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Why My fish Die?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Phathead, Jan 27, 2008.

  1. got2lb Well-Known ReefKeeper

    540
    Clarksville, IA
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    +19 / 0 / -0
    Another thing to keep in mind is that sometimes fish stores keep the salinity in there fish only systems a little lower than we keep our reefs at. Might be interesting to see what the LFS water tests at the next time you buy a fish.
     
  2. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

    389
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    Just alittle update My flame angel died on me yesterday. So that makes him a 22 day survivor(That Sucks).   My levels are all good except phosphates. I am going to increase water changes for awhile to hopefully fix this what could be the problem. I can only think over feeding is the problem. I am religous with water changes so that isnt it.  I give my fish Brine with spirulina, Mysis, and blood worms 1 cube of each is that too much? I figure what the fish dont eat the 600 Ilyanassa snails I have, get the rest. Anyone care to take a stab at this frustrating tank. Cant wait to get the AC3 maybe it knows the answers.
     
  3. Benji

    Benji Inactive User

    126
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    ''Some reason though I have a lot of fish deaths I always have if anyone could give me some incite on what to do about this it would greatly help.�I also for skimming use to Bak Pak filters that in my opinion are great.''


    sounds like acute effects of toxic levels of heavy metals.

    how much skimate/sludge are you pulling out and how often.

    with that bioload [fish/corals]and [the feedings] it is likely that your livestock is metabolizing the metals that would usually be sequestered in organics, primarily humic acids and Fe(OH)2. the metals that have been metabolized are essentially transfered down the the food chain and magnified exponentially[bio-magnification].

    these toxins are not being exported by your skimmer because they are not chelated.

    water changes, unless done with nsw, will only compound the problem because synthetic seawater is ladened with heavy metals which will not be exported due to the load.


    i think these deaths could be a message from your reef...the next time another inhabitant passes don't replace it.
     
  4. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

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    Im not buying anymore fish till the problem is fixed. SO does this mean I need a better skimmer?
     
  5. Nykademus

    Nykademus Inactive User

    120
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    I have been discussing this with Joel off and on trying to figure out what could be causing all of these deaths since your params seem to be, at least, good enough to keep fish. Its very strange that your corals are doing great but fish are not.

    So I had a thought. Have you looked into the possibility of having a fish disease or internal parasites? Its about the only other thing that I could think of thats been causing your issues, well, that has not already been mentioned anyway. I doubt you still have the angel, but if you lose another fish it might not be a bad idea to dissect it for parasites.

    Its probably been asked already, but do you quarantine your fish before adding them to your display?
    I would upgrade that skimmer though, you will be amazed at the difference you will see from a Bakpak.
     
  6. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

    389
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    What about rust? Would that do this how would I test for it. There are a couple of bolts on the mag pump I use that are rusted. Why they use steel is beyond me.
     
  7. RobynT

    RobynT Inactive User

    784
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    What about that electrical shock issue that can affect fish?  I don't recall exactly what it's called.
     
  8. got2lb Well-Known ReefKeeper

    540
    Clarksville, IA
    Ratings:
    +19 / 0 / -0
    Just another guess out there. Can't remember for sure if it's been said or not. But is it possible you're getting chlorine in the tank? If you have chlorine in your drinking water it will wreck your filters in your RO unit unless you have the right kind.

    Read up here it kind of explains it: http://www.thefilterguys.biz/chloramine_filters.htm

    If that's not enough info email them and ask them about it. The filter guys will pretty much help you out with anything when it comes to RO units. They have awesome customer service.
     
  9. Troy

    Troy Experienced Reefkeeper

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    if you have a Dual Bak-Pak it is only rated for 120g tanks. And with the amount of fish in you tank. The bak pak just can't keep up. If you watch the buy/sell/trade forums you could probably pick up a good skimmer for less the half the cost of new.
     
  10. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

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    SO I decided to go ahoead and get a new skimmer.  aNYINE have one to get rid of let me know.  I guess I dont understand why my fish load is that big of a deal.  It seems every tank I look at over the internet have 5-10 times the amount of fish I have.   Alot of them that I look at on UTube.COM are so full of fish and corals what are they doing different?
     
  11. got2lb Well-Known ReefKeeper

    540
    Clarksville, IA
    Ratings:
    +19 / 0 / -0
    I really don't think you have too many fish in that tank. Especially if they're as small as you say they are. I think there's something bigger that you're dealing with. My bet would b e something is getting into your water, be it chlorine or god knows what. I would really start with your RO unit and start checking things out. Because if you're religiously doing water changes that's good but if you're doing them with "bad" water you're not helping the problem at all.
     
  12. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

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    I would agree that something were overlooking is getting in the tank.  Only possibility I see is rust but a pretty small amount.  The water I use comes from my RO unit and I havent tested to see if it's performing corrrectly since I set it up about 8 months ago just chaged filters every 3 months.  I use this water for all the tanks I maintain which is between 4-6 and they are not having any problems with fish dyeing.  So I really dont belive it to be the RO unit but I am going to get it checked anyway. 
     
  13. Bullet

    Bullet Inactive User

    130
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    What type of RO/ DI unit is it? Why are you changing the filters every 3 months? If you haven't ever tested your water how do you know you filters are bad?
     
  14. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

    389
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    I bought it at a frshwater auction nobody knew what it was for, kind of funny. I got it for 40.00 with lots of spare filters I then went in with a buddy on alot of filters and membranes. I was told to change them about every six months with regular use. So I figured I would change them every 3 or so becuase of the amount of extras I have and I leave it on 24/7 always making water. This cant be hurting anything can it? The RO unit is made by CUNO INCorporated Model# 4000 TFCM HFSO. I did test the water right when I set it up but not since.
     
  15. Bullet

    Bullet Inactive User

    130
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    And you say you are using this water in other peoples tanks too without knowing the TDS or not testing it on regular basis? IMO, that is not good a idea. I would start there and do a through test on your RO water and then get a DI installed to eliminate the possibility of the water being the issue. It needs to be 0 TDS or very close in my opnion. The best resource we have on water around here is the filter guys .com. I would call them and let them help you. I think there are a lot of people in this hobby that overlook the water quality going into their systems. Water is the most important part of this hobby! I always compare it to underwater gardening. You cannot grow roses in crappy soil.
     
  16. Bullet

    Bullet Inactive User

    130
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    ohhh...and what are you storing your water in and where is it stored? Any possibility of contamination there?
     
  17. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

    389
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    I have 6 trash cans I bought specifically for RO water they are rubbermaid all linked together stored in my basement next to RO unit with lids on all the time holes drilled for the tubes. The problem is still only in my tank not any of the other tanks I clean. (I use my RO water)
     
  18. Bullet

    Bullet Inactive User

    130
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    I don't know what to tell you. If you want to rule out your water without testing it you need to look at other things than and hope that it is not your water. What is differnet in your tank than in the tanks you maintain? At this point I would be hypersensitive about everything. If you doubt that pump...get rid of it. If you think it is bio-load, get a better skimmer.....and so on.
     
  19. got2lb Well-Known ReefKeeper

    540
    Clarksville, IA
    Ratings:
    +19 / 0 / -0
    How do you make saltwater for the tanks you maintain? Is it different than your own tank? What specificallly is different between your tank and those tanks? Have you tried adding any new fish to any of those other tanks? How long have you had your longest living fish?
    It's easy to check for stray voltage in your tank.  Get a cheap voltage meter and stick the positive in the tank and stick the negative into the ground of a plugin and see if it's reading any voltage.
     
  20. Phathead

    Phathead Well-Known ReefKeeper

    389
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    I make saltwater for all the tanks exactly the same way using the same buckets and everything.  The only thing that is different from my tank is I add chemicals.  Calicium, DKH buffer, Iodine and Essential elements.  I have 3 fish my long nosed hawk fish, scooter blenny, and dusky jawfish all almost 2 years old.  They have been swapped through out the different tanks as I went from a 30 to a 40 now the 125. 
     

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