Cloudy Water, Firefish Goby dead, Snail dead, All Fish swimming on top of tank

mr_noodles

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 21, 2019
Messages
76
Reaction score
82
Location
King George
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Help!

I work night shift and just came home this morning to a cloudy tank. Could not see any of my fish from afar. Looking closer, all of my fish are "gasping" for air on the top of the tank. I noted one firefish goby and 1 snail dead in the corner of the tank. Fish are not eating anything after feeding their usual mysis shrimp.

Tank Stats:
FOWLR setup
1x Ocelarris, 1x Black Ocellaris, 2x Chromis, 1x Bengai Cardinal, 1x Juv. Koran Angel
Issues: moderate green hair algae, being treated with reduced lighting and phosphate remover.
All water parameters were tested good 3 days ago except pH (7.8). Used pH up and went to 8.1. Did a quick strip test once I noticed the death and I have 0ppm Nitrite/Nitrate but have 7.5pH (it went down). Added more pH up.

Only changes to tank the past 2 weeks is a new protein skimmer and 20% water change (same water I've been using for 8 months) . Turned off the protein skimmer for now, still running canister.

Any help would be appreciated!
 

Retro Reefer

Slow and steady wins the race!
View Badges
Joined
Dec 15, 2015
Messages
8,048
Reaction score
46,923
Location
Manassas Va
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Bacterial bloom.. you need to increase oxygen levels in your tank quickly! point powerheads towards the surface, crank up flow if possible, air pump if you have it, repeatedly scooping up water with a cup and pouring it back in tank will work in a pinch.
 

ScottR

Surfing....
View Badges
Joined
Feb 12, 2019
Messages
8,365
Reaction score
28,233
Location
Hong Kong
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Help!

I work night shift and just came home this morning to a cloudy tank. Could not see any of my fish from afar. Looking closer, all of my fish are "gasping" for air on the top of the tank. I noted one firefish goby and 1 snail dead in the corner of the tank. Fish are not eating anything after feeding their usual mysis shrimp.

Tank Stats:
FOWLR setup
1x Ocelarris, 1x Black Ocellaris, 2x Chromis, 1x Bengai Cardinal, 1x Juv. Koran Angel
Issues: moderate green hair algae, being treated with reduced lighting and phosphate remover.
All water parameters were tested good 3 days ago except pH (7.8). Used pH up and went to 8.1. Did a quick strip test once I noticed the death and I have 0ppm Nitrite/Nitrate but have 7.5pH (it went down). Added more pH up.

Only changes to tank the past 2 weeks is a new protein skimmer and 20% water change (same water I've been using for 8 months) . Turned off the protein skimmer for now, still running canister.

Any help would be appreciated!
How big is your tank? Any pics?
 
OP
OP
mr_noodles

mr_noodles

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 21, 2019
Messages
76
Reaction score
82
Location
King George
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Update:

-Just lost a chromis. He was "gasping" for air 45 minutes ago and now he's on the bottom dead.
-I have been cycling the water with a cup.
-Called in a friend who lives down the road who used to work at an aquarium store, she's assisting in checking.
-Did a quick test of water with API kit: pH: 7.8 (increased from 7.5 after dKH buffer added), dKH is 10, Nitrite/Nitrate is 0 ppm. Ammonia is a little under 1ppm.
-Skimmer is back on. I did a few hand pumps of the canister and noted some air pockets that were cycled (helped oxiginate the water a bit). The bengai cardinal is no longer "gasping" for air but my last chromis is still at it.
-Tank is 45gal, live sand and live rock. Tank looks terrible compared to yesterday. Will work on pics shortly
 

William Mumford

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 9, 2019
Messages
1,050
Reaction score
906
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Update:

-Just lost a chromis. He was "gasping" for air 45 minutes ago and now he's on the bottom dead.
-I have been cycling the water with a cup.
-Called in a friend who lives down the road who used to work at an aquarium store, she's assisting in checking.
-Did a quick test of water with API kit: pH: 7.8 (increased from 7.5 after dKH buffer added), dKH is 10, Nitrite/Nitrate is 0 ppm. Ammonia is a little under 1ppm.
-Skimmer is back on. I did a few hand pumps of the canister and noted some air pockets that were cycled (helped oxiginate the water a bit). The bengai cardinal is no longer "gasping" for air but my last chromis is still at it.
-Tank is 45gal, live sand and live rock. Tank looks terrible compared to yesterday. Will work on pics shortly

Do you use water straight from the tap or RODI? Air stones only break surface tension. The bubbles popping is what makes the oxygen you might not have enough flow in the tank if the air stone is helping. Do you have enough flow in the tank to make some waves at the top? Any pictures? How many gallons is the tank?
 

Dom

Full Time Reef Keeper
View Badges
Joined
Apr 29, 2016
Messages
5,720
Reaction score
6,305
Location
NY
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Stop adding chemicals to the tank.

Gasping, low pH? I believe it is an oxygen level issue.

The protein skimmer is a great way to oxygenate the water, so turn it back on.
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2014
Messages
29,485
Reaction score
23,571
Location
tejas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
No, you had a loss cascade due to a fish death or snail death not related to anything in your tank or the water

The dying organisms are overcoming what filter bac can carry

I used distilled water just fine

You need to run a full water change quick. Your thread is an example of true free ammonia impacts, this is the cloud and loss cascade only prime or a full water change arrests it. Do the water change vs prime, prime doesn’t add oxygen or remove rotting compounds and a water change does

This thread is now listed in the microbiology of cycling thread page 1 among twenty ammonia misreading ones, that way truth in free ammonia can be seen against misreads for it. Your thread will help others avoid ammonia crashes

1 ppm of true free ammonia stinks, kills the tank in cycles and is cloudy. It’s rare to see the true impacts of free ammonia I’m sorry for the stress, a full water change will stop the cycle.

Free ammonia comes with an obvious, stinky, cloudy death laden price for a reef tank, it’s a compound we can measure by looking at the tank with animals in it and not even need to see a test kit to verify it. That’s why the microbiology of cycling thread doesn’t use testing to discern where ammonia is present. We look for doom or for a normal running reef...the latter has no ammonia even though testers always say it does falsely.

You did not have a bac bloom that causes this, the bac bloom came after due to excess ammonia fuel from the loss cascade. The bloom wouldn’t happen without some animals dying first, that’s why it ran a while with no bloom.
 
Last edited:

Retro Reefer

Slow and steady wins the race!
View Badges
Joined
Dec 15, 2015
Messages
8,048
Reaction score
46,923
Location
Manassas Va
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
distilled water is fine.. just about zero chance of your make up water causing your issues, your biological filtration isn’t able to keep up which is most likely fueling the bacterial bloom.
 

tripdad

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Feb 9, 2014
Messages
1,906
Reaction score
4,259
Location
Chicago suburbs
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Bacterial bloom.. you need to increase oxygen levels in your tank quickly! point powerheads towards the surface, crank up flow if possible, air pump if you have it, repeatedly scooping up water with a cup and pouring it back in tank will work in a pinch.
This^^^^^ many times over! Get as much oxygen in the tank as you can as fast as you can. Also change as much water as is reasonable with new ASW. Stop adding Ph up. Remove any dead and rotting animals too, check all snails, remove any dead ones.
 

Retro Reefer

Slow and steady wins the race!
View Badges
Joined
Dec 15, 2015
Messages
8,048
Reaction score
46,923
Location
Manassas Va
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
For what it’s worth.. I keep one of these in my reefing first aid kit, they will clear bacterial blooms quickl.

Green Killing Machine.. I have the small one, paid around $40 for it, have cleared several tanks up to about a 50 gallon system so I know they work.

805DC25A-A9FB-4661-86AE-F3C3072D31AB.png
 

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Plus1 on green killing machine works awesome on cloudy water blooms. I have one handy as well to switch between my many tanks. Fresh water and saltwater. Just added to a QT tank and cleared cloudy water in 30 hours. Crystal clear. I love this thing
 
OP
OP
mr_noodles

mr_noodles

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 21, 2019
Messages
76
Reaction score
82
Location
King George
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Update:

-Forgot to mention I removed the dead livestock once I saw them.
-Removed about 20% of water in tank in order for canister waterfall wand to create more distance from surface of water, adding more oxygen to water. Pointed powerhead upward to agitate top of water.
-Ran to pet store to grab a pump and bubble rock.
-Ran to grocery store to pick up 20 gallons of distilled water.
Got home and immediately added 5 gallons mixed with saltwater (I mix in a 5 gallon bucket).
-Fish are not breathing as heavily, all fish are now middle-bottom of tank. Clouding is slightly less.
-Putting together bubble rock now and will be adding more saltwater.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE QUICK RESPONSES! Even though I lost almost 50% of my livestock overnight, this greatly reduced further death. Definitely taking a step back and will be looking into why I lost my oxygen levels like that so quickly.
 

brandon429

why did you put a reef in that
View Badges
Joined
Dec 9, 2014
Messages
29,485
Reaction score
23,571
Location
tejas
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
In no way did your reef suffer an oxygen deficit. This wasn't o2 related at all and the bac bloom wasn't a lethal initiative it was after the fact. You had a loss of a fish most likely and or snails first, then their rot overcame, creating a loss cascade. Removal of ammonia is all that's required, the water level impacts aren't helping nor hurting.

Being ammonia burnt means gills don't function in fish, you didn't have systemic oxygen issues no reef does. That's a freshwater bog, peat, acidic condition.

Ammonia burns gills, gills are where fish excrete ammonia, they display oxygen weakness due to ammonia. Agreed subsequent bloom uses further, so removing it is ideal vs mixing it around in any way or dosing to offset. The sole saving act is any degree of water change up to 100%
 
OP
OP
mr_noodles

mr_noodles

Community Member
View Badges
Joined
Apr 21, 2019
Messages
76
Reaction score
82
Location
King George
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
In no way did your reef suffer an oxygen deficit. This wasn't o2 related at all and the bac bloom wasn't a lethal initiative it was after the fact. You had a loss of a fish most likely and or snails first, then their rot overcame, creating a loss cascade. Removal of ammonia is all that's required, the water level impacts aren't helping nor hurting.

Being ammonia burnt means gills don't function in fish, you didn't have systemic oxygen issues no reef does. That's a freshwater bog, peat, acidic condition.

Ammonia burns gills, gills are where fish excrete ammonia, they display oxygen weakness due to ammonia. Agreed subsequent bloom uses further, so removing it is ideal vs mixing it around in any way or dosing to offset. The sole saving act is any degree of water change up to 100%

can rot occur so quickly? all livestock was well prior to the end of the night.
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

  • Ball valves.

    Votes: 38 47.5%
  • Gate valves.

    Votes: 42 52.5%
  • Check valves.

    Votes: 16 20.0%
  • None.

    Votes: 21 26.3%
  • Other.

    Votes: 8 10.0%
Back
Top