|
|
|
|
#1
12/18/2007, 09:37 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
What killed all of my fish?
60 gal
Black Volitan - 6mths (would have had sepetate tank soon) Dogface puffer - 3 yrs Domino Damsel - 9yrs 3 Stripe Damsel - 9yrs Powder Brown Tang - 1 yr Cinnamon Clown - 6 yrs No coral, just lots of live rock. Rock was old and very nasty. Took it out to bleach it and put in lots of dried -once live-rock that had been sitting in sealed plastic bin for years on Monday and all are dead as of this evening! Big Eheim cannister, HOT Magnum-not cleaned- AmmoLoc added and still wipe out. My Damsels survived 3 moves in Toronto, Toronto to Atlanta, Atlanta to Leesburg, VA... Dogface was a true pet and I feel terrible for the fish but what can you do? Any ideas on how I killed my fish? Can't believe it was ammonia/nitrite because of mature filters and water. Must have been something in the dried rock? Should I have soaked it in a heavy Prime solution? Bleach was never used. No matter how much you "think" you know........ |
|
#2
12/18/2007, 10:19 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Well, I suspect the live rock might have been doing some of the filtration, and furthermore that the dried-out rock might have been contaminated in a number of ways. The filters might not have been sufficient for the load placed on them so suddenly.
__________________
Jonathan Bertoni |
|
#4
12/19/2007, 02:04 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I agree Jonathan, sort of....just can't see bio filter being the problem...6 fish with a big Eheim in 60 gallons of mature water, and I used AmmoLoc to give things a chance to settle down. Should I have soaked the rock in Prime or something like it?
|
|
#5
12/19/2007, 03:14 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
My guess is ammonia killed your fish. Unless, like Jon said, your dead rock was contaminated.
You just can't change that much at one time in a FO tank without expecting problems. You are talking a 60 gal tank with an average to high bio-load. Sorry for your losses. 
|
|
#6
12/19/2007, 01:47 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Ammoloc doesn't work how it sounds. It binds the ammonia, but it is still in the system. I would agree that it sounds like ammonia was the culprit. Sorry for the losses.
__________________
Craig & Holly 1-75g FW Planted 1-55g African Cichlid 1-125g w/ 4 turts 1-75g RR Reef 1-12g NC Mantis, 1-12g AP Brittle Star 2-cats 2-dogs (1 Catahoula Leopard Mix & 1 Shepherd Mix) |
|
#7
12/19/2007, 05:42 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I used to be in sales for a wholesaler and sold AmmoLoc and you are right: it does not eliminate ammonia but converts it into a non-toxic form that the bacteria can still get to. If-and it probably was-ammonia that killed my fish, it must have been exceptionally high because I really believe AmmoLoc works and I used a heavy dose.
|
|
#8
12/19/2007, 05:50 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Re: What killed all of my fish?
Quote:
Back to center. Causes, rock not rinsed well, copper, pesticides (depending upon where and how dead liverock was stored) diluting back into the solution might be factors. Removing the existing biofilter on the tank (rock you took out to bleach) that seemed to have a hefty bioload to begin with. Your fish list is higher than ANY of my tanks and the smallest one I have is a 75 with 120 plus pounds of liverock. See if you can find out where and how dead liverock was stored and if pesticides for roaches or ants or the like may have gotten into it...vapors or mist. See if you can find out if it was ever in a tank treated with copper. If it's not toxin issue and just ammonia meltdown, Then I would cycle the tank over from scratch with a couple new damsels and take your time this go round. Oh yeah... if you recreate the fish list you have. I would strongly recommend a 125 or larger. Clowns, Damsels, puffer, these fish get pretty big for a 60. I bet they were good size too relative to their ages you had them. Keep close attention to bio-load and size and know that there are limits to the length and not just number. And there are limits on how much you can tinker with the bio-culture that metabolizes the fish's waste. Small steps and always design or do things on extreme caution and allow for lots of headroom for error...otherwise rushing winging it measures will render those results. Good Luck.
__________________
Two little old lady's are sitting on a parkbench and the one little old lady says " My Butt Fell Asleep". The other little old lady yells back " Oh Yeah...Well A Minute Ago It Was Snoring!!" |
|
#9
12/19/2007, 06:03 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Rock was always mine and I stored it in sealed plastic tub. No copper, pesticides, etc. I was just careless and my fish paid the price. I should have cultured up a ton of bio chem stars or something 4 weeks before doing this.
|
|
#10
12/19/2007, 10:14 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
The removal of the beneficial bacteria in the live rock caused a mini-cycle, which lead to an ammonia spike!!!
|
|
|
Linear Mode
