Simple mistake = Tragic results

mikemartinez

mikemartinez

New member
I was going to do a water change to my 29 on Saturday so i went ahead and prepared some water.

I am currently using filtered water since I had a couple of filters left and wanted to use them up. They are the kind that attach to the sink (Brita maybe)..

So my wife decides to help me out and we get everything ready and mix the salt...

Saturday comes and I clean the tank and change the water as planned...

On Sunday while we were at church it hit me "I forgot to add the DECHLOR!?!?!?!" but there was nothing I could do since I wasnt going to get up in the middle of church and run out like a madman..

I get back home expecting the worse and sure enough the death toll was:

1 Saddleback Clown
2 4 Striped Damsels
2 Chromis Damsels
1 Domino Damsel that I have had for 9 months now
1 Royal Dottyback that was 9 months as well
2 Yellow Tail Blue Damsels
1 Rock w/GSP

So all I have left is a Percula and my cleaner shrimp at least for now...

I did a 35% water change and noticed that my Ricordias, Zoas and my bubble tip anemone are ok now so hopefully this is the end of this tragic mess..

In year that I have been doing saltwater and 2 previous years doing Freshwater I had never had that happen to me once..

I just wanted to share my horrible experience...

Time to start all over again...
 
man....that really sucks. Sorry to hear. That was alot of Damsels in a 29 gal. No aggression issues?

Steve
 
wow mike thats a huge load for such a small tank....how often did you do water changes to keep ammonia, nitrite, and nitrates stable?...........and you use a brita filter???....thats basically using tap water....im surprise/your lucky that you corals has survived this long.....and you didnt have any phosphate or hair algea problems?

sorry to hear about all your losses.....and good luck with the rest of the livestock
 
Sorry to hear that! I have forgotten dechlor before in my girls old 29 and ran back in the room and gave the tank a big squirt and never lost anything but it wasn't very long before it hit me I forgot.

On a side note in a small tank like a 29 its best to let the mixed water stir with a small power head at least over night to let the chemicals stabilize. Fresh mixed SW that hasn't "aged" can make your tank params swing pretty significantly especially if you did a large change. This also will let the chlorine disipate in the air if I am not mistaken...

Are you gonna go with all the damsels again on the restock?
 
I just re read your post and it looks like you did pre-mix the water so the chlorine should have been gone I would think. Any other things that may have happened?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11359622#post11359622 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Angela Short
I just re read your post and it looks like you did pre-mix the water so the chlorine should have been gone I would think. Any other things that may have happened?
Click to expand...

Chlorine dissipates after 48 hrs, so if it's just over night, it's still there.....Sorry to hear about your loss.....
 
So sorry to hear that, Mike. That really sucks man. I, too, am nervous of the day I make a fatal mistake. I hope it won't happen, but its so easy to do...

Brandon
 
Im sorry for your loss, but thats nothing...

Just think of all the mistakes people have made over the years to get all of these advancments we have now.
 
Sorry to hear that, Mike. If you want a frag of gsp to replace yours, I've got one for you. See if yours comes back out, though. They can shrink up into their mat for several days and then come back out.
 
Thanks guys... No I never had any aggression issues with any of the damsels (luckily) and I was doing water changes weekly I guess what helped me out was having a much bigger Skimmer and filter than is needed for my tank. But hair algea is just starting to come out so I am about to have a problem with that from what it looks like...

Thanks Jack I'll give it a couple of days and see what happens....

The only reason I had them in there to begin with (besides the Domino) was because they were given to me by other people who were getting rid of their tanks all together and were just going to throw them out..

My next purchase will most definitely be an RO/DI unit without a doubt..I think I have put that off way too long now..
 
my algae proplems went away once I started usin' water from the Publix Glacier machine. That was fine when I only had my 20. But now with the 80, I need to think about gettin' a RO unit myself.

Steve
 
I think I'll do that publix thing till I get my RO/DI unit... Me going out to buy water will motivate me to get it faster..

I need it anyways since I am looking at getting a 90 gal real soon.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11360797#post11360797 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikemartinez
I think I'll do that publix thing till I get my RO/DI unit... Me going out to buy water will motivate me to get it faster..

I need it anyways since I am looking at getting a 90 gal real soon.
Click to expand...

yea, goin' in for 5 gal. wasnt a problem at all. it would last almost 2 weeks. But It seems I just go through water now with the 80. It isn't fun haulin' 3 or 4 5 gal. jugs.

Steve
 
That is a lesson all should learn from reading also you may want to watch using DECHLOR as it messes up the PH and also I heard the are two types of sanitizer that cities use for tap water and one of them it doesn't break down with DECHLOR. The science geeks would have to explain that any more or say it was a myth?
 
Re: Simple mistake = Tragic results

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11359141#post11359141 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mikemartinez
I was going to do a water change to my 29 on Saturday so i went ahead and prepared some water.

I am currently using filtered water since I had a couple of filters left and wanted to use them up. They are the kind that attach to the sink (Brita maybe)..

So my wife decides to help me out and we get everything ready and mix the salt...

Saturday comes and I clean the tank and change the water as planned...
Click to expand...

Yea, I'm confused a little. What day/time did your wife mix the water and salt? You talk ask if it was day's before. I'd be leaning toward some other kind of pollution in the mix that was the problem.

Just wanting some clarity...

Either way, sorry for the loss.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11359743#post11359743 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Mikeyjer
Chlorine dissipates after 48 hrs
Click to expand...

... but that's only if the container is open to the air, right?
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11365630#post11365630 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by HowardCath
... but that's only if the container is open to the air, right?
Click to expand...

Correct!!!
 
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