fishes dying one by one over 1-2wk

[maiv_2000]

Hello,

15gal AIO tank, 4 months new, with 8 fish now one one left (firefish)

royal gramma
2 clowns
firefish
2 blue chromis
yellow blenny
seven line wrasse

all have been in tank for a few months and healthy. one chromis disappeared several weeks ago.

yellow blenny and seven line wrasse was added exactly 2wks ago. yellow blenny died in 1wk. seven line wrasse 1-2 days later. royal gramma and 7 line wrasse a day or so later. never found the royal gramma but the wrasse looked perfect--i couldn't tell that he was dead just looking at him.

the 2 clowns acted strangely for a few days last week--they huddled on the bottom corner of tank next to the water outlet. i did notice on of the them scraped himself against the sand a few times. both were spotless and still eating the evening before they died. i did a 25% water change the night before they died. i did another 25% water change the morning i found the 2 clowns dead.

since this weekend, only 1 chromis and firefish were left. today, the chromis acted the same way the clowns did and died today.

firefish looks good and is spotless.
still have some snails and one shrimp crawling around

water parameters are normal on my home test and when i took a water sample to the LFS. pH around 7.8. temp 76-77.

corals are doing well. i have zoanthids but undisturbed since i glued them down months ago. i have a small bag of activated charcoal in the filter.

parasites? the sand scraping suggests that but every fish was spotless before and after. eyes where clear. no mucous coat.

there is algae but water is clear

voltage leak?

i have a small skimmer which should increase O2.

anyone with any thoughts?
thanks

 

[ISpeakForTheSeas]

I'd suggest reading through the link below (particularly the "Aquarium Parameters," "Water quality," and "In-depth Information" sections) to figure out what info you can share here with the #fishmedic to get the best diagnosis and treatment advice possible:

Some Helpful Hints When Posting or Responding to Threads in the Fish Disease Treatment and Diagnosis Section

Aquarium Fish Disease Problem Solving Determining the best course of action for a problem with your aquarium can be a difficult task. Even advanced aquarists will often need to seek the help of others for complicated or unique issues. Our intent here on Reef 2 Reef is to offer expert advice...

www.reef2reef.com

Also, for future reference with these sorts of issues, posting in the forum linked below can get you help faster:

Fish Disease Treatment and Diagnosis

A forum for discussing treatment and diagnosing saltwater reef fish.

www.reef2reef.com

 

[gbroadbridge]

Hello,

15gal AIO tank, 4 months new, with 8 fish now one one left (firefish)

royal gramma
2 clowns
firefish
2 blue chromis
yellow blenny
seven line wrasse

all have been in tank for a few months and healthy. one chromis disappeared several weeks ago.

yellow blenny and seven line wrasse was added exactly 2wks ago. yellow blenny died in 1wk. seven line wrasse 1-2 days later. royal gramma and 7 line wrasse a day or so later. never found the royal gramma but the wrasse looked perfect--i couldn't tell that he was dead just looking at him.

the 2 clowns acted strangely for a few days last week--they huddled on the bottom corner of tank next to the water outlet. i did notice on of the them scraped himself against the sand a few times. both were spotless and still eating the evening before they died. i did a 25% water change the night before they died. i did another 25% water change the morning i found the 2 clowns dead.

since this weekend, only 1 chromis and firefish were left. today, the chromis acted the same way the clowns did and died today.

firefish looks good and is spotless.
still have some snails and one shrimp crawling around

water parameters are normal on my home test and when i took a water sample to the LFS. pH around 7.8. temp 76-77.

corals are doing well. i have zoanthids but undisturbed since i glued them down months ago. i have a small bag of activated charcoal in the filter.

parasites? the sand scraping suggests that but every fish was spotless before and after. eyes where clear. no mucous coat.

there is algae but water is clear

voltage leak?

i have a small skimmer which should increase O2.

anyone with any thoughts?
thanks

Too many fish for that size tank is my guess.

I'd only have two fish in a 15 gal.

These fish are used to living in an ocean.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

The tank was very overstocked and with some aggressive and territorial fish. It was bound for a sad ending unfortunately.

It’s really important to research fish compatibility and appropriate tank size for each fish. Stress, aggression, and possibly disease wiped out the fish. Only 3 fish should be in that size tank.

 

[Lavey29]

Too many fish for that size tank is my guess.

I'd only have two fish in a 15 gal.

These fish are used to living in an ocean.

Exactly, that tank will hold 2 small fish not 8.

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Hello,

15gal AIO tank, 4 months new, with 8 fish now one one left (firefish)

royal gramma
2 clowns
firefish
2 blue chromis
yellow blenny
seven line wrasse

all have been in tank for a few months and healthy. one chromis disappeared several weeks ago.

yellow blenny and seven line wrasse was added exactly 2wks ago. yellow blenny died in 1wk. seven line wrasse 1-2 days later. royal gramma and 7 line wrasse a day or so later. never found the royal gramma but the wrasse looked perfect--i couldn't tell that he was dead just looking at him.

the 2 clowns acted strangely for a few days last week--they huddled on the bottom corner of tank next to the water outlet. i did notice on of the them scraped himself against the sand a few times. both were spotless and still eating the evening before they died. i did a 25% water change the night before they died. i did another 25% water change the morning i found the 2 clowns dead.

since this weekend, only 1 chromis and firefish were left. today, the chromis acted the same way the clowns did and died today.

firefish looks good and is spotless.
still have some snails and one shrimp crawling around

water parameters are normal on my home test and when i took a water sample to the LFS. pH around 7.8. temp 76-77.

corals are doing well. i have zoanthids but undisturbed since i glued them down months ago. i have a small bag of activated charcoal in the filter.

parasites? the sand scraping suggests that but every fish was spotless before and after. eyes where clear. no mucous coat.

there is algae but water is clear

voltage leak?

i have a small skimmer which should increase O2.

anyone with any thoughts?
thanks

Not a “voltage leak”.
Unlikely to be low oxygen since some fish are still alive.

This sounds like flukes to me. The scratching, slow mortality and some species not being affected all point to that.

You can treat with Prazipro for flukes.

I should add that the others are right, that was too many fish for that sized tank - even if the water quality is managed, diseases like flukes spread fish to fish….and that gets worse in cases where fish are close together.

 

[RockBox13]

Did that LFS sell you the tank and those fish? Why would they only check your pH and the water temp of a sample? Did they know the size of your tank? It’s just not sustainable or ethical to me to have that many fish in a tank that size. It’s worth it to move your live rock around to find a dead fish. I understand your confusion and I’m sorry about your fish. You did large water changes and tried, but everyone needs the right guidance at first. I feel like a LFS really should have helped you more regardless of where you bought anything. A pH test alone isn’t going to tell you much. It’s a bizarre situation when the people who are profiting the most off of this hobby are the least helpful. You really need to have test kits though. They’re really not that difficult and I will walk you through it. Some Reefers are color blind and can’t use tests based on color charts and I can help with that over the phone until digital checkers can be used too.