Bad water?

[cfritz8770]

I need some major help....
Last week I had a major die-off in my 29gal tank. I got some great help, tested all my parameters - it has been 4 days and a major (7gal) water change later. all parameters are testing fine -
I got 2 damsels to start over and lost 1 in 3 hours!!!! the other is in major distress, laying and heavy breathing.
I still have a choc chip starfish & 1 snail that seem okay - what in the world is wrong with my water and how do I fix it?
Do I need to start all over - tear down tank totally?

 

[karajay]

Do you know what caused your major die-off? It may be something you are not testing for.

 

[nas19320]

It would also help to tell us what you tested for and what the values are. Also what salt are you using?

 

[cfritz8770]

no. I had a lot of red slime algea and had pretty much gotten rid of it using Chemclean.
I suspect that I created this problem by using a rubbermaid 10gal bucket to "age" my tap water... I think perhaps something 'leached' off the bucket into the water I used for my water changes in the beginning of October - the die off happened in a 2 week period. I'm really depressed and ready to quit!

 

[cfritz8770]

my ph is 8.3
ammonia 0
nitrites 0
nitrates 0
tank is 4 months old
I use instant ocean as the salt mix, prime and ph 8.3 to stabilize the water. I mixed all but the salt in the bucket & used that for top off then added salt to a smaller container when I did water changes.

 

[karajay]

Originally posted by cfritz8770
I got 2 damsels to start over and lost 1 in 3 hours!!!! the other is in major distress, laying and heavy breathing.

Maybe this could have been due to acclimation stress.
IMO, run some carbon and leave your tank fishless for a few weeks.
I've used a rubbermaid to mix water. Was there anything else your bucket was used for besides saltwater?

 

[cfritz8770]

no, I bought it brand new to use specifically for the tank...
(fyi - the lfs I got them from had trouble catching them - could this have stressed them out so bad that even doing a correct acclimation wouldn't destress?)

 

[karajay]

Originally posted by cfritz8770
could this have stressed them out so bad that even doing a correct acclimation wouldn't destress?
Yup! This same thing happened to two damsels I bought once. LFS chased 'em all over, knocked over rocks and decorations, hit 'em with their net trying to catch 'em. Doomed.
Sorry for your losses.

 

[cfritz8770]

well -- I've decided to try to salvage what I have -- I'm putting my starfish & snail in my qt tank & draining & starting over....
??? can the starfish survive in a 5 gal tank for 4-6 weeks???
thanks