A little help please.

[NewbsReef]

Hello all! I'll try to explain this the best I can, I'm still pretty new to this hobby. I have a biocube 29 with a AI Hydra 26 HD Lighting. Basic filtration, no bio balls. Just filter pads/floss. biocubes protein skimmer (junk). Weekly water changes (5 gal). The tank has been up and running for exactly a year now. Up until a few weeks ago I noticed my hammers / torch / frogspawn tucking away. they where all doing good the couple of months I had them in the tank. So I moved them to the sand bed, less flow lighting probably still the same. These past few days I've lost 1 hammer and the torch. Other 2 hammers look like they are on there way along with 1 of the frogspawn. I don't know what's going on and why I can't keep these things alive. My zoas, green goblin, GSP and Duncan's are all doing fine and loving the nano reef life. Any advice would be helpful!

Tank parameters as of 6/6 @ 1:30 am
Ph 8.0
Nitrite 0 ppm
Nitrate 5.0 ppm
Ammonia 0.25 ppm
Salinity 1.025
Phosphate 0.25 ppm
Ca .375 ppm
Kh 2.9 meg. 8.1 DKH
Mg 1520 ppm

And here is my current light settings

 

[Coastie Reefer]

Any pics? Brownish slime on them anywhere?

 

[NewbsReef]

Any pics? Brownish slime on them anywhere?

No brownish slim to be seen. Here I just took these. I know they aren't great pic

 

[Brew12]

No brownish slim to be seen. Here I just took these. I know they aren't great pic

Have you changed your mechanical filtration or done any dosing?

 

[fragit]

You shouldn't be testing any ammonia in your system are you sure that's accurate? Especially since you have 0.0 Nitrite, and are showing Nitrate at 5.0.

 

[sbash]

What test kits are you using? If you are registering ammonia, that is a problem... However, if the system is a year old I suspect that is just a result from a bad test kit. Best get another brand of Ammonia tests and verify...

IF you are actually reading ammonia, you need to fix that. A death in the tank could cause a small spike, dramatically overfeeding could cause it, or something funky rotting in your filtration I suppose could cause it too...

Given you are showing (what I consider high) nitrate levels as well as phosphates, there could definitely be something off here. So, how much do you feed and how many fish do you have (and what are they)?

In the short term, do a large water change to help mitigate...

 

[fragit]

I have to disagree with the above about nitrates of 5.0. There are plenty of folks out there and many of the more popular vendors with really successful tanks running nitrates that are way higher and I mean WAY HIGHER. But I do agree that you definitely need to track down the source of ammonia or confirm with another test kit.

 

[NewbsReef]

What test kits are you using? If you are registering ammonia, that is a problem... However, if the system is a year old I suspect that is just a result from a bad test kit. Best get another brand of Ammonia tests and verify...

IF you are actually reading ammonia, you need to fix that. A death in the tank could cause a small spike, dramatically overfeeding could cause it, or something funky rotting in your filtration I suppose could cause it too...

Given you are showing (what I consider high) nitrate levels as well as phosphates, there could definitely be something off here. So, how much do you feed and how many fish do you have (and what are they)?

In the short term, do a large water change to help mitigate...

I'm using the API test kit and redsea test kit. Says it expires in 2019. Could be a test kit. I'll probably get a new one this weekend, any recommendations? I feed once or twice a week. And target feed the corals once a week. I have 4 fish. 2 clowns, 1 wrasse and 1 lawnmower blenny. Should I do a 15 gal water change this week then?

 

[fragit]

I just lost one of my hammers recently for no apparent reason it started to withdraw its polyps. Then one morning I realized that one or some of my fish were continuously stirring up the sand and irritating it. By the time I figured it out it was too late and it let go of all of it's polyps. Anything like that happening with your wrasses? With that feeding schedule I doubt your over feeding. You didn't have any fish die, or any inverts like star fish? Before you go spend your $$$ on test kits, I would run your ammonia test kit again. Maybe it was user error?

 

[NewbsReef]

I just lost one of my hammers recently for no apparent reason it started to withdraw its polyps. Then one morning I realized that one or some of my fish were continuously stirring up the sand and irritating it. By the time I figured it out it was too late and it let go of all of it's polyps. Anything like that happening with your wrasses? With that feeding schedule I doubt your over feeding. You didn't have any fish die, or any inverts like star fish? Before you go spend your $$$ on test kits, I would run your ammonia test kit again. Maybe it was user error?

I'll run the ammonia test again tonight, It could be user error. No fish have died and I have no starfish. I don't see the wrasse messing with anything. I had the hammer and frogspawn up high but put the low a few day ago thinking the lighting may have been to intense for them.

 

[Stolireef]

I guarantee you don't have ammonia. If you did, you also be showing a nitrite reading. Since it's just your euphillia (yep, lousy speller) I'd suggest something is picking on them that you don't notice during the day.

 

[NewbsReef]

You could be right. Hmmmm, I wonder what could be picking on them then.

 

[fragit]

Could be anything really. Your only feeding once or twice a week, which in my opinion is not enough. Could be starving fish, hermit crabs, bristle worms, or even mini brittle stars or pods. Those are some tasty tentacles to a starving marine organism.

 

[NewbsReef]

How often should I feed? I didn't want to overdue it.

 

[fragit]

I feed my fish twice a day during the week and 3-4 times on weekends. It all depends on the fish species though. With your fish I would feed once a day at least. Your right in not over doing it. For instance wrasse are active fish and need the fuel unless you have tons of pods they can eat all day. What and how much are you feeding?

 

[NewbsReef]

Oh wow, I'm really starving my fish then haha. I'll up my feedings then. Im feeding Rods food and mysis shrimp. Amount wise I can't really tell, enough to feed all the fish and give them a belly.

 

[NewbsReef]

Okay my ammonia is reading 0 ppm (user error)

 

[fragit]

Sweet!