crpeck
Premium Member
I almost feel stupid asking this, but I'm just checking all possibilities. If saltwater has electrical current in it, do the bad effects leave when the current is removed or does the current change to the saltwater? Also, if you heat saltwater in stainless steel or teflon pots, will the heat process alter the water chemistry?
I did a 10 - 12 gallon water change on my 55 gallon + 10 gallon sump yesterday. I will admit that I've been lax over the holidays on doing water changes and this was a bigger change than usual. But I have done changes this big with no problems before. Same salt. Same RO water.
My tank is having a REALLY bad reaction like I've never had in the 2 1/2 years I've been keeping the tank. Even the brown star polyps aren't out and the mushrooms look shriveled. They're weeds that tolerate anything so you know it's bad.
Here was the difference. I use a combo pump/heater to aerate and bring my change water to temp. This time, the unit had fallen on the floor. When I put my hand in to check and stir the water, I felt that crackly little tingle of electricity and the water was stone cold. I had already drained the tank down and needed the water ASAP. So I unplugged and pulled out the heater and then heated batches of the change water up on the stove and in the microwave to hot, but not boiling and then added it into the big batch of change water to bring it all to temp. Then I used the water for the change.
I've checked my salinity, pH, Alk, Ca and temperature and all are the same after the water change that they run before.
It is probably just as simple as not doing as many water changes for a while and then doing a big one. But this reaction is so dramatic for not much of a difference in anything done before that I had to ask.
Most of the corals just look a little traumatized, but like they'll get over it. The two most sensitive inhabitants, the Rose BTA and the euphyllia are looking better today than yesterday ... promising. My 3 Montiporas all are really bleached, only a shadow of their former color and I'm worried about them.
It seems far-fetched to think the heat or electricity altered the water, .... doesn't it?
Cathy
I did a 10 - 12 gallon water change on my 55 gallon + 10 gallon sump yesterday. I will admit that I've been lax over the holidays on doing water changes and this was a bigger change than usual. But I have done changes this big with no problems before. Same salt. Same RO water.
My tank is having a REALLY bad reaction like I've never had in the 2 1/2 years I've been keeping the tank. Even the brown star polyps aren't out and the mushrooms look shriveled. They're weeds that tolerate anything so you know it's bad.
Here was the difference. I use a combo pump/heater to aerate and bring my change water to temp. This time, the unit had fallen on the floor. When I put my hand in to check and stir the water, I felt that crackly little tingle of electricity and the water was stone cold. I had already drained the tank down and needed the water ASAP. So I unplugged and pulled out the heater and then heated batches of the change water up on the stove and in the microwave to hot, but not boiling and then added it into the big batch of change water to bring it all to temp. Then I used the water for the change.
I've checked my salinity, pH, Alk, Ca and temperature and all are the same after the water change that they run before.
It is probably just as simple as not doing as many water changes for a while and then doing a big one. But this reaction is so dramatic for not much of a difference in anything done before that I had to ask.
Most of the corals just look a little traumatized, but like they'll get over it. The two most sensitive inhabitants, the Rose BTA and the euphyllia are looking better today than yesterday ... promising. My 3 Montiporas all are really bleached, only a shadow of their former color and I'm worried about them.
It seems far-fetched to think the heat or electricity altered the water, .... doesn't it?
Cathy
