Urgent!!! Please help, strange things happening

[DWells23]

Hey Guys,

Alright so posted a thread earlier about my tank having a horrible bloom of something, got a UV sterilizer and it cleared up over night, tank looks awesome.

When i got up this morning my clown fish was laying on the sandbed which i though was odd but was still moving, he died a few hours later quite eratically. The others seem to be breathing quite fast but swimming around happily but i couldn’t see my sleeper goby, he just came put and sat in the corner of the tank gasping for air then all of a sudden went absolutely spastic swimming around then looked like he had a stroke or something and died, so weird.

Parameters are all normal i have tested them 3 times today, i have done a 25% water change and cleaned the sandbed. Over night the skimmer pump got clogged with all the crap that died off because of the steriliser which i thought might have caused this due to low o2 but im not sure?

What could be causing this as im stressed about my purple tang :(

 

[jeffchapok]

When dinoflagellates die, they can release toxins into the water. I would perform a water change immediately.

 

[DWells23]

Another water change??

 

[DWells23]

Here are tank before and afters too

 

[High ICP]

I would let the system cycle some more before adding valued fish

Add a CUC

See if that will clean up some of that junk in the tank

 

[DWells23]

Tanks been running for about 18 months. Deffo need a bigger clean up crew though. The clear photo is after i added the uv, looks fine now. But fish are still a bit stressed

 

[lapin]

Another water change would be a good idea. Carbon would be a good thing to run or change out right now. We dont know what died and what was released into the water. You could have an ammonia spike, toxins, low oxygen levels. If I had a QT tank I would move the fish out of the DT tank until you get the issue under control.

 

[WVNed]

Do the water change. 1/2 - 3/4 would be good

 

[High ICP]

Do the water change. 1/2 - 3/4 would be good

Scrape all that stuff off first. Then siphon it out.

You are not running an ULNS just because you can test phosphate or nitrate. It’s being give off as waste, and consumed before it can hit your test bottles.

Find animals that eat what is eating the nitrate and phosphate.

Some might say that your system is cycled because it supports a few damsels. That would be the first marine cycle. Many more to come for the 18 month old little reef.

The red slime cyano cycle
………… (Briopsis cycle)
The dino cycle
……… (GHA cycle)
The diatom cycle
……… ( the aptasia cycle)
We have all had them.
…… (Asterina cycle)
When you get past those, start shopping your first starter corals. Zoas, duncans, mussas, acans, anems, fish that eat pests.…, (Red bug cycle)
……: (Zoa nudis cycle)
If you pull this cycle off, you are through with the real first reef cycle.

I would pick a small bottle if every commercially available bacteria product. And dose very soaringly of each bacteria. (You are bringing bacteria in on your animals and frags of course).

Let this very valuable commensal microscopic workforce build their langoliers, your langoliers of phosphate and nitrate death

 

[DWells23]

Mate, brilliant info, i had no idea!! Trying to keep a small reef in your home is not the easiest and all the things that can happen never ceases to amaze me. What would you animals would you suggest? And what is the asterina cycle? I have been through red slime (gross) dinos and diatoms is what i believe i am battling now from everything that i have read.

Thank you so much :)

 

[Act1n1c_L1fe]

get a carbon reactor. what are normal parameters?

 

[lapin]

And what is the asterina cycle?

An Asterina cycle is when a bunch of South American and/or Austrailian star fish come for a visit. You will know them because they will crawl on your glass.
If your visitors have only 4 or 3 arms they have decided to stay and are having a baby shower.
Like most visitors they will not cause a problem unless you over feed them.

 

[Jekyl]

Size of tank? Looks small for a tang too

 

[DarthSimon]

Some sort of bacterial bloom. Do you do any sort of carbon dosing with NoPox, Vodka????

 

[DWells23]

Nah no carbon dosing, tank is 300L

 

[Jekyl]

Tang will eventually outgrow that tank. If it's in distress might want to find a new home for it now instead of later. Purple tang should have a 125 gallon

 

[DWells23]

Its strange, the tang is the only one acting normal, well they all seem fine now. I think it was an O2 problem due to the skimmer pump being blocked. I have cleaned all filters and pumps so hopefully all will be okay. 100% will be upgrading in future but we are buying a new house soon so I am planning on having the tank plumbed into the wall :)

 

[DWells23]

Some tips on keeping the water nice a crystal clear? Currently have a filter sock and skimmer in the sump, was thinking of getting a reactor of some sort but not sure what to look for. Thanks for the help in advance everyone :) im just a noob :p

 

[Jekyl]

CuC large enough? Running any kind of macro? If not using a sump dragons breath looks nice in a DT. Also I just got done installing an in wall tank. You're going to like the way it looks.

 

[DWells23]

Im in desperate need of a more diverse cuc, only have a few hermits and a couple of nassarius snails, i lost my 2 turbos in the ‘event’ lol what would you recommend? No macro but was considering getting something going as i have a spare chamber in the sump for it. Im very excited to get it installed, will be the centrepiece.