Help. Tank is dying

[jda]

If you had to look extra hard to see if the tank was flowing, then low oxygenation can be a problem. This can especially true if the tank is new and film bacteria and algae is starting to grow.

 

[Pistondog]

I did a water change with lower salt. I noticed my saline was high, 1.028 so I reduced it to 1.026.

Reducing salinity too quickly may be the cause. How quickly did you drop from 1.028 to 1.026?
This should be done over several days.

 

[zeevelji]

Do you have an electrical meter? Check the tank for a voltage by placing the red in the water and the black inside the the ground hole of an outlet. That is the only thing that I can think of that would wipe out Inverts and fish. I've had all my fish wiped out by velvet within 24 hours and have had all my fish but one wiped out in 4 hours due to a blue hippo going nuts. In both cases, all Inverts and corals were fine.

I don't have a volt meter to check but I can run to the store and grab one when it opens tomorrow. I didn't notice anything funky on the outside of the fish.

I've attached some pictures

 

[zeevelji]

Reducing salinity too quickly may be the cause. How quickly did you drop from 1.028 to 1.026?
This should be done over several days.

I did it with a 20% water change. But the Inverts were dead before that. They died and I checked salinity and saw it was high so I reduced it.

 

[InactionJackson]

Hasnt the stray voltage thing been debunked?
The fish are not grounded.

I used to work for marine biologist (grad students) we’d section of 10’ portion of a river and electro shock that section…all the fish would come up floating….but that was a 3 second shock, I’m sure if the fish we’re getting a continuous or even multiple bits of current…they’d die.
And we did over 25 miles of river at 10’ sections…brutal

 

[zeevelji]

If you had to look extra hard to see if the tank was flowing, then low oxygenation can be a problem. This can especially true if the tank is new and film bacteria and algae is starting to grow. the flow is very clear. And there is a sump that's has fast flowing water.

 

[zeevelji]

The flow is pretty clear and the sumo has fast flowing water.

 

[JAS927]

I’d lean towards some sort of contaminant in the tank. Something as simple as glass cleaner, spray cleaners near by, spraying air fresheners….is there anyone else living with you could could have? I sprayed some insecticide on a plant in the same room inside a sealed humidity cabinet I had a neocaradina shrimp tank in…within an hour they were acting like they were having spasms and dying. It wasn’t even something I considered being a possibility because I literally sprayed and closed the cabinet up.

 

[JayM]

It sounds as if your tap water may be suspect as it is the only variable that we know nothing about. You say your city has really good tap water. And while that may be true in general, it doesn’t mean that it’s still really good by the time it gets to your faucet. Though I realize it won’t be of any immediate help, an ICP test may be the only way to rule out water quality.

 

[Magic031707]

Was anything sprayed near the tank? FWIW, I've seen lysol take out a tank. Had a coworker with some sick kids in the house and the wife got little to happy with the lysol. He woke up the next morning everything was dead. That's why I run carbon, never know. Sorry for lost.

 

[zeevelji]

I’d lean towards some sort of contaminant in the tank. Something as simple as glass cleaner, spray cleaners near by, spraying air fresheners….is there anyone else living with you could could have? I sprayed some insecticide on a plant in the same room inside a sealed humidity cabinet I had a neocaradina shrimp tank in…within an hour they were acting like they were having spasms and dying. It wasn’t even something I considered being a possibility because I literally sprayed and closed the cabinet up

 

[Pistondog]

I used to work for marine biologist (grad students) we’d section of 10’ portion of a river and electro shock that section…all the fish would come up floating….but that was a 3 second shock, I’m sure if the fish we’re getting a continuous or even multiple bits of current…they’d die.
And we did over 25 miles of river at 10’ sections…brutal

Sounds dangerous.
ELectro fishing uses an anode and cathode, utilizing pulsed dc, high voltage. Not a likely failure mode in our tanks.

 

[zeevelji]

I thought about that, we don't really use sprays in the house. Glass cleaner yes but I run carbon. Wouldn't that take out most of the toxins.

 

[zeevelji]

It sounds as if your tap water may be suspect as it is the only variable that we know nothing about. You say your city has really good tap water. And while that may be true in general, it doesn’t mean that it’s still really good by the time it gets to your faucet. Though I realize it won’t be of any immediate help, an ICP test may be the only way to rule out water quality.

Yeah that's fair, the tanks been running for months though. Filled with the same tap water and I used the water in my fresh water tank as well. If the tap water was funky do would it have taken this long for an issue? I water change 2x a week.

 

[Gregg @ ADP]

Hasnt the stray voltage thing been debunked?
The fish are not grounded.

Yeah, I remember working on a tank many years ago where I was getting a decent little jolt when my hands passed through the water miniscus.

After digging around for a little while, I found where a power head cord had become frayed and detached, so there was just a live wire hanging in the tank

Fish were fine, but the coral wasn’t thrilled. I lived.

 

[Fish Fan]

Yeah, I remember working on a tank many years ago where I was getting a decent little jolt when my hands passed through the water miniscus.

After digging around for a little while, I found where a power head cord had become frayed and detached, so there was just a live wire hanging in the tank

Fish were fine, but the coral wasn’t thrilled.

I've had a similar experience with broken heaters, especially the old glass, non-submersible ones. I could feel a jolt when I place my hands in the tank, but fish were fine.

 

[Pistondog]

I've had a similar experience with broken heaters, especially the old glass, non-submersible ones. I could feel a jolt when I place my hands in the tank, but fish were fine.

A good argument for gfci outlet or breaker.
Theres a reason they are required in wet areas.

 

[Fish Fan]

A good argument for gfci outlet or breaker.
Theres a reason they are required in wet areas.

Oh yeah, for sure! The experiences I'm describing happened to me 30 years ago. I try to be much safer now.

 

[naterealbig]

Many good points here. Would be a toxin (disinfectant, insecticide from pest control, I've heard Febreeze can wipe out a reef, adish detergent pod (i know bad example, but you get the idea)) or a catastrophic failure of an electrical/toxic metal device. I've never seen anything else weep a tank so quickly, with such broad scope of life forms as @jda mentioned.

I would start moving some rock around, pulling stuff out of the sump understanding there's a possibility that what's causing this, is still in the tank and can be removed.

Check for stray voltage (AC and DC). It's cheap and easy. I've seen this kill fish and coral in my own systems. I never felt a shock.

Do as many of the biggest water changes you can. Concurrently. Like as close to 100% as you can get.

Large amounts of carbon. Polyfilter.

Start pulling rock out and dismantle sump to look for exposed metal or items dropped or thrown into the tank.

No extreme measure you could take right now is worse than what's happening at this moment, so get to it.

If youve got a bucket, air stone, and heater, pull the fish out of the tank while you go to work.

 

[Magnapinna]

Reducing salinity too quickly may be the cause. How quickly did you drop from 1.028 to 1.026?
This should be done over several days.

Salinity drops generally aren't the problem that rapid increases are. A drop from SG 1.028 to 1.026 should make no virtually no difference. Might stress some of the more sensitive corals but fish and inverts should be unaffected. It certainly shouldn't kill anything.