Worldwithin
Premium Member
So, yesterday I decide to do a long needed water change. Granted it was only 15 gallons on a 150 net system, but something is better than nothing, right?
So I start off by pulling out 5 gallons from my grow out tank for my baby Clarks and take 5 gallons out from my display tank use it to put into my grow out tank. Grow out tank done. Next, I kill the pumps on the display, scrape off the algae from the glass, and proceed to pull out 10 more gallons. Once I finished draining the 10 gallons, I walk outside verify my salinity in my change water - I had to add some salt to get it to the 1.025 I wanted, and begin to put it into the display tank. 15 gallons out, 15 gallons in. I then crank up the pumps and everything is back to normal.
Now the confusing part.
After about an hour or so, I notice that one of my chromis is on the bottom of the tank, mouth wide open, dead. Huh??? I start to look around, and notice that I only see the big fish, not any of the smaller fish. So I look around some more, and find the second cromis in the same fashion, mouth wide open, dead behind a rock.
Still looking, I notice that my Royal Gramma is ok, but I cannot seem to find any of my Anthias. Luckily found one swimming around, but I had three.
To make things worse, I left for a dinner engagment, and when I returned home that evening, my tank is completely cloudy from my carpet anenomie doing what appeared to look like spawning. I kick up the skimmer, and thankfully that helped to clear it up somewhat.
Everything seems to have balanced itself out to some extent. The final toll seems to be the two chromis, one anthias, and most likely a second anthias as he is not looking good at all. The third anthias, aside from having some torn up pectoral fins for some reason, looks good. I have not noticablly lost any inverts like shrimp, snails, or crabs. Nor does any of my corals appear to be in bad shape. Somehow something I did affected my smaller fish, and I have no idea what it could be. My grow out tank with the baby clarks is doing just fine.
Just some info on tank and other stuff. 135 gallon mixed reef with (initially) 3 Clarkii clowns (2 adult, 1 juvinile), 1 medium to large sailfin tang, 1 medium to large coral rabbitfish, 1 adult flame angel, 1 royal gramma, 3 bartlet anthias, 2 blue/green chromis. Tons of tonga mushrooms, a variety of zoos, a very large (2 foot diameter) green carpet, kenyan tree corals, and some small acro frags. At least 150+ pounds of live rock.
The change out water is from a 15 gallon trash can that I have been using the following setup for at least two years: RO/DI with 0 TDS from the output, Reef Crystals salt, heated and mixed with a modified MJ 1200. The only thing I did with the water was added some salt to bring the SG to 1.025 from the 1.015 it was at for my breeding tanks. I have been using this water for the breeding tanks with no issues.
So the question is, what the heck happened or could have happened to only affect 4 realitively strong fish just for doing a water change?? I tested the water parameters and everything is where it is supposed to be. I have been using the same method for water changes for several years and have never had anything remotely similar occur.
Any ideas??
:fish1::hammer:
So I start off by pulling out 5 gallons from my grow out tank for my baby Clarks and take 5 gallons out from my display tank use it to put into my grow out tank. Grow out tank done. Next, I kill the pumps on the display, scrape off the algae from the glass, and proceed to pull out 10 more gallons. Once I finished draining the 10 gallons, I walk outside verify my salinity in my change water - I had to add some salt to get it to the 1.025 I wanted, and begin to put it into the display tank. 15 gallons out, 15 gallons in. I then crank up the pumps and everything is back to normal.
Now the confusing part.
After about an hour or so, I notice that one of my chromis is on the bottom of the tank, mouth wide open, dead. Huh??? I start to look around, and notice that I only see the big fish, not any of the smaller fish. So I look around some more, and find the second cromis in the same fashion, mouth wide open, dead behind a rock.
Still looking, I notice that my Royal Gramma is ok, but I cannot seem to find any of my Anthias. Luckily found one swimming around, but I had three.
To make things worse, I left for a dinner engagment, and when I returned home that evening, my tank is completely cloudy from my carpet anenomie doing what appeared to look like spawning. I kick up the skimmer, and thankfully that helped to clear it up somewhat.
Everything seems to have balanced itself out to some extent. The final toll seems to be the two chromis, one anthias, and most likely a second anthias as he is not looking good at all. The third anthias, aside from having some torn up pectoral fins for some reason, looks good. I have not noticablly lost any inverts like shrimp, snails, or crabs. Nor does any of my corals appear to be in bad shape. Somehow something I did affected my smaller fish, and I have no idea what it could be. My grow out tank with the baby clarks is doing just fine.
Just some info on tank and other stuff. 135 gallon mixed reef with (initially) 3 Clarkii clowns (2 adult, 1 juvinile), 1 medium to large sailfin tang, 1 medium to large coral rabbitfish, 1 adult flame angel, 1 royal gramma, 3 bartlet anthias, 2 blue/green chromis. Tons of tonga mushrooms, a variety of zoos, a very large (2 foot diameter) green carpet, kenyan tree corals, and some small acro frags. At least 150+ pounds of live rock.
The change out water is from a 15 gallon trash can that I have been using the following setup for at least two years: RO/DI with 0 TDS from the output, Reef Crystals salt, heated and mixed with a modified MJ 1200. The only thing I did with the water was added some salt to bring the SG to 1.025 from the 1.015 it was at for my breeding tanks. I have been using this water for the breeding tanks with no issues.
So the question is, what the heck happened or could have happened to only affect 4 realitively strong fish just for doing a water change?? I tested the water parameters and everything is where it is supposed to be. I have been using the same method for water changes for several years and have never had anything remotely similar occur.
Any ideas??
:fish1::hammer:
