Clown fish died. ph is 7.9. Could this be why?

[Paul B]

Sorry about this but the first thing you should do is throw out that pH test kit.
Your clownfish doesn't care what the pH is at all.

It has nothing to do with fish health (to a point of course)

I have not tested my pH probably since 1980.
Nitrates and phosphates also won't kill your clownfish. It died from parasites which all fish are infected with when they are collected and when you buy them.

There is a ton of information for you to read on here but it is very common to lose fish in a brand new tank and not your fault.
In that new tank you will need to quarantine your new fish. I am very much against quarantining but in your case, thats what I would do.

That tank need a lot more time to mature and you will have some set backs along the way.

But like I said, go to sleep, you didn't kill that fish.

 

[nano reef]

I actually did kill my fish I am pretty sure. I just realized not long ago what happened. I basically hate waterlines and I have a rimless tank, so I decided the day it died to fill it to the top! There was barely any flow because I did that . Not like usual when the water from filter its falling further. I also didnt have my wavemaker hooked up because I have no corals and didnt think I needed it. I didnt realize about the oxygenation effect from having a lot of flow. After I realized what I did we went a bit crazy and bought an aqua clear 50 for a 10 gallon, and my old aquarium cracked so I bought a new aqueon ascend. The back is higher than the front supposedly designed that way to hide waterline when viewed straight on. Luckily I had just bought it on clearance afew days before so I had it on hand when my other one cracked. Anyway, there is a much steeper drop for the water to fall and the 50 is putting out 200 gph, plus my nano wave maker is 240 gph. I am going to go back to the aquaclear 30 though because it still didnt seem to raise ph and just to much flow. My fish do love playing in the current. Its really cute, they swim up to the wave maker and let it throw them back, the bigger of the two does it all the time!

I am not concerned about the ph anymore especially Knowing what I did but plan to get corals soon and I read they grow faster and more colorful with higher ph, so I i will see how my frags grow.(plan on getting two this weeked) If they grow at a reality fast paced, then I will leave it alone. One of my snails died, probably starvation. Those astrea never even moved or searched for food in my tank. I never see them moving at my lfs either. My nassarius dont move very much or attempt to get any detritus either. I bought a tiny blue leg hermit, maybe it will actually go after food, hasnt done much yet but maybe adjusting to my tank, just got it yesterday. I won't add anymore CUC until I get algae, because I have none. Just keep turkey basting food I guess, but left it under bridge where my hermit hangs out! Thanks again everyone for all your help and imput!

 

[ScottR]

What do you mean go fallow? Did you mean fowler? I had no corals? Just snails. I did get a pair of clownfish on sat. I had the snails I didnt want to die as well and also worried about nothing but them in it. Like what would they eat? I had got the food out after the fish died because I was worried about the amonia. These snails dont seem to go after any food.

The first day the one clown didnt eat much, now they are both eatting well. Seem to be doing awesome but then again my first one did for a week. No one said I shouldnt put any other in so I went ahead. If something happens to these I wont but I dont know what to do after that.. Someone said keep fingers crossed these days when buying fish. I hope I just got unlucky somehow. I did do a drip acclimation this time as well.

I am still getting mostly 7.9 ph and 8 ph as well. I didnt change my filter because my hubby threw the box away and it had a part in it I need! I might be getting a 15 gallon aio that is used, mainly to have a protein skimmer. I am also looking at a lower GPH powerhead on amazon I see some inexpensive ones that are powerheads and not wavemakers and less gallons per hour until my fish get bigger. Plus I can use it for water changes and all. I have been reading about powerheads tonight and something about it pulling up food into the water column and the filter sucking it out (not to mention aerating water) i wish I had bought and adjustable wavemaker. Its a koralia nano though. I did read there are lot of reason for a powerhead as well and mine is a wavemaker. I think I might have called it a powerhead though. I kind of got those confused until the reading I am doing tonight. I thought they were both the same and just another term for it.

Thanks so much and I will read that. I am getting 7.9 and 8.0 and havnt hooked up wavemaker yet or filter since my hubby threw box away with a part in it! Of course he dienies it...lol. I think i am just going to order a cheap lil powerhead for now that has less gph then my wave maker. I do have a lil food on bottom since I got these two new fish. I am going to get it out with my turkey baster tomorrow. Think I may get a hermit crab also to get any uneaten food or the powerhead might move it to the water column to get up by the filter??

Fallow refers to the time period in which you keep zero fish in your tank so that the parasites die off. They need fish to complete their life cycle. Snails and other inverts can’t get sickened by those parasites but can carry it into your tank. Whether you had a parasite or not is hard to say without identifying the carcass of the fish. For pH, trust me, you are overlooking this. 7.9 and 8 is not a problem for fish. I know vendors recommend 8.1-8.3 or whatever they say. This is just an ideal set of numbers that some hobbyists struggle with. I have a loaded tank and 7.9 and 8.0 aren’t uncommon. I have successfully increased it a single point to 8.1 and no difference to be seen.

 

[nano reef]

Fallow refers to the time period in which you keep zero fish in your tank so that the parasites die off. They need fish to complete their life cycle. Snails and other inverts can’t get sickened by those parasites but can carry it into your tank. Whether you had a parasite or not is hard to say without identifying the carcass of the fish. For pH, trust me, you are overlooking this. 7.9 and 8 is not a problem for fish. I know vendors recommend 8.1-8.3 or whatever they say. This is just an ideal set of numbers that some hobbyists struggle with. I have a loaded tank and 7.9 and 8.0 aren’t uncommon. I have successfully increased it a single point to 8.1 and no difference to be seen.

Oh,I realize that now about ph, but at the beginning I thought maybe that killed the fish. Its funny how you read they need 8.0 or over but these fish seem to be fine. Plus all of you said that 7.9 is fine, so I am not chasing it, as a matter of fact going to return my ph probe! Big waste of money!

What i find curious about my new fish is how much their color faded. I think I read cyanide caught fish take on a reddish hue. The bigger of the two was a bright vivid orange! The LFS had 2 batches. One medium size and other small, so I got one from each batch all housed together. After a while I noticed their color fading so kind of worried me at first, because when my other fish got sick,or lack of oxygen or whatever it was thats when I noticed it losing color. When i was at her shop getting RODI she still has some from the batches and they have lost color in her tanks as well. Sucks because they were so bright and I hope they dont get sick if they are cyanide caught! I know I read that freshwater fish get injected with dye sometime to make them look more appealing so maybe that happened but seems like that would be hard to do to an ocellaris because the white bars would take on some of the orange!

 

[W1ngz]

as a matter of fact going to return my ph probe! Big waste of money!

Knowing your pH isn't a waste, it's another tool and indicator of the overall performance and health of the tank. It's more abstract than say, calcium, which is a direct measurement of something specific in the water but as you gain more experience you may find yourself wanting to know your typical daily high and low pH number.

What i find curious about my new fish is how much their colour faded. I think I read cyanide caught fish take on a reddish hue.

Most fish that are stressed will show some sort of colour change. This can happen because of a lot of things like being bagged and moved, a new environment, something in the water. You can't tell if a fish was cyanide caught based on colour. The only test for cyanide I've ever heard of is done with dead fish where they are minced up and the remains are tested. There is no hobby level or home test for it.

 

[Gareth elliott]

Ph probe can help with the amount of change at unexpected times, or jumps that above your tanks norm.

Some examples

Your alkalinity doser adds too much and ph jumps from a monthly average reading at 1:00pm from 8.2 to 8.7. You now have an indicator that you need to check your doser or kalk drip.

Your co2 solenoid on your cal rx fails open. Causing a huge beyond norm drop in your tank ph.

 

[nano reef]

Oh,I realize that now about ph, but at the beginning I thought maybe that killed the fish. Its funny how you read they need 8.0 or over but these fish seem to be fine. Plus all of you said that 7.9 is fine, so I am not chasing it, as a matter of fact going to return my ph probe! Big waste of money!

What i find curious about my new fish is how much their color faded. I think I read cyanide caught fish take on a reddish hue. The bigger of the two was a bright vivid orange! The LFS had 2 batches. One medium size and other small, so I got one from each batch all housed together. After a while I noticed their color fading so kind of worried me at first, because when my other fish got sick,or lack of oxygen or whatever it was thats when I noticed it losing color. When i was at her shop getting RODI she still has some from the batches and they have lost color in her tanks as well. Sucks because they were so bright and I hope they dont get sick if they are cyanide caught! I know I read that freshwater fish get injected with dye sometime to make them look more appealing so maybe that happened but seems like that would be hard to do to an ocellaris because the white bars would take on some of the orange!

I picked up my first corals today on ebay from a local person. I got a rainbow acan, huge buttons for 20 bucks and a digitata and some other sps for 5 bucks a piece! I might trade with my lfs for the montiporas because don't want to start with sps but couldnt resist! I read they weren't hard sps but that they grow so fast that they cosume more calcium and the xtra dosing could mess up water chemistry or something like that, of course I read that after I placed the bid! LOL. After that I found a lot of locals on offerup selling cheapfrags. I never noticed that before and I thought I had checked! Some great deals. Frags starting at 5 bucks as well! My lfs has acans at 10 a head and duncans 10 a frag no matter how many heads but I dont think she has rainbows for that price! So stocked! I love acans too I want to make an acan and a zoa garden!

Ph probe can help with the amount of change at unexpected times, or jumps that above your tanks norm.

Some examples

Your alkalinity doser adds too much and ph jumps from a monthly average reading at 1:00pm from 8.2 to 8.7. You now have an indicator that you need to check your doser or kalk drip.

Your co2 solenoid on your cal rx fails open. Causing a huge beyond norm drop in your tank ph.

I wonder if maybe the place they came from either injected them with dye or color enhancing food or something. Its not like they are super pale but no where near as vivid as when I got them. I picked out the one fish in particular because he was really vivid almost a neon orange . She had about 15 of them from 2 batches. I change water every week and get it from my lfs because she sells fritz rpm premixed salt for 1 buck a gallon, a tuesday only sale. I have kept an eye on the rest of the fish from those two batches and they arent as bright as when first arrived either. Maybe its the food that her and I feed them . I am feeding just omega one mini pellets with garlic. What is a good pellet food? Maybe a color enhancing one as well. ALos maybe I need to mix it up with some frozen brine shrimp. Just dont want then to get spoiled haha. Like my dogs

As far as their behavor goes they dont act sick, they are swimming around eating well and all, playing in the flow. I am sure they are fine, just wondered why the whole batch lost some of their color.
As far as ph goes. I still check it. I just meant I was going to return the expensive probe and keep with my test kits like I do with all my other parameters but i spent xtra for the ph one and I didnt realize that you have to buy all these 2 part calibrating fluid, plus cleaning fluid then a storage fluid, plus they recomend calibrating every time! It is nice getting that precise diital read out then trying to tell a slight change from 7.9 to 8.3 or something. but its just way to expensive to check that way. If anything maybe more important to pay xtra for a alkalinity tester. I looked into that and you have to buy the calibrating liquids for that to. I think I called it a probe but its like a dipstick. A hanna checker. One day I may get a probe set that you put in the sump. Maybe after the initial start up costs and already buying a bigger tank, corals equipment , water, upgrading constanly it seems as well from my light to my filter , my tank. but one day this constant spending has to slow down..hopefully! haha. I am already cutting back on fillers..lol. No more botox either...something got to give!

 

[Gareth elliott]

Fish color is heavily dependent on three things.

Stress- stressed fish are usually less bright, evolutionarily speaking this is to better hide from predators. This can be as simple as moving fish from point a to point b.

Diet- this is over time not an immediate effect, beta carotenoids are far and away the largest group of chemicals that have to do with this.

Light- most importantly is the wavelengths of light used to light the tank. Very few fish have a color because of pigment. The gig example is the color blue. There are only 2 truly blue animals on the planet the blue anole and the blue dragonette. All other blue fish are blue because of refraction of light in their scales. Change the wavelength of light and the fish’s color is different.

the reason we use ph is because how inexpensive it is compared to other automated testing Equipment and lack of a need for reagents. I use an automated alkalinity tester, it was expensive $800 or so. It also requires regular purchases of reagents to work, has a much longer complex setup, and just isnt within the grasp of many reefers budget. It also does not tell the whole story. If you have co2 issue in your tank, you will never know via alkalinity testing. As you can have a high alkalinity and low ph if co2 is high enough.