rlinusc Posted May 18, 2002 Share Posted May 18, 2002 i have a 15 gallon nano attached to a 15 gallon refugium that was humming along nicely. I had anthalia polyps that were spreading and pulsing like mad, a happy sarcophyton, a very happy tank raised perc, and 2 nice active peppermint shrimps. And now the whole system i think is practically gone. Today in the afternoon i added macro algae i got from an online place. ( all different varieties) I think i ordered WAY too much algae and i think i made the mistake of adding it all at once. I checked a few times in the next few hours after adding the algae but besides the clouding that came with adding "lagoon" mud, there didn't seem to be any problems. well as i went to bed... everything was changed. My anthalia polyps are either dead or close to it, ditto witht he sarco. My perc and both my peppermints are in fact dead. Even the gorilla crabs i had were in bad shape as i could easily catch them, and i noticed a lot of dead mysis shrimp and dead copepods. The only fauna that seem to survive were the snails, but who knows. I immediately did a 20% water change, but since i did not have more RO/DI water available as i only do weekly 10% changes i could not do more. I turned on my skimmer. And i started removing algae from my refuguim. My theory was that the massive amount of algae coupled with the small volume caused a huge pH swing. i tested my pH and voila it was down to 7.4. I still wonder though if that could have killed everything so quickly, in literally the span of hours, my once beautiful tank is in shambles. Argh just wanted to share. Linus Link to comment
JGoslee Posted May 18, 2002 Share Posted May 18, 2002 Is yor refugium light on 24 hours or a reverse scheldule? Link to comment
rlinusc Posted May 18, 2002 Author Share Posted May 18, 2002 close to 24 hours. i had it on the whole time the tank crashed. L Link to comment
Korbin Posted May 18, 2002 Share Posted May 18, 2002 That's horrible! I'm sorry to hear it. But at the same time, glad that you posted it. I was going to add macro to my tank. Now I think I'll hold off a bit. You said you added "lagoon mud". Maybe there was something in there that killed everything? Link to comment
Toyfreek Posted May 18, 2002 Share Posted May 18, 2002 an average PH of 8.3-8.4 to a drop to 7.4 could certainely affect creature health in such a short period of time. However, I seriousely doubt that is the reason your tank crashed and everyone died. I wouls suspect instead that you might have introduced a toxin along with the calupera/mud. is there an oily film at the top? perhaps a copper wire in the calupera? or petroleum products could be the culprit here. I have had my ph at 7.6 before with no side effects but it was only for a short period of time. I really suspect the "lagoon mud" near shore substrate often contains undesireable toxins due to mans close proximity. HTH, Toy Link to comment
rlinusc Posted May 18, 2002 Author Share Posted May 18, 2002 Well then i guess i am going to have to post the distributor. i bought both the macro algae and the mud from Bill's Reef at http://www.reeflink.com/billsreef/. I am reluctant to point any fingers, but i have to say the degree as to the die off is amazing.. i have bristleworms coming out the substrate to die... my hermits are all but dead. THe only survivors so far as i can tell are snails. What can i do to remove the "lagoon mud" now? Link to comment
Toyfreek Posted May 18, 2002 Share Posted May 18, 2002 That sux, I am sorry for you. talk with Bill's Reef and maybe he will restock your tank at a discount. try not to be too aggressive as this often turns people off to helping you. By the way I saw your post on Rec.aquaria.marine.reef I didn't know you were that guy. Good to finally meet you here. HTH, Toy Link to comment
rlinusc Posted May 18, 2002 Author Share Posted May 18, 2002 nice to meet you toyfreak... yeah this really got me down, as my tank was really taking off..... with so much diversity and life. ah well. I have emailed Bill's reef, but i don't think i was too aggressive, i just asked him what could have caused the problem. I'll let everyone know what happens. My question is that if there is some sort of toxin, how can i 1) test for it, 2) get rid of it? I justfinished a 50% water change, and plan to do 10% water changes for the next 5 days. So any suggestion? i have already removed the algae, and started to remove the mud. L Link to comment
Toyfreek Posted May 19, 2002 Share Posted May 19, 2002 Boy thats tough, Trying to test for toxins without knowing what you might be looking for would be near impossible. did you notice anything strange after adding the stuff. any discoloration in the mud or on the sand? How about rainbow swirlies on the water surface? foam on the water top? anything? Toy Link to comment
Korbin Posted May 19, 2002 Share Posted May 19, 2002 If everything in your tank is dying that fast - even bristleworms - it must be a POWERFUL toxin. Trying to remove it by doing water changes isn't going to work, in my opinion. You can never completely get rid of something by dilution. Even if you have a small amount of the toxin left, it could still adversely affect your critters. I say you shoud start over clean. Personally, I would take everything out back to the garden hose and rinse it all out. (Assuming the pH change isnt the only reason for the die-off.) BUMMER! Link to comment
rlinusc Posted May 19, 2002 Author Share Posted May 19, 2002 well there are survivors now... some hermits are still living, the fan worms are pretty much okay, and miraculously it looks like my leather might actually pull through! I can't believe it, if it does though. Linus Link to comment
rlinusc Posted May 19, 2002 Author Share Posted May 19, 2002 okay... so since there are some survivors i will just try and do water changes.. i also decided to add some carbon to the skimmer for now to see if i can remove whatever is bad. Yes there was cloudiness to the water, nothing terribly obvious though. no film nothing. Linus Link to comment
gabe3eb Posted May 19, 2002 Share Posted May 19, 2002 The cloudiness could be based on the fact that you have been doing large water changes and most likely sticking your hands in the tank to move things around and take things out. Just try to keep up with removing all dead objects, the ammonia added from them could also negatively affect your tank. I am really sorry to hear about that, but on the same note, I doubt that the micro algea, I assume you are talking about caulerpa or other plant-like algaes, would crash a tank at all. I have my 10 gallon overtaken with bubble algae, so that I can remove it to my new refugium for a larger tank and everything in the tank seems extremely healthy. Sorry to hear about your losses, good luck in the future, and is it possible that you used some hand lotion or sanitizer before sticking your hands in the tank? Just a thought,,, gaber Link to comment
rlinusc Posted May 19, 2002 Author Share Posted May 19, 2002 That is a good point.. but i did the same routine i always do when i add stuff to my tank, i wash my hands in softsoap before i a put my hand int he tank, and that has never been a problem in the past. I do wonder at what happened. In all honesty i am wonderign why i am not more upset about the whole situation... maybe its because of this incredible, amazing woman.... though that would be an "off-topic" subject for this newsgroup. *sigh* Linus Link to comment
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