2nd large massacre in 2 months

[myyellas2k]

so I just had my 2nd large massacre in 2 months.

Last month I lost a juvenile emporeror, Fox face and a yellow tang

Took measurements then - and ALL was good.(except phosphate was at 2.0)
The other 3 fish at tang point were fine and swimming - not stressed. Etc


I ran a few tests on Thursday night -
Ammonia - 0
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate -0
Ph- 7.8-8.0
Calcium-620
Magnesium- 1420
Dkh-8.4

Get a call from my wife after work - my daughter is crying. And she says “Nemo died, and so did everything else”

Lost my first fish - cinnamon clown, and 2 wrasses, the starfish and my harlequin and blood shrimp


The only thing I could think is it was an electrocution for my heater .... or the protein skimmer.
That’s the only 2 things that are in the water.

So. The tank is for sale (going bigger, after I finish the basement and have the cement floor to put it on)

I give up. for now

 

[Hitman]

So sorry for your loss.
Sounds like you either have stray voltage or a parasite. Was there any hard breathing that you saw before this happened?

 

[myyellas2k]

I wouldn’t think a parasite would knock down 3 or 4 fish at once though.

No. All the breathing was good.
Say and watched them on Thursday before I went to bed

 

[Hitman]

Odd. Hopefully one of the folks with a lot more experience in this chime in. I hate to see someone get so discouraged that they leave the hobby. We have all had our downs and outs we just gotta help each other learn from our mishaps so we can continue. I’m sure your daughter would love a new Nemo!

 

[Auto-pilot]

If it's stray voltage you might feel it if you put your fingers in the tank. I had a power head fail and it would shock me if I touched the water. Didn't kill my tank though

 

[Auto-pilot]

What are you using to test your water and is the tank new??

 

[cmcoker]

No powerheads or are you running vortechs?

This was a 54g?

 

[Hitman]

Good point I missed. What’s creating your water flow?

 

[rkpetersen]

If you had fish and inverts both die suddenly then I would suspect some toxin in the water. Parasite or other infectious disease would be unlikely to affect both.

 

[myyellas2k]

No powerheads or are you running vortechs?

This was a 54g?

No power heads
Using the fx4 filter to move the water around.
On the 54g

I’m not “giving up”. But this is good for going bigger !

The elegance and green star polyp are still fine.
The snails and crabs were still working the tank too.

I did feel something when I put my hand in the tank last week.
Chaulked it up to a cut on my hand and let it go.



Tank is a year old.
Test with Red Sea
I ordered the Hanna instrument checkers and waiting for them to come in.

 

[TheHarold]

You are keeping not only one but multiple tangs in 54g, that is why they keep dying. Research would show you that they need tanks in the hundreds of gallons. There is a fish compatibly thread here that I highly suggest you visit- for the sake of your money and the lives of your aquatic critters.

 

[Hitman]

You definitely need more water flow like powerheads as I suspect you did not have enough oxygen exchange by the lack of aeration.

 

[Hitman]

Totally uncalled for. We are all here to learn and teach from our mistakes not ridicule ones choices. How do you know this person didn’t have a new home for the Tangs when they started growing?

You are keeping tangs in 54g, what do you expect but a massacre? MULTIPLE tangs that is.

 

[myyellas2k]

You are keeping tangs in 54g, what do you expect but a massacre?

No. Nothing bites and missing.
He was the first set of fish to die last time.

 

[TheHarold]

Totally uncalled for. We are all here to learn and teach from our mistakes not ridicule ones choices. How do you know this person didn’t have a new home for the Tangs when they started growing?

True- edited to be “nicer”. But yeah, multiple tangs in a 50 gallon is pretty much a death sentence for em, I think that answers his question on why it isn’t working.

 

[TheHarold]

No. Nothing bites and missing.
He was the first set of fish to die last time.

It’s not about bites- it’s about space requirements. I suggest you do some research on your critters before purchasing- there is an excellent thread here devoted to helping people make proper choices with their fish stocking.

 

[csb123]

Marine velvet can kill multiple fish quickly like this.

 

[Hitman]

I think it’s lack of O2 as there was next to no water aeration.

 

[Captain Quint]

so I just had my 2nd large massacre in 2 months.

Last month I lost a juvenile emporeror, Fox face and a yellow tang............
.............
Calcium-620
.................
The only thing I could think is it was an electrocution for my heater .... or the protein skimmer.
That’s the only 2 things that are in the water.
................

How long have you had levels on Calcium this high?

Calcium levels of 500 mg/l are higher than most run tanks at but as long the alkalinity level is also running high it may not be an issue.

When high levels (or low levels) of calcium occur in the tank and are out of balance with the alkalinity in a tank is normally where this becomes a problem.
At the same time that calcium is measured, alkalinity levels should be measured as well. There's a strong relationship between calcium levels and alkalinity that shouldn't be overlooked. If the calcium levels get >500 there is a tendency for alkalinity to drop while conversely, if alkalinity levels get too high, calcium levels will tend to fall as calcium precipitates out. I personally strive for a calcium level between 400 and 450 ppm, and alkalinity levels between 2.5-3.5 meq/L (7-10 dKH).

I am curious as to if you are using a calcium reactor or dosing kalkwasser or some other type of calcium supplement and if so you might consider dialing them back if possible. See where you alkalinity levels are and hopefully, they are on the higher side as well to be in balance with the calcium levels.

Also, do you run anything for aeration? PH's Skimmer, airstone, etcetera.

I am sorry to read of your daughter being upset and the fishes died.

 

[rkpetersen]

I did feel something when I put my hand in the tank last week.
Chaulked it up to a cut on my hand and let it go.

Fish and inverts are generally not affected much by electrical potential, as they don't provide a ground for current, and saltwater is an easier path. But, whenever a device fails this way, that device now has electrical and possibly insulation components in contact with water and is probably feverishly leaking copper, other metals, and plastics into your tank since it's still charged. This is the bigger risk to tank livestock imo.

Not sure what type of heater you've been using, but if it's a NeoTherm, make sure the case isn't cracked. I'm pretty sure this was the cause of a fish death I had a couple months ago.