Crashing after water change

[Pharmasea]

I did a larger water change last night ~40% to lower nitrates that were around 20 ppm. After the water change my inverts died within an hour or two and all of my fish were at the bottom of the tank hiding behind the rock work gasping. I netted them out and into my QT and within 30 minutes they were swimming around and no longer gasping. It's been 24 hours since the water change and still if I reintroduce a fish back into the tank after a few hours they are hiding behind the rocks gasping. In general, the corals and rbta seem somewhat stressed- but not completely closed up. Originally, I thought I may have put in water without giving it enough time to mix, however, since it still has the same effect on the fish a day later I'm worried it could be something else. I did notice there was what I assumed was an algae growing in small dot-like colonies all over the glass and after the water change they had a white stringy substance coming off, I'm not sure if that is related.

Using API test kit Ammonia is ~0.25ppm, Nitrite undetectable, Nitrate ~10 ppm, dKH ~7-7.5, pH 8.0

 

[drawman]

Are you making your own RODI water? Anything new about your storage methods? Is it possible that a chemical could have been put in your mixing container?

 

[Pharmasea]

I buy my RODI water from LFS in the same refillable container every week. They mix it at 1.019 and I add reef salt up to 1.025. Also, I used some of the "new" RODI water from my most recent visit to top off my QT tank, and although it was a much smaller % compared to the MT there haven't been any issues in it.

 

[drawman]

I buy my RODI water from LFS in the same refillable container every week. They mix it at 1.019 and I add reef salt up to 1.025. Also, I used some of the "new" RODI water from my most recent visit to top off my QT tank, and although it was a much smaller % compared to the MT there haven't been any issues in it.

I would check everything with the tank over twice. In the meantime you may want to run carbon and a polyfilter.

Also you buy RODI and saltwater from them separately, correct?

 

[Billldg]

A 40 percent water change, though large, shouldn't effect anything to the point of killing it. My concern is did you introduce something into the tank accidentally by buying the water and not making it yourself. I have done several water changes in the past well above 50 percent and nothing has happened, but I make my own RO/DI water. With the fish gasping it sounds like the oxygen in the water is low, I would aim a powerhead towards the surface to start to help oxygenate the water.

 

[Pharmasea]

I would check everything with the tank over twice. In the meantime you may want to run carbon and a polyfilter.

Also you buy RODI and saltwater from them separately, correct?

Yes, however, I only added the saltwater. I currently have chemipure blue and chemipure elite in the back chamber- should I add carbon separately?

 

[Pharmasea]

...I would aim a powerhead towards the surface to start to help oxygenate the water.

Done

 

[Viking_Reefing]

I buy my RODI water from LFS in the same refillable container every week. They mix it at 1.019 and I add reef salt up to 1.025. Also, I used some of the "new" RODI water from my most recent visit to top off my QT tank, and although it was a much smaller % compared to the MT there haven't been any issues in it.

It sounds like some sort of contaminant made its way in to your tank. I would so more WCs, add carbon etc.

No other possible causes for your problems apart from the WC? No one sprayed anything close to your tank or perhaps pesticides outside?

Anyways, I would take this as your que to invest in a RODI unit, that way you’re not reliant on other people’s competence

 

[Pharmasea]

It sounds like some sort of contaminant made its way in to your tank. I would so more WCs, add carbon etc.

No other possible causes for your problems apart from the WC? No one sprayed anything close to your tank or perhaps pesticides outside?

Anyways, I would take this as your que to invest in a RODI unit, that way you’re not reliant on other people’s competence

I did unhook my pump, remove it and replace it, but that was after the initial invert die off. I've had a growing number of vermitids and other small hitchhikers for a while is it possible something like that died from shock from salinity swing during the water change and fouled the water? I didn't wait a full day for storebought water to settle after increasing salinity from 1.019 - 1.025

 

[drawman]

Yes, however, I only added the saltwater. I currently have chemipure blue and chemipure elite in the back chamber- should I add carbon separately?

If it is in a media bag my guess is it is fine to combine but I've never used those other medias so I cannot speak completely on them.

I agree with @MichaelE on the RODI unit long term.

 

[OrionN]

Something bad in the water of your tank. Seem to introduce from the water change. Source of this badness:

Somebody did something during/around the time of the water change. An example to d this is cleaning the glass with Windex and accidentally got some in the tank, something on your hand or in the container or other equipments used to do water change.

Something bad introduced in the RODI like Carbon run out and Chlorine ate up the membrane resulting in huge about of solutes in the supposed RO water and this overwhelmed the DI result in essentially raw water instead of RODI. This was not catch by whoever making the salt water.

Bad salt mix result in bad water.

if you are sure the result of this bad water in your tank is not from you, then it got to be bad water you got from the LFS. Should have this water test. Both the new water and your tank water test as best as you can.
The solution to this is more water change with good water.
If you eliminate the cause of this “bad” is from you equipments or what you do then it got to be in the water that you bought.
This is not due to low O2. Fish just don’t get hypoxia from water change, especially after a day. Salinity can be check and double and triple check. Temperature differences can be a major stress, especially with cold winter and the water did not get heat up prior to change but this should improved after several hours, unlikely that this would result in die off that start to crash your system.
There have a number of cases when reefers bought water from LFS and got bad water that crashed their tank over the years.

 

[huckjai]

How long did you mix the salt you added? Can get inaccurate readings if not mixed throughly.

Also, do you heat your new water for changes? I always do to make sure temp is matched to my display.

 

[HKAVR45]

How long did you mix the salt you added? Can get inaccurate readings if not mixed throughly.

Also, do you heat your new water for changes? I always do to make sure temp is matched to my display.

I'd have to second this thought about temperature. When I do a smaller WC sometimes I don't bother heating the water anything larger I always heat.

One other thought: When you did the WC, did you stir up alot of detritus? I had minor crash after moving rocks around to catch a damsel fish.

 

[The last don]

I did a larger water change last night ~40% to lower nitrates that were around 20 ppm. After the water change my inverts died within an hour or two and all of my fish were at the bottom of the tank hiding behind the rock work gasping. I netted them out and into my QT and within 30 minutes they were swimming around and no longer gasping. It's been 24 hours since the water change and still if I reintroduce a fish back into the tank after a few hours they are hiding behind the rocks gasping. In general, the corals and rbta seem somewhat stressed- but not completely closed up. Originally, I thought I may have put in water without giving it enough time to mix, however, since it still has the same effect on the fish a day later I'm worried it could be something else. I did notice there was what I assumed was an algae growing in small dot-like colonies all over the glass and after the water change they had a white stringy substance coming off, I'm not sure if that is related.

Using API test kit Ammonia is ~0.25ppm, Nitrite undetectable, Nitrate ~10 ppm, dKH ~7-7.5, pH 8.0

Other than the 0.25 ammonia that’s the parameters I’ve had for the past year or so.

 

[The last don]

U said you bring the salt up from 1.019 to 1.025..
Are use using the Same salt as the one the fish shop use.
And yes mixing at he wrong temp can give a different reading. I had this with a particular brand off salt. Luckily I did it as an experiment so no harm done.

 

[GodZillaReef]

How are you measuring the SG??

 

[Thaxxx]

Yeah, that 0.25 ammonia level is a concern. It could be higher API test accuracy isn't the best. If that's the case, and your fish were fine before the 40% water change, your water source is bad. I would test that 1.019 water source if you have some left.

 

[vetteguy53081]

If salt wasn't fully desolved, you may have had a huge inbalance of salt, temperature difference and even PH change.
Next time, if you do this method,,,, test water PRIOR to entering it into aquarium.

 

[Pharmasea]

How long did you mix the salt you added? Can get inaccurate readings if not mixed throughly.

Also, do you heat your new water for changes? I always do to make sure temp is matched to my display.

I let it sit for an hour after mixing, I had just brought it from LFS beforehand but I didn't check the temp. Previously, when I've come straight from LFS and stuck my heater in one of the containers it was already reading 78 so I haven't been checking.

I stirred up a little detritus but nothing out of the ordinary, I try to suction gravel fairly regularly but didn't do any suction this time.

I'm using Instant Ocean Reef Crystals, I'm not sure what LFS use but I can ask when I go.

I'm measuring SG with one of the little hydrometers with the arrow. When I test store bought water it shows up at 1.019 like they advertise and my water continues to show 1.025

My API test kit has always shown 0.25 ppm ammonia since cycling the tank, so I should probably get a test with more specificity.


Fast forward to today: After getting home from work- corals seem ok, blasto, paly, and zoa's are open. There was an algae bloom on the rocks and some sections of the glass with air bubbles on top. I added a bag of activated carbon to the back chamber, so between the chemipure blue, elite, and that I'm hoping that will be able to scrub out anything I need to. The only LFS open outside of my work hours today didn't sell water, so I will have to try and get some tomorrow morning before work from my normal store.

I haven't tried reintroducing fish again yet, I was planning to wait at least another day. I don't want to leave them in QT tank for too much longer, though, because it's a little crowded.

 

[huckjai]

I let it sit for an hour after mixing, I had just brought it from LFS beforehand but I didn't check the temp. Previously, when I've come straight from LFS and stuck my heater in one of the containers it was already reading 78 so I haven't been checking.

I stirred up a little detritus but nothing out of the ordinary, I try to suction gravel fairly regularly but didn't do any suction this time.

I'm using Instant Ocean Reef Crystals, I'm not sure what LFS use but I can ask when I go.

I'm measuring SG with one of the little hydrometers with the arrow. When I test store bought water it shows up at 1.019 like they advertise and my water continues to show 1.025

My API test kit has always shown 0.25 ppm ammonia since cycling the tank, so I should probably get a test with more specificity.


Fast forward to today: After getting home from work- corals seem ok, blasto, paly, and zoa's are open. There was an algae bloom on the rocks and some sections of the glass with air bubbles on top. I added a bag of activated carbon to the back chamber, so between the chemipure blue, elite, and that I'm hoping that will be able to scrub out anything I need to. The only LFS open outside of my work hours today didn't sell water, so I will have to try and get some tomorrow morning before work from my normal store.

I haven't tried reintroducing fish again yet, I was planning to wait at least another day. I don't want to leave them in QT tank for too much longer, though, because it's a little crowded.

Did you check the salinity recently? Just curious what's it at after adding the newly mixed water after the water change. I usually mix my salt water the night before a water change and run a power head in it to continue mixing it up. 12 hours minimum.

I think it may have been a sudden temp drop that caused stress on your livestock if your salinity reads fine. I would definitely check temps next time for large water changes. What's your total system volume and how old is your tank?

You can add a couple fish at a time and see how they do.