Please Help!

[JasonColtsFan]

I have a 180 gallon which had a emperor Angel, a pair of Percula clowns, a dog face puffer, harliquen tusk and coral beauty angel...
all were still fairly small largest being hte Emperor angel 5 iches and dog face puffer 4-5 inches...
Both clowns and the Emperor Angel died... noticed the Angel not looking well (pale) on thursday moved him to another take and he was dead when I got home friday from work... I then went to the tank and found 1 of the clowns, the other is still missing... (they were only 2-3 inches...

I tested my water (which I do once per month for everything) and everything was fine... my tank was due for a water change I do 35 gallons once per month... this weekend (I did 50) this time...
All other fish are ok, I took my water to the pet store before doing the water change to have them look at it...

They said everything looks great... maybe a little high on ALK...
but nothing major...

What could have gone wrong?

The only thing I have noticed was red alge growing on some of the rocks and on the sand... but not taking over the tank or anything and that has been going on for a few months...

The Angel was in between changing... which was why I wasnt to worried when he was a little pale thursday night... but moved him to be safe...

Any suggestions on what to do would be great!

Thank you

Now on Sunday the Dog Face puffer is laying at the bottom of the tank all day, and he wouldnt eat he did move from one end to the other but that is about it... please help!

 

[JasonColtsFan]

also the crabs seem to be more active than normal if this helps

 

[JasonColtsFan]

update... after losing the Angel and Clowns the puffer looked bad most of yesterday... late last night I decided he wasnt going to make it through the night so I decided to try a fresh water dip... I put him into fresh water for about 4 minutes and then back into ISO... he was still alive this morning... did not look great, but much better than last night and moved around a couple of times... I still dont see white spots but could it be ich?

 

[paulamrein]

Without pics or specific tank parameters there are alot of things that could have happened or is happening. Cyno-bacteria is usually a sign of a new tank cycle and or nutrient rich water. Neither would be a sure reason for death, but it is a stress factor. Pale coloring could be a sign of stress in some fish, and a sign of disease. It's really hit or miss without more information. Sorry, I want to help, but I could also cause more damage by suggesting something that isn't there shooting in the dark with little light on the full situation.

 

[paulamrein]

One thing you can do, is google or yahoo search various ailments and diseases to match a picture of what the dead fish looked like before death. A general search like "saltwater fish disease" could link you to some very helpful information.

 

[JasonColtsFan]

Thank you... the tank has been up and runing since the end of August... all levels where the same they have always been... 8.4 PH salinity 1.25, nitrates 20ppm (it was due for a water change over the weekend( nitrites 0) ALK 12DKH
will try and get a pic of the puffer

 

[JasonColtsFan]

would it be ok to do another fresh water dip tonight? I did one last night? how long should you do it for... I did 4 minutes... read 3-5 most places... he went crazy when I first put him in the water... then just layed there... the he went crazy when I put him back into salt water

 

[paulamrein]

He was experiencing slight osmotic shock. For me, freshwater dips do really well for flukes but not much else. I've never been a fan of dips mostly because you have to have the temp and ph exactly as the display system. Which going from 180g of heated water, to 5g of heated water will lose the heat quick. Not to mention the shock of going from saltwater to freshwater which kills inverts. If you are wanting to do a dip I would let him recover a while before another dip. A weak fish is greatly more susceptible to secondary infections and disease which hasn't yet been determined. My only advice at this point would be to keep him in a QT and get him vitamin enriched foods and keep him eating until you can get a better hold of what is ailing him. You may want to also drop the salinity some. It may not cure him, but it can help him conserve energy as they use alot of energy changing salinity from 1.025 to their internal water of 1.008.

 

[JasonColtsFan]

a few more ?s... my puffed passed monday...
would vacuming the sand be part of the problem? I did not know you were not suppose to do that... (is that true)?
also for top off water I had been using tap water... I now realize that could have been the problem... I am going to use start right in the top off water for now on.....
final ? I am guessing after research that it was not a disease because 4 dying in 3 days would be unlikey since each fish would take different for the disease to kill?

Thanks!

 

[paulamrein]

The jury is still out on vacuuming the sand bed. You'll find various opinions on that, I vacuum 1/4 of the tank a week. One would say not to because it destroys essential bacteria. But, the way bacteria reproduce so quickly I would say vacuuming the entire bed may give a spike but not sections. Using tap water is a huge no no. Even if you use a meds to take out chlorine there is way more stuff that could be in it. And most people's water supply comes through copper pipes. (at least where I am from.) RO/DI water is basically the only way. Fish only tanks can make due with just RO water. Which most if not all LFS has for sale if you don't want your own unit. But for the size of your tank as soon as you can afford it, GET ONE!! the water the LFS sells will do until you get one but with top off and water changes you can easily spend upwards of a couple thousand a year. Start with that, and see where you go from there, I would suggest taking a break and let your tank do it's thing for a while and not to buy any more livestock for your tank. Are there any fish left in the tank? If so, how are they doing?

 

[JasonColtsFan]

There is a junv Harliquen Tusk about 2.5 inches and a Coral B Angel.. about 3.5 inches... both seem to be doing well... almost seem happier that they are the only two in the tank...
I did not plan to add anything for the next 3-4 weeks to be safe...
My issue with an RO unit, it I dont really have a place for one...suggestions

 

[paulamrein]

You can get one with a connection for a hose, than go to the hardware store and get a sink adaptor for the hose connection. (they are used for waterbeds) hook it up to your sink, and when you are done filling the water, disconnect and put it under the sink or in a closet. There will be water in the canisters so careful with storage. This is the system I have and it's been easy. Get something that can hold a lot of water ie. a food grade trash can or a food grade 55g drum. Be sure it is food grade because the plastics that are manufactured can have oils that will leach into your water nullifying RO to begin with. From there it is changing membranes when they are used up. There is a banner on RC to click on for the filter guys, they come very recommended. Or pick one up used, the unit is cheap the membranes are the expensive part. With fish still in your system, it's a tricky one. I would maybe pull them and put them in QT so if something comes up whether parasitic or bacterial you can treat. NEVER put any chemicals in your Display tank. Always treat illness' in QT. If it is the water, putting them into some cleaner RO water will help, they may be ok now, but who is to say it will stay that way. If it is disease, it's one less step getting them to recovery. If you are unfamiliar with QT just ask, or google search. You can't swing a dead cat without hitting a site explaining it completely.

 

[JasonColtsFan]

Thank you...

 

[paulamrein]

anytime, pm me with any questions or catch me on a thread.