Aquarium Murder Mystery

[Mackey]

Do you know where the rock came from? Was it started as dry rock of was it live rock from the gulf or something?

Got it from a guy on FB marketplace he had it for like 10 years. It looks real and has plenty of hitchhikers, all sorts of sponges, worms, feather dusters, copepods, and the like. so I bet it's real.

 

[Mackey]

Fish can be stung per se by bristle worms, but this is pretty rare and is even more so rarely fatal.

I didn't think was fatal just that bad bacteria could find a way through their small wounds and get infected

 

[Bucs20fan]

This is quite the mystery. I know youve tested your water and such, but this seems to me at least, to be more of a water quality issue. The bacterial issue could be, but not as likely to kill that many fish.

 

[Mackey]

another general note I don't think it would be problems with acclimation. I do like drip acclimation for 2-3 hours and the store I get fish from has like same salinity as mine.

 

[Bucs20fan]

If your CUC and feather dusters are alive on the rocks, its not ammonia or nitrates for sure. They would be the first to go for sure. Are you using RODI water for water changes?

 

[Mackey]

If your CUC and feather dusters are alive on the rocks, its not ammonia or nitrates for sure. They would be the first to go for sure. Are you using RODI water for water changes?

I read that RO water is not needed in fowlr systems and the only thing it could effect would be my inverts who out of everything in the tank seem to do the best.

 

[Bucs20fan]

Well I dont use RO water in my fowlr either. So you are correct. But I assume you are using Prime to dechlorinate the water?

 

[Mackey]

So if we were to say it was bacterial infections leading to all fish deaths, what would I do about?

 

[Mackey]

Well I dont use RO water in my fowlr either. So you are correct. But I assume you are using Prime to dechlorinate the water?

Indeed although I do overdose it a little, could that do anything?

 

[Mackey]

another note is that I have had bacteria blooms (tank water cloudy for a couple of days), don't know if that means anything though.

 

[Bucs20fan]

Bacterial bloom can greatly decrease oxygen content in the water. This can be a big deal. I would add an extra air stone and increase surface agitation if possible.

 

[Bucs20fan]

Indeed although I do overdose it a little, could that do anything?

the overdosing of prime wont hurt anything.

 

[Mackey]

Bacterial bloom can greatly decrease oxygen content in the water. This can be a big deal. I would add an extra air stone and increase surface agitation if possible.

yeah thats prob what killed my arrow crab, but it only happens like sometimes when I change the water

 

[Mackey]

If it is some bad bacteria what do I do to mitigate it;s effects

 

[Cell]

A lot to track in the OP.

Can you make 2 lists, one with fish that are currently alive and the other with all the fish that have died?

 

[Mackey]

A lot to track in the OP.

Can you make 2 lists, one with fish that are currently alive and the other with all the fish that have died?

oh sorry sure thing

 

[Mackey]

Dead:
2 Ocellaris Clowns
Royal Gramma
Arrow Crab
1 Blue green Chromis
Burrowing Crab
Neon Goby
Lawnmower blenny
Flame Hawkfish
Missing some small Hermits

Alive:
Rose pink Urchin
Pistol Shrimp
Yellow watchman Goby
1 Ocellaris Clown
One spot foxface
2 chromis
Coral Beauty
Camel Shrimp
Peppermint Shrimp
1 Bangaii Cardinal
a handful of margarita snails
Chocolate chip starfish
one large hermit and a few smaller ones
Emerald crab.

 

[Mackey]

Just saw my Large Hermit nip at my foxface for getting near him. Could he be doing this? I was positive it would be emerald crab. could a big hermit really cause this much devastation in a tank?

 

[Mackey]

Alright, I have decided to move all my crabs to a 5-gallon bucket in timeout and get a small rock-dwelling fish. and if at the end of 4 weeks he is fine, I will have at least some evidence that crabs are to blame, but if he dies as well, I'll know definitively that something else did it.

 

[Mikala]

How long have you had your chocolate chip star fish? I had one long ago that wiped out my entire tank, never again will I own one....