water becomes
unstable after going through that filter?
<Mmm, not the source water,
no... but possibly the TWP>
I have replaced the filter now twice
since it is only good for about a 100 gallons. My readings were good but
since the package said "up to 150 gallons" I did not want to press my
luck.
<... Let me cut to the proverbial chase. I'd toss the TWP...
and look into, buy a real water filter... either an RO or RO/DI
device...>
So at this point what would you suggest? More water
changes? Just let it sit and run it's course? Light on ? off ? More
prime? More Cycle? Take the sand out of the sump? Trash the water
filter?
<Yes to the second, and last, no to all others>
It's been
about 3 weeks now and the 4 fish are still alive but the Gracilaria lost
it's color completely. I added a little more to the tank to see and it
too lost it's color.
LOST and in desperate need of some direction
here.
Thanks So Much I just know you can give me some help.
Derek
<Please, take your time... and read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/marine/setup/index.htm
the sixth/blue tray on
water... the sections, articles, FAQs files on treatment/filtering. Bob
Fenner>
Fingernail polish reef safe? 12/9/07
Hello. I wear
fingernail polish that is reapplied every 2 weeks. Is it safe to put my
hands in my 72G. reef tank?
<I do think so... Once the chemicals used
are "cured", set, they are inert. When new/"wet", do keep your hands out
of the tanks>
When my husband cleans the tank every week the shrimp
"clean" his fingernails and climb on his arm. Looks like fun! Is it safe
for me to do this?
<Likely so... the smelly solvents that function as
carriers, evaporate, go away with curing, leave behind material that is
non-toxic>
Thanks for the wonderful service you provide. Ellen
<Welcome. Bob Fenner>
Termite Treatment 11/1/07
Hi Crew!
Well here's another
problem I'm having. I have 6 tanks set up in my house. From a 220 down
to a 10 gallon. Well my house has dry wood termites and they say it has
to be tented. Is there a way I can tent without having to take the tanks
down? Any thoughts would be appreciated. Thanks In Advance!
<Ask the
folks doing the tenting... Actually not them, but the licensed Pest
Control Advisor that works for them... what the specific treatment will
involve, and tell them that you have aquariums... Some techniques do not
involve toxic chemical application (and you may get away with simply
covering your tanks with damp towels)... Others call for taking down,
removal... Bob Fenner>
Re: Untimely demise... tank poisoning by baby/battery 10/22/07
Thank you for the prompt reply. I do believe I found the culprit, now I
am not sure if there is anything specific I need to do, other than a
water change. I was looking in the sump this morning, the light on it
has been off because it got wet, oops, and saw a reddish orange color.
That piqued my interest, because there is nothing that color in the
tank. I found a AA battery, swollen and exploded (compliments of the 2
year old I'm sure). The substrate there is stained reddish orange as
well, I am assuming I need to remove that. An additional concern now is
that the Scolymia coral is very pale looking, not totally bleached out,
but pale. I am guessing it is related to the pollution as well?
<<Veronica: Wow. A battery is not good. A water change would help a lot
as it will dilute any toxins. If the tank doesn't look better, try doing
more than one. Best of luck, Roy>>
Toxics Water?...More Likely Overcrowding, Lack Of Knowledge 10/15/07
I have a 40 gal tank that has been running for 3 months with a Three
Striped Damsel, False Clownfish, Yellow Tang, Scopas Tang, Mandarin
Goby, 2 Diamond Gobies, 2 Cleaner Shrimp, 2 Crocea Clams, Sun Coral,
Frogspawn Coral, two Bubble Tip Anemones. One assumption
<Assumption
of what?>
was the Mandarin Goby, after buying and doing my reading. I
realize I shouldn't have it due to the lack of live rock (100lbs or
more).
<And the fact that your tank is overstocked by a good margin.>
I have had her for about a week and she is doing fine, last night when
the water was cloudy she turned very white in color and would swim near
the surface on the water which I found to be very unusual for a Mandarin
Goby. This morning I checked the mandarin and she is fine, good color
and size.
<and size??>
Just to sum up a few things here it is.
Recently I noticed that my cleaner shrimp was indeed pregnant, ok cool
midnight snack. Second was the red slime algae, I treated that with the
proper dose of Blue Life Red Slime Remover. It worked great. that
treatment was 3 days ago, no more
red slime after one treatment.
<Not a cure, just a temporary band-aid. It will be back. Better to
control the source of the problem. Read here and linked files above.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/bluegralgae.htm>
For the past few weeks
the water quality has been good all except for nitrates.
<Not
surprising with the load you have in that 40.>
It have been around
10-15 ppm. I added Algone
<Another band-aid and not a fix. Go here.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/nitratesmar.htm>
and have been doing 10%
water changes every couple days to gradually bring them down. Last night
I came home to my tank being completely cloudy and I had assumed it was
maybe my cleaner shrimp giving birth so I left it as is. This morning
the tank was clear but my Xenia was dead, so I did a water test. The
first thing I checked was ammonia, it was way to high like 6 ppm. The
Xenia is the only thing that died. This morning I did a 25% water change
and the ammonia did not change. Any Suggestions?
<You definitely need
to reduce your fish load. I'd would find homes for the tangs, as your
tank is much too small for
them to begin with. Next would be the
Diamond Gobies, they are not going to survive for long in that
environment, and not a real easy goby to acclimate to begin with. And,
the Bubble Tip Anemones, not good mixing these with corals. BTA's will
move from time to time, and in the process, sting other animals along
the way. Without a source of copepods for the Mandarin's diet, it too
will more than likely perish. Never mentioned lighting, do not know what
your lighting consists of, but the Crocea clams do require high
intensity lighting to survive. It sure sounds like you have had very
little direction or knowledge before setting up this tank. You mention
nothing about using a filter and/or protein skimmer. This info does help
us give a better answer to your query. In your case though, it is quite
obvious that overstocking is the major problem here. Reading here and
related linked files above, will give you a much better understanding of
what is required to establish and maintain a healthy marine system.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marineSetUp.htm>
Thank you for your time.
<You're welcome. James (Salty Dog(>
Riley, Christian E.
Mystery deaths 9/7/07
I work at a LFS, I have a customer
whom has lost several fish. Water parameters are all great, Nitrates
less than 5ppm, .5 on the phosphates,
<Soluble? This is high>
8.2
for the ph, and currently a Fire shrimp and some hermits are enjoying
life, health as ever. After there initial losses they waited several
weeks, then replaced there fish, 48 hrs and they were floaters. While
testing of their water (everything great) they admitted to not
performing a water change in 6 months. I suggested two large water
changes, with a day in between. In addition to a 72hr dark period to
clear up some Cyano.
<This is likely the culprit here>
After
waiting two weeks, in that time the Cyano. all but disappeared, water
chemistry looked even better, they took home a Orange spot sand sifter
and a yellow tail damsel. The fish lasted five days, st least the sand
sifter, the Damsel is M.I.A. presumed dead though. I hope you can offer
some guidance on our situation. I am at a loss, and would like to help
them. Maybe some parasite which does not require a fish host to complete
it's life cycle is lurking within their tank. I hope you have a fresh
perspective on this problem. Let me know if I left out any pertinent
info. Thanks for what you do, James.
<I do suspect a latent/residual
toxicity from the long-standing water and BGA... If it were me/mine, I'd
have these folks dump the water, bleach all... and re-set-up... Please
read and have them read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/clnornart.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner>
Re: Ammonia? 8/20/07
>Hi WWM,
>I think i have a slight
ammonia problem. I feed my fish and 30 - 60 minutes later my fish start
breathing for air at the surface.
><Yikes>
> I test the water and
it shows 0ppm on my test kit.
><Might be low dissolved oxygen>
>
The next day the fish are fine and no more breathing. It has been
happening for about 2 weeks and it happens everyday after i feed my
fish. But yesterday my Chromis' started to breathe at the surface and
about 3 days ago one of my yellow tangs disappeared
<!>
> and i
have a
>feeling he is causing the ammonia spike in my tank the last 2
days. Before he died the Ammonia was kind of like an on and off thing.
But now most of my fish are gasping for air. Is it unusual to constantly
have ammonia going up and down?
><Yes... insufficient
biofiltration...>
>I have these pouches in my tank called 'Maifan
Stones' by 'SUN SUN'. Have you heard of them?
><Have now:
>http://www.google.com/search?q='Maifan+Stones'+by+'SUN+SUN'&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-Address&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&sourceid=ie7&rlz=1I7PCTA>
>They are meant to lower ammonia and nitrite
><I would remove this
material>
>and i think this might be what is lowering the ammonia
every time. If you have any idea what is happening i would really like
to know urgently.
>Thanks, Maison
><... what re the set-up, size,
history of this system? BobF>
Hi Bob,
My tank is 6 x 2 x 2 foot,
Multi SL protein Skimmer, UV Sterilizer, Reef
Octopus Nitrate
Reductor, 12,000l/h return pump, Tunze Pump in a Rock(9000
l/h of
movement),
<5 Nitrate, 0 Nitrite, 0 Ammonia on my test kit (Aquarium
Pharmaceuticals),
pH 8.2.
My fish are:
Convict Tang
Blue
Tang
2 Yellow Tangs(1 now)
Desjardin Sailfin Tang
Lawnmower
Blenny
Mandarin Dragonet
10 Chromis
Flame Angelfish
Longnose
Hawkfish
1 Black Ocellaris Clownfish
1 Ocellaris Clown
Haven't
had any filtration problems before, it only started 2-3 weeks ago.
Yesterday i noticed these grey blotchy patches on my black clownfish.
His middle white stripe has a transparent looking blotch on it. Would
you have any idea what it is?
<I suspect something amiss with your
Nitrate Reductor... I would take this off-line. Likely either the feeder
stock is poisoning your system or some co-factor here.>
I've been
searching for it on the Internet and can't seem to find it. All my other
fish look perfectly fine. I just bought a new rotating powerhead
yesterday and i am going to put it in the tank today to see if it helps
the oxygen level. What would be the best and most accurate Ammonia test
on the market? Because i don't like the Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Ammonia
test kit.
Thanks, Maison
<Look to Hach, LaMotte
brands/manufacturers... BobF>
Rapid breathing 08-16-07 SW nitrogenous – 08/17/07
Hello,
to whomever is responding at this time. Thank you for what you do for
all of us beginners! If you could direct me to the portion of your page
dealing with gill burn or something similar, I would be grateful. I
guess I am not typing in the correct search queries to bring me to the
right page. I have a green wolf eel and yellow striped maroon clownfish.
My tank is stable with Ammonia and nitrite at 0ppm, Nitrate at 5-10ppm,
ph of 8.3, temp of 78 degrees and SG of 1.023. All of these readings are
very consistent. The two fish have been back in my display for 7 days. I
have had both since May 2007. They were in my QT tank for 6 weeks before
introducing them to the display due to an Ich outbreak on a regal tang,
which has been moved to a large system. These two never showed any signs
of ich, but moved them to QT to be safe and let the tank fallow.
<Good move>
My concern is that the QT tank started to cycle while
they were in it and they were exposed to ammonia levels of close to 2ppm
and then Nitrite of 2ppm.
<Yikes!>
Their breathing (more so the
eel) still appears rapid and deep. That seems to be their only problem.
One time (yesterday) I saw the eel open his mouth very wide (like my
yawning) and push his gills outward. Do you know what he was doing?
<A mechanism for cleaning? A reaction to low DO? A "threat" display due
to your presence?>
They both are very active and eating great and
otherwise appear normal. Is this gill burn from the bad water quality (I
did 50-100% daily water changes with pre-mixed and aerated water while
they were in QT to fight the high levels), or possibly something else?
Is there anything I can do to help them?
<Patience, good care
otherwise>
Is it even possible for them to recover from gill burn (if
that is what it is)?
<Oh yes>
Thank you for any advice or link
you can direct me to. I try so hard to keep them happy and healthy but
seems I always, unknowingly, do something wrong, so now I turn to you. I
will continue to read and learn. Thanks!*~*April*~*
<Don't think we
have a link per se... I would try a search here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm
with
gill burn marine fishes... and read the colored cached versions to save
time... But gill burn from nitrogenous metabolites is very common as are
dire hemolysis from environmental challenges... But/and can be
resolved/cured. BobF>
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