Snails and crabs just can't keep them

[Bob Escher]

Hi all:
I have a ten gallon tank that has been working now for 5 months I made my mistakes and it wasn't completely cycled and I lost some snail and crabs. Well that one has live rock, live sand, a HOB filter and a aquatic life skimmer. ( going to make it my QT tank. Well I have two clowns in it. But haven't been able to keep anything else. Well that's out
But now I have a JBJ 45 gallon that has been cycling a month and a half and it has 60 lbs of Fiji Pink in it, along with about 40 LBs of live rock ( 10Lbs of bought live and the rest was cycled for a month and a half in buckets using Dr tims stuff) in one bucket and part of the live rock with the dry in another. I been using Red Sea Reef Mature Pro kit. Instruction which I have tried hard to follow 100% ( conversion to amount I needed to inject have been a little more than I should have I believe)
On day 5 it says that I should have gotten algae ( I didn't and never did with the QT either) but I continued on day 21 it says I should get a CUC crew. Well I only bought 3 snails.
They have died just as the one did in the QT
I am using a 4 stage RO/DI unit that I bought from reverse Osmosis Revolution. I have a
BRS 6 STAGE UNIVERSAL WATER SAVER PLUS RO/DI SYSTEM but my water pressure is too low for now ( why too much waste water)

So I'm trying to figure out way I'm losing inverts. I don't believe I have copper.
But here are today's parameters taken just after I discovered the last dead snail

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 2
Alkalinity: 14
Salinity: 1.025
Temp: 77.7
PH: 7.91
Magnesium: 1800
Calcium: 400

Thanks

 

[wowkingjames]

Snails and crabs need algae to survive make sure they have some.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Sorry man. What a weird problem. Flowing along.
the first suggestion ,yea of course, is buy some rodi.(Yea Pain i know) but I had a similar thing and it led to much heartbreak.
And add an airstone. life needs oxygen. plus some poss chemical breakdown help.
Ghost feed the the tank a bit too.

 

[Bob Escher]

Well I think that my output is close to the surface and I have to Vortech MP10,s I hope there's enough oxygen. The fish seem to be fine I don't think I have any algae but I do have clown fish food sone Mysis and some Nori and the skimmer is skimming away.
So in three days the snails died because of no food? Sorry I forgot to mention to mention the three that died I bought on Sat which is three days ago

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

no not starvation I think.
My concern is bleach or another similar compound. Oxygen/nitrogen(air esp O2)will help dissipate it.
Its what the last stage on the di is really for.

 

[twilliard]

Sounds like chemical poisoning

 

[Bob Escher]

Hmm bleach or chlorine? How would that get into a RODi unit? So I should add some prime and see what happens

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Sounds like chemical poisoning

Hmm bleach or chlorine? How would that get into a RODi unit? So I should add some prime and see what happens

its in the tap water. Kills the algae and bad bacteria, keeps the pipes clean.
Sort of messed up its ok for us to drink it... Right?

Hmmmm the canaries in the mine keep dying. It must be ok.:eek:
I had bad rodi from a "TRUSTED" source. Led to a LOT of heartbreak. stunted cycle, dead snails, scallops. Prob what killed the tank I was transferring from. 35 to 55. shoulda been easy.:( wasnt. bad water.:(

and yea prime or dr t's. canned bacteria.

 

[Bob Escher]

Nuts added some prime ill go tommorow and buy a couple more and see

 

[Sabellafella]

Nuts added some prime ill go tommorow and buy a couple more and see

Dont add any supplements. Check the saltwater in the bag the inverts come in. Make sure u float while dripping them. They react poorly to acclimation. Along with heavy metals, high high nitrates, and fluctuations in sg + temp. So if its not one of those its either somthings eating them or chemicals.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Dont add any supplements. Check the saltwater in the bag the inverts come in. Make sure u float while dripping them. They react poorly to acclimation. Along with heavy metals, high high nitrates, and fluctuations in sg + temp. So if its not one of those its either somthings eating them or chemicals.

Im usually ok with prime. Pretty weak stuff. Yes double check the acclimation though.

Hes got some serious strange going on in there. Any thoughts? Mine was water suspicion.

 

[Bob Escher]

I always acclimate everything I get so am doing so now as I speak. Nitrates, temp and salinity have not changed I keep my eye on those things almost to the point of being OCD
Thank

 

[Sabellafella]

I always acclimate everything I get so am doing so now as I speak. Nitrates, temp and salinity have not changed I keep my eye on those things almost to the point of being OCD
Thank

How long have you had them in both tanks before they died?

 

[Bob Escher]

The last three, three days. The ones that were in the QT tank the snails died right away the crabs about a week most two weeks

 

[Sabellafella]

The last three, three days. The ones that were in the QT tank the snails died right away the crabs about a week most two weeks

Is there diatoms or any algae growing? Sorry if i past it but 3 days is short enuff to rule out starvation. Im sure your sg and temp arent fluctuating much. Have you checked the sg of the water they came from? Maybe try acclimating them for a long time maybe 2-3 hours and see where it gets you. Also are they active up untill they die? Or do they stay put kinda scrunched up for a day or 2 before they pass?

 

[Bob Escher]

No diatoms or algae although there is stuff floating and moving from the cured dry rock. It's strange the only algae problem I ever really had in all my tanks was the blue green stuff you have scrap off of stuff.
In the last case two snails moved ( one about 7 inches into the Rock. ) the last one went no where. Before anyone could answer after the first remark I did add prime, two narsarrius snails, a cerwith and a chocolate star fish. The star is moving around like crazy, and two snail have buried themselves

 

[Bob Escher]

I judged looked at the tanks and see these things on the glass. I'm going to presume their diatoms

 

[shovelhead]

Nassarius snails are carnivorous. How long is the acclimation period? I try and drip acclimate mine for a couple hours.

 

[Naiad]

A full tank shot would be nice. Where did your live rock come from? I know you think it is out but do check for copper and or test the tds of the ro water being used. My Rodi unit failed once and I ended up with high lvls of copper in tank.

 

[Bob Escher]

I do a hour to 1 1/2 hours on acclimation.
I bought the live rock from three different LFS and one I wasn't impressed with what they gave me the last that gave me the most I was happy with. The other rock I acclimated with Dr tims ammonia and his bacteria for a two months in a heated bucket with a water pump. The second set of rocks was cycled two months with the live rock from the best LFS live rock as well
I'm worried about the RO/DI unit I have I'm not 100% happy with it but out water pressure is so bad ( out of a well) that the six stage BRS filter I'm worried about hooking up as it wastes a lot of water