Tank Going Toxic?

[shimps1]

I am having some real troubles with my new tank, and I am hoping for some advice.

I was big into reef tanks about 10 years ago, but haven't had one up in about 10 years. Back in December, I decided to change that.

December 9th I added Marco Rock, Live Sand, and Fritz Turbostart900 to my 12 gallon tank. The next day, I got a few pieces of live rock rubble from a local hobbyist. I was dosing ammonia chloride, and roughly 10 days later, there was no ammonia detected 24 hrs after dosing to 2ppm, and nitrates were rising. I was also dosing Hydrospace Probio and Deep Cycle. Around Christmas, I added my CUC. Apparently that's not standard anymore, but 10 years ago it was normal to add a CUC right after a cycle. I have definitely had some die off, which I do blame on adding them before algae took off.

Roughly New Years, I noticed a huge flatworm population explosion, and dosed the tank heavily with Flatworm Exit. This caused some cerith snail die off, but did seem to clear up most of the flatworms. I did 4-5 50% water changes to make sure the medication was out of the tank.

January 8th, I added a pair of clowns, a few corals (zoas, torch, monti cap), and a skunk cleaner shrimp. Parameters have been solid this whole time, but nitrates, alk, and phosphates were all low. Small ammonia spikes have been noticed when adding livestock, but nothing that lasts more than a day.

Overall, the tank had been running well, corals looking good, Fruity Pebbles monti frag even already encrusting onto the rock I mounted it on.. January 14th, I added some sexy shrimp. January 15th, a shipment from IPSF showed up. Micro starfish, Wunder Mud, Live Sand Activator, and reef amphipods. All were added to the tank.

Since roughly then, I have worked through a diatom bloom, and I am now in the early stages of the cyano bloom. Normal parts of a newer tank.

However, over the past two weeks, the tank has taken a significant turn for the worse, and I cannot figure out why. It was the zoanthids first that started to close up, but it has started to spread to my LPS corals looking "weak," if that makes sense. I originally thought it was the sexy shrimp on the zoanthids but the 10 I originally had has dropped to 2, after the clownfish realized they could eat them.

I have three suspects: Heavy metal build up, my dosing regiment I started last Tuesday, or the lack of Hydrospace ProBio and Deep Cycle, which I ran out of two weeks ago.

Parameters this morning, checked with API Ammonia test, Salifert Mag, and Hanna for the rest:
1.025 SG
78 degrees
7.8 pH
9.3 dKH (dosed to stay above 8 if needed)
448 Cal
1420 Mag
10.6 Nitrate (started dosing 1 week ago to maintain 10ish)
0.06 Phos (started dosing 1 week ago to maintain .1ish)
0 ammonia

I am at my wits end. My corals were all looking great, but as of the other day or so the montis are starting to fade, and my torch is not as extended as it used to be.

I am matching SG and temp to the tank exactly at every water change. I have tested my RO/DI water to confirm 0 TDS.

I ordered an ICP test to see if I have some heavy metals that I can't test for building up, it will be here tomorrow, results not for another week. I'm running Chemi-Pure Blue and Poly-Filter to hopefully absorb anything.

I even bought a small zoa frag from a local hobbyist yesterday to see what would happen. They were open and happy in the container on the way to my house. Once I put them in the tank, they slowly closed, and have not reopened as my lights have come on today.

Today, I noticed some micro brittle stars dead on the sandbed, which prompted this post. I am starting to wonder what is going on in there that I can't see or test for.

Does anyone have any advice?

I admit, I am a bit obsessed with this tank right now, but I just want it to be perfect. I am ok with the ugly phase, but I am not ok with losing livestock. I have been stuck doing 15% water changes every other day for the past week just for piece of mind. Leaving it alone is probably the answer, but is there anything else I am missing?

 

[Hairyteeth]

If it was a contaminant you could run some carbon and purrit resin, I always run a lil in a sock in the sump

 

[W31Olds]

Probably a long shot but you indicated you got a couple of pieces of live rock from another hobbyist. Could they be leaching copper?

 

[shimps1]

If it was a contaminant you could run some carbon and purrit resin, I always run a lil in a sock in the sump

I am running both, Chemipure Blue, and Poly-Filter.

Probably a long shot but you indicated you got a couple of pieces of live rock from another hobbyist. Could they be leaching copper?

It is possible, hoping Poly-Filter will help. Just added it yesterday.

I did also remember I added some Maxspect Nano-Tech spheres to the sump about 2 weeks ago, but I have only read good things about those, nothing about them leeching.

I am hoping everything just holds on until I can get my ICP results back in 10 days.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

if you have any sexy shrimp still in the tank then IMO they are guilty, they eat zoa's, I've seen then eat through 2 colonies of mine in the past.

 

[TheDuude]

Any changes to salt mix or other inputs to the tank recently? Your params look great to me.

 

[shimps1]

if you have any sexy shrimp still in the tank then IMO they are guilty, they eat zoa's, I've seen then eat through 2 colonies of mine in the past.

I would agree but my problems are spreading, the monti's are going downhill as well, after as recently as last week showing a great growth edge and encrusing onto the rocks. Acan colony I have is also not a puffy as it was previously.

 

[shimps1]

Any changes to salt mix or other inputs to the tank recently? Your params look great to me.

I have been using Aquaforest Reef Salt+ since the start of the tank.

The zoa problem started before any of the below changes, but the other corals downturn has been over the last 6-7 days.

Changes over the last 3 weeks:

• Stopped dosing Hydrospace Probio 10ish days ago (ran out)
• Stopped dosing Hydrospace Deep Cycle 2ish weeks ago (ran out)
• Added Maxspect Nano-Tech biospheres to sump
• Started dosing Brightwell Alkalin 8.3-P as needed to keep dKH above 8.5 last Tuesday (was previously struggling to stay over 8)
• Started dosing NeoNitro as needed to maintain 10ppm N last Tues (was previously 0 constantly)
• Started dosing NeoPhos as needed to maintain .1ppm Phos last Tues (previously 0 constantly)
• Switched from an AI Prime 16HD to a Reefi Uno 2.1 Pro light on Feb 1st. Reefi running at 29 watts peak, roughly the same as my Prime peak lighting, but 12" over the tank, instead of the 9" the Prime was.
• Sexy shrimp have been trimmed down by the clownfish.
• Most hermit crabs moved to the sump to help zoas not be bothered constantly.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

After reading through your posts again, this is my 2 cents: zoa's and torches and monti's are at the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of light and flow, IMO its difficult enough to make everything happy in a mixed reef, but even more so in a 12 gallon.

You have a lot going on in a small tank, high bioload, water changes every 2 days, and I get the impression you are very hands on with your tank, so many minor tweeks and changes. The system is only 2 months old, its still going through changes as it matures. If you read through posts on this forum you'll see many suggestions to add corals only after 6 months or a year.

I don't think its any one thing bothering the corals I think the corals might just be having a hard time to acclimate to your tank because of all the changes. Again its just my 2 cents, good luck

 

[dedragon]

if you have any sexy shrimp still in the tank then IMO they are guilty, they eat zoa's, I've seen then eat through 2 colonies of mine in the past.

wow did not know that! i guess it was a good thing my clownfish decided they were food before they went for my gmks or exospheres (nano tank so limiting the amount of zoa types in it)

 

[shimps1]

After reading through your posts again, this is my 2 cents: zoa's and torches and monti's are at the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of light and flow, IMO its difficult enough to make everything happy in a mixed reef, but even more so in a 12 gallon.

You have a lot going on in a small tank, high bioload, water changes every 2 days, and I get the impression you are very hands on with your tank, so many minor tweeks and changes. The system is only 2 months old, its still going through changes as it matures. If you read through posts on this forum you'll see many suggestions to add corals only after 6 months or a year.

I don't think its any one thing bothering the corals I think the corals might just be having a hard time to acclimate to your tank because of all the changes. Again its just my 2 cents, good luck

You're right about messing around in the tank too much, that's for sure. My plan is to leave it alone besides feeding, dosing, and weekly 15% water changes now, but I'm also trying to not lose any livestock, which is causing me to mess with stuff to try to improve what's going on.

 

[shimps1]

Updated parameters today:
1.025
78
9 dKH per salifert, 9.6 per Hanna
10 Nitrate
0.03 phosphate
0 ammonia

Nothing showing any signs of improvement. Holding off dosing phosphate just to eliminate a variable, but still same issues.

 

[drblank1]

I agree with Mojo. Your tank is too young and too small for corals and that many fish at this time.

 

[Damage12]

Any new tank is going fluctuate wildly in the first few months, and a 12 gallon tank even more so IMO.

You are doing too much too fast. Just do your 10-15% water changes weekly and give it 6 more months.

You are going to lose more livestock. Best way to not lose livestock is to not put them in too soon before your tank is mature to handle it.

Take it slow and just enjoy the process.

 

[exnisstech]

I've never even heard of most of the stuff your adding. I've never added anything but Fritz turbo 900 one time when starting a tank and a few doses if MB7 but can't really say if the MB7 did anything good or bad. I'll dose ammonium bicarb to raise nitrate when needed and I'll dose phosphate when it tests at or near 0. Other than that it's ESV 2 part on one tank and AFR on the others to maintain alk and calcium then step back and let the tank do it's thing. I don't even own and ammonia or nitrite test kit. I think your trying to control too much and run the tank on bottles of juice vs letting it mature as intended by good ol mother nature JMO

Examples of a few hands off tanks with no bottled miracles ever added.

 

[shimps1]

Well, no idea what was causing it (I changed too many things over the past few days to pin down what was helping), but everything is looking a lot better now. I did a 40% water change Friday, and another one last night, and the improvement over the weekend as well as this morning has been significant.

I lowered the light intensity, stopped dosing, removed a goniopora, and ran a lot of Chemi-Pure Blue and Poly-Filter. The real shift was after the large water change Friday. I did send an ICP test out last Wednesday, results probably this week, so maybe we'll see what was happening in that test.

Again, not sure what caused it, but I will be slowly ramping the light back up over the next month, and holding off on dosing. My suspicion is some sort of chemical/heavy metal was in the tank somehow, and those large water changes removed it.

Switching to weekly water changes moving forward.

Last Saturday:

Today: