My first fish death! What happened

skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
Our tak is in our living room and i saw all three clown this moreing when i came home from class about 30mins ago my mom said that one of the clown fish had died and the hermit crab was eating it so she took it out. I looked at and couldnt find anything wrong with it except where the hermit was munching. Anyway could it have been becuase i had 3 clowns? They had been in there for probley about 2months now i got them all together. I am going up to the LFS tonight to trade in my 2 blue finned damsels. I preobley going to take a water sample for them to test and see what they say. Anyways anyone know? I tested my water about 2 days ago and it was fine this is the first death ive had at all and its kinda bummed me out i dunno if i did anything wrong or not. Thanx:confused:
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
If you've only had them a couple months it could be that it just died from delayed shipping/acclimating stresses that finally got the better of it.
 
skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
I guess they always avted fin they werent shipped i bought them from a LFS and let them acclimate fore about 3hrs.
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
Unless your LFS breeds them they were shipped at SOME point. Sometimes fishes just up and die.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
Its been quite awhile though. The major mortality from shipping to an LFS occurs within 48-72 hours at the store (which is why I do not recommend buying a new arrival). The same would be true, IMO, in adding to a tank...most acclimation issues would turn up relatively quickly.
It will help to know the water specs...write them down.
Any signs of aggression prior to this? Where all the clowns together or were two together and the third kind of alone.
 
O

ocikitty

Guest
With clown fish they can change sexes. One will become male and one will become female and one is left out. My guess is that it was killed because it did not fit--they don't like threesomes.
 
skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
Thanx everyone well i went to the LSf and turned in my damsels:cheer: Anyway i had them test my water for me and everything was good except my ph! i changed from cc to sand i used live sand the Agra-live kind it is supposed to be buffered so i dunno whats going one anyway. It was at about 7.4!!! I came straight home and took about 5 gallons out and put about 3 gallons in ( my Distilled water was outside so have to wait for it to warm up) if i would have though about it i would have bought some water at the LFS but my dumbdumb self didn't think of that till i got home. Anyways any other suggestions on how to bring the ph up fast and y it would drop in the first place?I know i really didn;t want 3 but my mom purchased them and the LFS guy didn't tell her it was bad so she wont listemn to me.
 
O

ocikitty

Guest
Get some Marine Buffer. It raises and maintains ph at 8.3. You add it to a cup or two of tank water and slowly add it to your tank. It will bring it up and help keep it there.
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
I disagree.
Do not just add buffer. Buffer does not raise pH it raises alkalinity, which is an important measurement to have. Without following at least alkalinity and pH, you may be off base. Get an alkalinity reading ASAP. If your alkalinity is low, this might explain a low pH reading (or a variable one).
Also take a bucket of tank water and aerate it for awhile, then take a pH reading....you may not have enough circulation in the tank, and this may be causing CO2 buildup...which would not be a buffer situation at all.
 
skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
Would i check for calcium though i only have a FOWLR tank? well im have to go to work im going to test my water there and i may get a buffer just to bring up the ph fast before the rest of the fish die. I put a small air wall in the tank the fish seem more active now. I'm going to try to do another small water change tonight i guess and will test my water before i do that when i get home. I'm jusy afraid im going to loose all of them!:nervous: So does anybody know why i would have dropped so fast, was i becuase i changed from cc to sand?
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
If you haven't already, invest at least in a pH kit to test at home.
I would not recommend rapidly buffering the water up! Without knowing alkalinity (at least) you may be doing the wrong thing. There are a couple of things that can cause low pH, and quickly trying to correct it may cause more trouble than you expect. There is a complex relationship between alkalinity, pH and calcium. To truly know where you are, you need to know all three....but at least a rough estimate will be alkalinity and pH, IMO.
It is possible, for example, that you have an accumulation of CO2 in the tank. I recommend aerating the sample as mentioned and seeing if the pH goes up...in which case you have a CO2 buildup problem.
What circulation do you have on the tank?
 
skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
Its just a 30 hexagon with a flugal 204 on it thats it i been looking for a skimmer but didn't think it was that be of a hurry i guess i will try to get one
 
meadbhb

meadbhb

Member
Hiya,
As Ophiura stated, PH, ALK and Calcium are all interrelated. So, you do need to test for it.
Meadbhb
 
skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
Ok i tested my water while at wotk and this is what i have
as of about 3:00
ph 7.8
Ammonia 0
Nirate about 10<
Nirite 0
Alkalinity 300 so im guessing its just my ph and it did improve since my water change last night so im going to do another of about the same in a few mintues
 
ophiura

ophiura

Active Member
I would try the bucket of water/aeration thing. IMO, you have very little circulation on that tank, which is a common problem with hex tanks.
 
skrimpz

skrimpz

Member
Well i have a small bubble wand to help airate and rais the ph in there right now. What would be the best thing for my to get just a powerhead? I know a skimmer would be better but do you think my tank would be sufficent with the fluval and then a powerhead?
 
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