Well, Just Came Back From a Business trip, Just About Everything Dead!

[miaheatlvr]

Yep, got off the plane about 8.pm, trusted my neighbor to watch the fish, a pump got clogged, over flowed the tank,, she put in fresh water,, etc etc etc, SHES just suppose to go in and top off the tank, but got overwhelmed I guess. Also the water level down about 3 inches,,, PULLED EVERYTHING DEAD I COULD REACH, brittle stars, anemone looks like its going, that ive had it almost 2 years, lobster looks dead...,, did water change, ran carbon, cleaned out protein skimmer.. Gonna do another big change tomorrow when place opens up! I feel like committing suicide.. I know she tried to help, I mean what can I do? I guess start over,, BUT ALL THAT TIME, MONEY AND DEDICATION! I just might throw in the towel, I MIGHT NEED MENTAL COUNCELING!

 

[smartorl]

Oh no! That is my worst nightmare. Hope you can get it sorted soon and get back on track.

 

[ninjamini]

O'geeze I am so sorry to hear that. That is horrible. It becomes like your baby. I know that you baby it. A pump got clogged.
My wife is a social worker if you really need to talk. She can give you all the mental counseling you will need.
Really though its time to reach out to all those who you have traded with in the past. That is why its so important to trade with others. If someone looses a tank they can get replacements from the same stock.
What survived? IF there is anything I can do to help...let me know.
I think that we need a tank tank sitting service within the club. Perhaps I will start a tank sitting service.

 

[azfishgal]

Also my biggest fear. I have a 16 year old that takes care of my tank when I'm gone and I write DETAILED info on what to do and what NOT to do. I also make it very clear if something happens, anything out of the norm to call me first before she does anything! I'm sure you did all that and like you said I think she just panicked but that doesn't make it any easier.

My tank is still a baby or I'd send you some frags.
Quick question, how often should a person clean out the pump? Mine's been running since February it's not a submersable pump. I'm not really sure how I would clean it.

 

[teen]

soory about your loss. i lost about $200 worth of frags back in february when i was away on a snowboarding trip. best thing to do is just fix whatever you wanted to change on your tank, and start fresh (that is if its that bad).
AZ, pumps should be cleaned at least every month imo. some people go months without cleaning them,but most people dont realize how much flow there lossing by leaving them that long. if you still have the instructions, it will tell you how to take out the impellar. its usually pretty simple. i just unscrew the top and the ceramic shaft and what not comes out. rinse it out with some fresh water and if its covered in coraline or other gook, you can soak it in vinegar over night. you can also try scrubbing it with an old tooth brush if its really bad.

 

[viper_930]

Sorry to hear about your loss. I'm always worry about my tank when I go on trips.
So was it the return pump that clogged and the sump overflowed?

 

[miaheatlvr]

Sorry to hear about your loss. I'm always worry about my tank when I go on trips.
So was it the return pump that clogged and the sump overflowed?[/QUOTE
Yes Exactly,, very traumatizing, Looking very closely at the anemone, Im really pulling for it,, ITS very sad becasue my clown which made it, it really trying to STILL host.

Gonna do another big water change today and let things run its course. I mean what else can I do?

 

[susiestank]

I am so sorry!

I know how it is, last year I lost my entire tank because I was gone 3 days and a circuit breaker went out. It was the worst thing to come home to. I cried and everything lol, I'm such a girl.
Although its not really that somethign "good" came from it - but I did get to re-set up things in a different way which actually made the new inhabitants happier. So when you do start over... do everything you wanted to change before.
It is always a nerve wracking experience when its time to leave the tank, even with people watching and directions etc.
So sorry for your loss.

 

[earlybird]

Dang that sucks. Hope you can salvage something.

 

[maxalmon]

Really sorry to hear about the loss...Good luck with the future setup..

 

[weberian]

Bummer, HeatLvr. Similar thing happened to me about 6 mos. ago, but luckily just happened before I arrived back and didn't lose much. Last week I was away for one week and cleaned all pumps the week before I left. One of the major drawbacks of a sump system. Now I have one heater in the display and one in the sump.

 

[fishy7]

Originally Posted by MiaHeatLvr
Yep, got off the plane about 8.pm, trusted my neighbor to watch the fish, a pump got clogged, over flowed the tank,, she put in fresh water,, etc etc etc, SHES just suppose to go in and top off the tank, but got overwhelmed I guess. Also the water level down about 3 inches,,, PULLED EVERYTHING DEAD I COULD REACH, brittle stars, anemone looks like its going, that ive had it almost 2 years, lobster looks dead...,, did water change, ran carbon, cleaned out protein skimmer.. Gonna do another big change tomorrow when place opens up! I feel like committing suicide.. I know she tried to help, I mean what can I do? I guess start over,, BUT ALL THAT TIME, MONEY AND DEDICATION! I just might throw in the towel, I MIGHT NEED MENTAL COUNCELING!
REAL sorry to hear of your loss. I have not gone on any type of vacation becuase of the tank. I have managed to get a network of people in my genreal area that have SW tanks. This is the only way I am going to beable to take a vacation and not worry.
Do not give up, keep on going. You have to get the survivors back in action.

 

[scotts]

So sorry to hear that dude. Don't give up though. I had a tank crash I guess about 4 or 5 years ago. So I know what it is like. As they said on a TV show "We can rebuild him, we have the technology." Don't know where that come from or why it came to mind.

 

[seasalt dreams]

sorry for your losses ... but how did your pump clog?

 

[m0nk]

Wow, sorry to hear all of that.
I do like the suggestion in the one post about setting up tank sitting. In fact (MODS??), perhaps there should be an entire board here added for people to network and setup possible tank sitting schedules with other hobbyists, that way the "sitter" knows what they're doing. Maybe it could be like a "frag for sitting" trade deal or something? Or maybe anyone who signs up to offer to tank sit will do it for free if they're close enough?
Just a few thoughts on trying to find a positive return on a negative experience. Sorry again for your losses, it's truly a bummer man.

 

[seasalt dreams]

oops, sorry, wrong thread.

 

[azfishgal]

Originally Posted by teen
AZ, pumps should be cleaned at least every month imo. some people go months without cleaning them,but most people dont realize how much flow there lossing by leaving them that long. if you still have the instructions, it will tell you how to take out the impellar. its usually pretty simple. i just unscrew the top and the ceramic shaft and what not comes out. rinse it out with some fresh water and if its covered in coraline or other gook, you can soak it in vinegar over night. you can also try scrubbing it with an old tooth brush if its really bad.
Cleaning the pump is not what I'm concerned about, it's getting the pump off the water line without getting water all over. I would think I would need to almost empty out my sump in order to do it. The refuge would be ok, I would just need to empty out the chamber with the skimmer and the one just before the return line.

I'm going to my lfs today and they have the same exact set up I do, so I'll see how they do it.

 

[bullitr]

i am going out country for a month next year i will hire a aquarium people but they can only be there once a week and it will cost me close to $ 400 and i am still very worried what happen if the power went out , what happen if the chiller fuse wwent out .. so many things....now idon't even want to go on vacation un less i sold every corals and fish in the tank and start again ....

 

[hefner413]

When I left on a trip - I was so worried something like that would happen. I left my dog with my brother - I didn't worry one bit about the dog. My fish?? I had no idea what to do. My mom-in-law is very, very good with stuff like that.. So she followed directions to a T and had my cell for any problems. I checked in with her about my fish, but didn't call my brother once about my dog!
Man, I feel like my tank is like my second child or something.
As everyone else... soo sorry about your loss..

 

[fishy7]

Originally Posted by bullitr
i am going out for a month next year i will hire a aquarium people but they can only be there once a week and it will cost me close to $ 400 and i am still very worried what happen if the power went out , what happen if the chiller fuse wwent out .. so many things....now idon't even want to go on vacation un less i sold every corals and fish in the tank and start again ....
The best solution is finding a local person that has a tank and is willing to take care of it. (Be sure to bring back a very cool gift from where ever you are going)I am fortunate to have a person up the street, but If not I would see about joining a club to find locals and then you can network from there. May sound weird but go hang at your LFS, at the busiest time and strike conversations with people buying fish. What better way to meet people in the hobby.