Fish DEAD...Coral OK........PLEASE HELP !

weatherman

weatherman

Member
I bought a fish tank from a guy 40 miles away on Saturday and had a 'Professional' Fish Company move it to my house. A 155 gallon reef tank (beautiful) with a HUGE Blue Tang, a HUGE Yellow Tang, and a HUGE Naso Tang...plus 1 pretty big Tomato Clown.
Anyway, when these guys got to my house (4 of them) they set up the tank and 'dumped' the fish in. I live in Dallas, Texas, and the outside temp. was cold. They came from an established tank in which the temp. was 77 degrees...when these 'guys' put the fish in at MY place, the water was around 64 degrees. The Blue Tang was stunned for around 30 mintutes and the other ones were NOT happy either. ALL looked good about 6 hours later even though they were hiding.
The next day the ALL THE FISH WERE DEAD! I never saw them eat and before they died they were at the top of the tank....as if gasping for air. There is PLENTY of air circulation going on in this beautiful coral tank. I did put live sand in, but in the world I can't figure out why these fish died on Christmas Eve. The gentleman I bought the fish from had them happy and doing well for over 2 years.
Shouldn't this company be responsible for the loss of my fish? It cost me $500 for this move! Why would these beautiful fish die? I warmed up the water when I saw how cold it was. Could the shock have caused their death in 24 hours?
Coral appears to be fine and starting to open back up.
Man....I had tears in my eyes seeing these huge fish die. All the large fish were between 6-8"...what a shame.

I still feel the company should be responsible. By the way, they shipped the water over in large 5 gallon containers (about 20-25 of them) and the fish were in huge 'garbage can' size containers in an open pickup truck....on a chilly Dallas, Texas, afternoon.
A sad day to say the least....ANY suggestions would be gratifying... :notsure:
weatherman
Dallas, TEXAS
 
S

surfinusa

Guest
sorry for your loss, i would call the guy back and see what he could do
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
Thanks for the comment. I was planning to use THIS company to 'service' my tank, but now I don't know. But you're right, I WILL call him first thing tomorrow.
I both pissed and very disappointed at the same time..
 
chipmaker

chipmaker

Active Member
First off they should have known better to just dump the fish in that tank, and if yu new it was wrong and new what the temps were you shoul dhave stopped them......You say you added sand. Was it live sand or what?DId it initiate a cycle which offset what was actually good parameters, and it was this that killed the fish or????
I guess anyone with a van or pickup can be called professional fish movers huh? I sewen professional house movers destroy furniture and the house they were moving stuff out of and into so I see no reason that a fish moving company could not be capable of kiloing fish or busting tanks etc either. I seriously doubt yur gonna be able to do anythng about at this stage of the game especially if you signed for them doing the work and it was competed even if it was wrong. I would not be afraid to bet there is a rider in their contract somewhere that they assume no responsibility for animals health when moved or relocated......but best of luck with trying.
 
old_salt

old_salt

Member
Originally Posted by weatherman
Shouldn't this company be responsible for the loss of my fish? It cost me $500 for this move! Why would these beautiful fish die? I warmed up the water when I saw how cold it was. Could the shock have caused their death in 24 hours?
weatherman
Dallas, TEXAS
I would say "yes", this company should reimburse you for the loss of these fish. More than likely they died from the shock of being dumped into the colder water. I had one of these cheaper (non-submergible) heaters die one night and the temperature dropped down to 65 degrees from 78 degrees in less than 24 hours in a 48 gallon tank. Next day, all but 2 fish in this tank were dead. They may have been able to handle the colder water if it hadn't happened so fast. It took about 24 hours for them to start dying after this happened. They had been doing just fine for a couple of months before this happened so I do believe it was the shock of the sudden temperature drop that caused their deaths. I now have a better heater and have shut A/C vents in this room.
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
Thanks for the information. This sounds like EXACTLY what happened to me! Except all of this happened within 24-36 hours! I see 1 Damsel that survived....THAT IS IT!
Even though the weather was cold, I ASSUMED, being a professional company, that the water would have been taken care of......like already being warmed. I did not see their trucks and was NOT aware that the water was simply in containers exposed to the elements. I had NO idea of the water temperature UNTIL I saw 'stunned' fish at the top and checked it and then asked them about it...
I got live sand in the tank.
 
puffer32

puffer32

Active Member
Yep its been cold these last few days, and they should have put heaters in the water to get up higher.
That was cruel, I would have their jobs
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
NOT sure what the parameters were. I JUST GOT THE TANK and it was running fine for several years BEFORE it was taken down and driven to me 40 miles away. Never had any time to check 'the parameters' and PLUS I believe the guy before me had a professional company maintain the tank for him.
Parameters should NOT have been a factor unless something changed dramatically in less than 2 hours during the transfer...
 
pat713

pat713

Member
Something from the elements could have contaminated the water if it was just left open. That company should be held responsible since they are "professionals." Everything was sound to have been fine until they screwed it all up.
Also, if they refuse to pay you back, I would take them to a small claims court and force them to pay.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Did you sign any sort of contract or document? I bet if you did, they have something saying they are not responsible.
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
Yea. Hard to believe but all the tangs got along great...from what I have been told from the guy I bought it from. As I said before..they were absolutely beautiful fish.
I did NOT sign a contract or document for them to do the work. PLUS, if they don't want to pay back the damages, I guess I could always put a 'stop payment' on Saturdays check I wrote. I will definately talk to the owner tomorrow morning.
Here were the sizes of the fish (which I now have in a freezer for proof):
Foxface Rabbitfish ..............6 1/2"
Yellow Tang ......................4 1/4"
Blue Hippo Tang .................6 3/4"
Naso Tang ........................6 1/2"
I still find myself (as well as my fiance) walking around the house with tears in our eyes just thinking about this tragidy.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
I suspect, if the owner does not come through, that the only claim you will have is to take them to court. They were DEFINITELY not professionals, from the way you describe their procedure.
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
Anyone have a guess on what the value of these 4 fish would be approximately? Just curious....
I wonder what HIS price would be (wholesale) compared to ME buying them somewhere at retail...
I'm not even sure who carries these fish AT THIS SIZE? Any suggestions would help. But, hell, I'm going to let him worry about it anyway.....
 
d0 thy d3w

d0 thy d3w

Member
im not all that experienced compared to most of the guys here..but when they poured the water in..and added the sand..within a few hours of total time being at your house..wouldnt the sand be extremely stirred, leaving cloudy water and all sorts of bad stuff released from the layers of sand?? and maybe this is what caused the sudden death?? (other than the huge shock from cold water and no acclimation whatsoever)
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
Yea. They set the tank up on the stand first. Next, they put the live rock in and put the live sand in next. From the bag, they poured it in. NExt, the water was added. It was definately cloudy as hell when next they started adding the live coral. With the pumps and filters going, the water did start to clear........but it took quite a while. It was very cloudy when the fish were 'poured' in the tank.
You could see the fish since a couple were stunned and kind of laying sideways on top of the water. What a site. Even the guy that put them in said he did not know "if the blue tang was going to make it or not."
Are you kidding me? Why would you make this statement if you know what your doing?
I'm still pissed and very upset about these gorgeous fish going to waste....
 
birdmom

birdmom

Member
WOW!
:mad: This is Horrible!
1: Do you have a signed contract?
2: Did you take any pictures or video during the set up?
If you have a contract could you post it?
Make sure to test your water & take pics or video of the process to document if needed at a later date..
I have experience dealing with contracts & companies so let me know If you would like any assistance.
Take Care! Birdmom
 
weatherman

weatherman

Member
There was NO contract involved. The gentleman (real nice guy) that I bought the tank, coral, and fish from talked to an aquarium supplier (Aquatic Design, Plano, Texas) and told me THEY would do it for $500. Apparently, these guys do it for a living and had to tear down the tank at his place, travel 40 miles to mine, and then set it up.
Weather was cold. They had 3 pickup trucks carring the tank, coral, rock, water, and fish. Obviously, the fish, coral, and water HAD to get cold....I would think anyway....
I took NO pictures because I 'assumed' everything would be alright. When I saw the Blue Tang laying sideways on top of the water stunned for around 30 minutes...around 62-65 degrees, is when I should have taken pictures...BUT THESE GUYS WERE PROFESSIONALS, RIGHT?
Thanks for you sympathy....I'm still bummed out about it and have been all Christmas Day...
 
birdmom

birdmom

Member
Whoops! was a little late posting my reply & now see that you posted that you did NOT have a contract...
Stop payment on check if possible...
More details are needed about this transaction..
Email me.. I have some friends in your state. (legal profession with emphasis in the Business & contract area)
Good Luck! Birdmom
babybirds@gondtc.com
((Email me))
 
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