Help!!! Less than 12 hours and my fish keep dying!!!

[Bluefish9]

So far so good!! Clowns are doing great. Swimming, eating and playing in the flow. Now just need my tank to mature I bit and throw in a bubble tip for them. And pray I can keep that thing alive lol.

Today actually I just got a cleaner shrimp and a small Zoa frag.

Been having nutrient issues recently. Parameters have bottomed out so I just took out my Chemipure because I think that was just too much chemical filtration for the little bioload I have. Gonna see if my nutrients start to raise after removing that and go from there. Only filtration I have right now are the sand, rocks and filter floss.

 

[Bluefish9]

Having the exact same issue and stumped. Did you ever figure out what happened? Did you acclimate the surviving pair differently?

 

[Schlagerdogin]

Having the exact same issue and stumped. Did you ever figure out what happened? Did you acclimate the surviving pair differently?

Nope, didn’t acclimate any differently. Floated them, dripped them and added them in. I’m fairly confident I electrocuted the heck out of the previous fish because of my 15ish year old heater that was DEFINITELY leaking current into the whole tank lol.

 

[Bluefish9]

Nope, didn’t acclimate any differently. Floated them, dripped them and added them in. I’m fairly confident I electrocuted the heck out of the previous fish because of my 15ish year old heater that was DEFINITELY leaking current into the whole tank lol.

I just figured out my problem… a bad batch of refractometer calibration solution… had me at 1.034 !! I just spent the day doing damage control. Meanwhile you try to do the right thing instead of just using RODI to calibrate the thing - and using RODI would have prevented this. At least I figured it out.

 

[winxp_man]

I just figured out my problem… a bad batch of refractometer calibration solution… had me at 1.034 !! I just spent the day doing damage control. Meanwhile you try to do the right thing instead of just using RODI to calibrate the thing - and using RODI would have prevented this. At least I figured it out.

Get a tropic Marin hydrometer. You will thank me later. I check my Hanna Salinity checker and the refractometer with the TM hydrometer every few days. Lost one flame angel to SG miss read. Never again! Couldn’t care less about the time it takes. At least I’m not killing fish.

 

[mcarroll]

I just figured out my problem… a bad batch of refractometer calibration solution… had me at 1.034 !! I just spent the day doing damage control. Meanwhile you try to do the right thing instead of just using RODI to calibrate the thing - and using RODI would have prevented this. At least I figured it out.

I think the trend of constantly recalibrating the tool "just in case" (because we read it online) only invites more possibility for error like this.

My refrac. has never (for almost 20 years) needed recalibration unless the set screw was messed with by someone who didn't know any better....and that has happened exactly one time.

I agree that a simpler calibration (ie RODI) is better for most cases even though it may not be technically as accurate. Even tap water can give you a decent number.

"Calibration fluid" seems like a better idea than it really is IMO. DIY calibration fluid is probably a better option than bottled products that might have been sitting for a long time. But I don't see how either one is really better than making an accurately measured batch of saltwater to check the tool.

A half-cup per gallon is a simple formula...gets you about 1.023 s.g. Get a more precise recipe for your target s.g. here: https://www.hamzasreef.com/Contents/Calculators/DirectSaltCalculator.php

It's great to have more good options to get it done than fewer options tho...that way you pick what works best in your situation. On that note, an old-school swing arm hydrometer should be very reliable....they are calibration-free.

Maybe keep one of these around for sanity checks? Sometimes I use mine by preference just because it's really simple.

Last, I think there's only one reason to have a super-accurate salinity test anyway....literally only one....and that's if you're doing hyposalinity to treat sick fish.

If you aren't doing that, why not just use a basic hygrometer that we all used through the 80's and 90's and beyond? More than that is actually overkill. If a refractometer hadn't proved to be so reliable (and so fast) for so many years I'd still be using the swing-arm full time.

Not a pic of my actual unit, but this is the one I keep around for backup purposes. It's OLD....I've had it since the early 90's and it was well-used when I got it as part of a used aquarium setup I bought for freshwater.