what happened

patrickwebb

patrickwebb

Member
hi there,
i had one percula clown living in my tank for about 3 weeks, because one of them died, anyways i went to the lfs and bought two more and a black damsel-did the acumilation process on them for two and a half hours then put them in, they were all fine went to sleep then woke up everybody was fine-went to work came home about 10 hours later and the black damsel was stuck to my filter-he was dead
so i get him out and decide to do a water change because of the cloudy-ness going on in my tank plus it was about time that i did it-made my water de chlorinied it mix it with salt so it was 1.022 drip acumalated it into my tank while i went to sleep, woke up and everybody was ok--so i went to work and then came home my three percula clowns were dead
my salt level was good, so was my nitrate level and ph i have a 20 gallon tall tank and when i did my water change i took out 5 gallons? can someone give me any idea of why this happend?
thanks alot its very depresing!!
 
1journeyman

1journeyman

Active Member
Welcome to the forums.
Tell us a lot more about your tank. Give us actual numbers.
Ammonia
Nitrite
Nitrate
Temp
pH (morning and evening readings)
What else is in tank
How long has tank been set up
How did you cycle tank
Live rock in tank
substrate
filters, powerheads, etc.
 
rotarygeek

rotarygeek

Member
Was your tank ever used for freshwater fish? The Silicone could have absorbed something that could be deadly to your fish. Is it cycled all the way? Basically all that he said above.
 
trigger11

trigger11

Member
I agree with Journeyman. Knowing all of the water parameters would be helpful in diagnosing the issue.
Going from the info you provided I would guess that you either have High ammonia levels or your alkalinity level is way too low. IMO the best test you can do for alkalinity is to check the dKH. (Carbonate Hardness).
But again, without knowing specific parameters that would just be a guess.
Point of clarification?
Did you say that you had two clownfish. Then one died and you immediately got two more as well as a damsel?
~Trigger
 
trigger11

trigger11

Member
Originally Posted by patrickwebb
http:///forum/post/2482138
yeah thats how it went---im gonna get you guys the numbers tonite-
thanks for the help!
Typically speaking it is best to add only one new fish every 2-3 weeks. This is to give the system the time to accomodate the changes. Sometimes it is hard to be patient though when you see that pretty fish when you are in the store.
I have a feeling the addition of the extra fishes compounded the issue with the water quality.
 
patrickwebb

patrickwebb

Member
ive had my live rock in a cooler that has not been heated and it has the lid on so its dark, will this hurt me? i have just a floresent bulb so its not like it can grow anything, the rocks are sumerged in the water i used to do my last water change, should i just buy new ones?
they had aipsia---i think thats the name growing on them and i really didnt like the stupid brown dirt looking things anyway--i can just boil them now right?
and put them back in my tank?
do i have to wait or did i just

[hr]
myself and i have to get new ones?
ive been thinking of just giving up, but i really dont wanna do it!!
allthough my tank has been running without them and the heater at 81-
 
trigger11

trigger11

Member
Originally Posted by patrickwebb
http:///forum/post/2485212
ive had my live rock in a cooler that has not been heated and it has the lid on so its dark, will this hurt me? i have just a floresent bulb so its not like it can grow anything, the rocks are sumerged in the water i used to do my last water change, should i just buy new ones?
they had aipsia---i think thats the name growing on them and i really didnt like the stupid brown dirt looking things anyway--i can just boil them now right?
and put them back in my tank?
do i have to wait or did i just

[hr]
myself and i have to get new ones?
ive been thinking of just giving up, but i really dont wanna do it!!
allthough my tank has been running without them and the heater at 81-
If you have taken rock out because it had aptaisia on it that is ok. You will want to make sure the pest anemone is completely dead before introducing the rock back into your tank. Since you have had the rock in saltwater it should be ok for the most part. I would simply wait until you do your next water change and then use that water to rinse the rocks off. Then put them back into the tank.
As far as giving up goes only you can decide that. Maintaining a marine environment takes a lot of time and patience. I liken it to gardening. Sometimes you have to put in a lot of work just to get little results. But for me the wonder and beauty is well worth it.
Sometimes too this hobby can get very frustrating but luckily we have a place to come to in this forum to ask questions. Or read about questions other people have asked. There is a wealth of knowledge here.
Best of luck and do not be discouraged.

~Trigger
 
srgvigil

srgvigil

Member
If you were to get more fish I would no9t suggest getting another damsel
They are very territorial and will cause unneeded stress on others
plus its not very fun catching them once you realize that it was a mistake to get a damsel.
It is a shame though because damsels are awsm fish
the 2 weeks I had mine they were fascinating.
I wanna see a all damsel tank
 
patrickwebb

patrickwebb

Member
thanks for the help should i let my tank run a couple days befor thinking about testing it after i put my rock in---do you think that no light getting to these rock will kill the aiptsia-or do i have to boil them?
thanks all you guys for helping me!!!!!!!!!
i love this place
 
trigger11

trigger11

Member
Originally Posted by patrickwebb
http:///forum/post/2487305
thanks for the help should i let my tank run a couple days befor thinking about testing it after i put my rock in---do you think that no light getting to these rock will kill the aiptsia-or do i have to boil them?
thanks all you guys for helping me!!!!!!!!!
i love this place
It is quite surprising how long the aptasia can live with low lighting. I would take a turkey baster and put some boiling hot water in it. Take the rock with the ap on it and give him a good squirt.
 
gman20001969

gman20001969

Member
aptasia is beginning to be such a pain for me to eradicate. I've been using lemon juice and a syringe. I've hit one and see it disappear into the porous rock it's rooted in. Then I find it back in the same spot a few hours later. I went out and got some peppermint shrimp to help, but I've been told they only eat the ones that are itty-bitty. My next attempt is going to be a copperhead butterfly. I've heard those are hard to wean to any other food but livefood though...
 
trigger11

trigger11

Member
Originally Posted by patrickwebb
http:///forum/post/2493141
what about boiling the rocks----??
can i do this to get ride of them

[hr]
You could boil the rocks to get rid of the aptasia. BUT, if you did that then you will also kill off all of the beneficial bacteria that has started growing in them. At that point they really wouldnt be live rock anymore. I would try the suggestion I mentioned earlier. Take the rock out of the water completely. Put the boiling water in a turkey baster. Blast the area where the aptasia is. Give the rock a quick rinse with water from the tank. Then put the rock back in. This way you preserve most of the beneficial bacteria as well as eliminating the pesky glass anemone.
 
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