New, sick lion fish!!!! Please help ASAP!!!

[dreamreefer87]

Hey everyone. I'm so worried. Okay here is the deal, we have a 60 gallon reef tank. We had a clown but he died a few weeks ago, water levels are perfect except our nitrates are about 40-80 our LFS told us to do a 30 percent water change. And we did. Then my hubby and I went to Cali for a week and decided to get a Lion Fish there. We got it this morning around 12 and drove immediately home to AZ . Max of. 6 hrs in the car. Lots of water, kept the car very cool and in a styrofoam box. We started acclimating as soon as we got home. About a hour and a half. We put him in, and now he's just at the bottom corner upside, still moving his mouth a very little bit but I'm worried he is going to die we retested the water, everything is still perfect except our nitrates again .. Idk why they are high? Especially since everything else is excellent. What could be going on with our new fishie? Would the nitrates do this? What do we do before he gives up on us??? Help! Thanks.
Angie. :sad:

 

[rickross23]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dreamreefer87 http:///t/391936/new-sick-lion-fish-please-help-asap#post_3478146
Hey everyone. I'm so worried. Okay here is the deal, we have a 60 gallon reef tank. We had a clown but he died a few weeks ago, water levels are perfect except our nitrates are about 40-80 our LFS told us to do a 30 percent water change. And we did. Then my hubby and I went to Cali for a week and decided to get a Lion Fish there. We got it this morning around 12 and drove immediately home to AZ . Max of. 6 hrs in the car. Lots of water, kept the car very cool and in a styrofoam box. We started acclimating as soon as we got home. About a hour and a half. We put him in, and now he's just at the bottom corner upside, still moving his mouth a very little bit but I'm worried he is going to die we retested the water, everything is still perfect except our nitrates again .. Idk why they are high? Especially since everything else is excellent. What could be going on with our new fishie? Would the nitrates do this? What do we do before he gives up on us??? Help! Thanks.
Angie.

what to do? get rid of him. if a CLOWNFISH dies, your water is NOT PERFECT.

 

[meowzer]

First of all.....welcome to SWF
2nd...can you please tell us EVERYTHING about your tank.....age....size...equipment....EXACT water parameters.....stocklist...etc....etc...
RICK.....Sometimes fish just die

 

[rickross23]

Quote:
Originally Posted by meowzer http:///t/391936/new-sick-lion-fish-please-help-asap#post_3478169
First of all.....welcome to SWF
2nd...can you please tell us EVERYTHING about your tank.....age....size...equipment....EXACT water parameters.....stocklist...etc....etc...
RICK.....Sometimes fish just die
yeah SOMETIMES fish do dies. but MOST of the time there is a reason.

 

[rickross23]

i took a shortcut before. here they are.

 

[meowzer]

Quote:
Originally Posted by rickross23 http:///t/391936/new-sick-lion-fish-please-help-asap#post_3478171
yeah SOMETIMES fish do dies. but MOST of the time there is a reason.
WELL...You can not just assume that there is something wrong with a tank just because a fish dies.....
SO...before you jump to conclusions.......I am asking that you ask about the tank itself.....THEN...we can correctly help the poster.
thanks

 

[maxxnme]

Somehow, I can not imagine that 'styrofoam' with all of the chemicals that make comprise it, would be good for any fish environment!

 

[meowzer]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Maxxnme http:///t/391936/new-sick-lion-fish-please-help-asap#post_3478293
Somehow, I can not imagine that 'styrofoam' with all of the chemicals that make comprise it, would be good for any fish environment!
Actually...fish are shipped in styrofoam coolers....(in plastic baggies) BUT.....when you drip acclimate you use the cooler
so it is not long term, and will not harm the fish

 

[saxman]

Unfortunately, the fish spent 1.5 hours in ammonia-laden water, which most likely burned its gills (which likely accounts for its labored breathing). If a fish has been bagged for more than an hour, the best course of action is to open the bag and get the fish out of the shipping water ASAP.
Briefly, what happens is when the bag is closed up, the pH drops (due to a rise in CO2), and the ammonia goes up (due to fish waste). If the fish wasn't fasted prior to shipping, this rise in ammonia is even worse. Upon opening the shipping bag, the pH spikes (rises) and the ammonia in the water becomes more toxic. I understand that the "old" rule is to slowly acclimate fish, but shipped fish are a different story, and should be removed from the shipping water quickly after the bag is opened. Here's graphic proof:
Shipping water on the left, tankwater on the right:

Anyhow, based on the info provided, that's my best conclusion.
Try dropping an airline into the tank and dropping the temp a bit to raise the dissolved O2 content of the water. You could also try a methylene blue bath for the lion as m-blue does tend to soothe burned gills somewhat.
Any idea why the clownfish died?