Did I nuke my tank?

[jeffchapok]

I have a 60 gallon with HOB, mostly softies and a couple of hammers and candy cane. I just returned from a 10 day vacation. I had someone feeding my fish but no other maintenance. Everything looked great other than some cyano and GHA, which I try to clear out on a daily basis when I'm home.

So yesterday I did a 5 gal water change and scrubbed and sucked out the GHA as normal. There was a decent clump of GHA encroaching on my GSP and some zoas, so I turned off the pumps and dosed it with some H2O2, maybe 5-6 ml. I let it sit a couple of minutes then turned the pumps back on. I've done this a couple of times before with no Ill effect, although I may not have used quite so much H2O2 in the past.

Note that this is the first time I've used H2O2 since adding a condylactis, BTA, and rock flower nem to the tank. These are the first nems I've ever owned, and they've been thriving. None of them have ever moved since being established a month ago.

Within an hour or so I noticed the nems closing up. As it was getting late and the lights had begun cycling down, I didn't think too much of it. This morning, nearly everything in the tank is severely shriveled up or missing altogether. The BTA is nowhere to be found. The condy had dropped loose and was being nipped at by a clown which has never paid it any attention before. It was secreting a milky substance. I moved it immediately to my QT tank.

I performed a 15 gal water change, which is all I had prepared on hand. I also dropped a new charcoal pack into my Fluval C4. But after several hours, everything still seems to be going downhill. Strangely, it's just the corals. My fish and invertebrates seem to be unaffected.

I have a toadstool leather that looks a little shrunken but has good polyp extension, and my GSP and Kenya tree look marginal. But my hammers, mushrooms and Xenia look terrible. All zoas are completely closed up. The rock flower nem has a gaping mouth and is all drawn up.

Is there any hope at this point? Obviously the H2O2 was a bad idea, but did I simply use too much or did it shock the condy into releasing its toxins and that's what has zapped everything else? Any suggestions other than continuing water changes to try to save them?

 

[Matt Carden]

Bump

 

[NS Mike D]

An unhappy BTA nuked my tank once. They are sensitive to H2O2 and will release their toxins when melting. Keep running lots of activated carbon to remove the toxins and hang in there. With luck the other corals may bounce back. I did lose most of the new sps I had just added to my tank and a leather and a few other softies. The shrooms, candy canes and duncan and the established sps bounced back. I lost the main kenya tree but 2 pieces found their way and took root on a rock months later.

If the nem is melting and you can find it, remove it from the tank

 

[brandon429]

based on 8 years of logged peroxide threads between here, nano-reef.com and reefcentral this is my idea:

its likely none of those are going to full die. everything you mentioned doing ok matches the known tolerants listing for in-tank use, and everything acting angry meets the listing for sensitives/cautious for in tank use

in tank use being the key detail. if you pulled those rocks and worked em externally, algae control w peroxide can't be beat. but it was dosed, contacted nontargets as the issue.

the zos will not die they're the hardiest coral we keep to peroxide. they'll open. if they die, we have the first case of a full colony loss out of 10x000 treatments filed. yes we've lost an individual zo before lol when they all retracted down to one stalk for excellent conditions before the peroxide event but not active strong colonies.

I do think its a chem irritant/warfare issue as the peroxide is rendered inert in a few hours after the dose.

in no way at all was that dose enough to affect your nitrifiers. we have quarts of 35% being released into a tank on file before ammonia processing is affected. 3% can't do it at all in my opinion, but it can shock the heck out of some anemones.

 

[EW_Fish]

Ive did in tank h202 before with no effects to coral. But just take the rock out pour some on there and use a tooth brush

 

[jeffchapok]

based on 8 years of logged peroxide threads between here, nano-reef.com and reefcentral this is my idea:

its likely none of those are going to full die. everything you mentioned doing ok matches the known tolerants listing for in-tank use, and everything acting angry meets the listing for sensitives/cautious for in tank use

in tank use being the key detail. if you pulled those rocks and worked em externally, algae control w peroxide can't be beat. but it was dosed, contacted nontargets as the issue.

the zos will not die they're the hardiest coral we keep to peroxide. they'll open. if they die, we have the first case of a full colony loss out of 10x000 treatments filed. yes we've lost an individual zo before lol when they all retracted down to one stalk for excellent conditions before the peroxide event but not active strong colonies.

I do think its a chem irritant/warfare issue as the peroxide is rendered inert in a few hours after the dose.

in no way at all was that dose enough to affect your nitrifiers. we have quarts of 35% being released into a tank on file before ammonia processing is affected. 3% can't do it at all in my opinion, but it can shock the heck out of some anemones.

That's good to hear. I did pull some select rocks with nothing attached to them and treated and scrubbed them. But any with coral attached, I left in the tank. I was really only trying to spot treat a couple of areas, not trying to dose the entire tank. But of course, once it's in there, it's in there.

Hopefully I'll see some improvement once I get home tonight. I'm really going to be upset if that rock flower and my hairy mushroom don't survive. They were really looking good.

 

[brandon429]

I bet strongly they will survive but we need your data and pics n follow on them for sure, it can help others in case they don't. prediction is 95% likely to be ok in a week. 5% chance of loss
Some peoples tanks are so massive and on the verge of total takeover that the keepers want to risk anemone stress by dosing the water, its rare area to tread so at least if the insult already happened here accidentally we get to test predictions v outcomes

I will link it to this peroxide thread right here below, in a week we'll know what survived. helpful thread you made here yep.

 

[brandon429]

http://reef2reef.com/threads/reef2reef-pest-algae-challenge-thread-hydrogen-peroxide.187042/

I’ve never seen peroxide truly wipe out a tank. We collected hilarious overdoses from reefcentral my friend NaCl had a half gallon dump all at once lol from a reservoir that could possibly be considered a wipe lol but it was 35% he may as well have aimed a missile at his tank

They’re just mad and I know they look revolt mad lol but watch that fourth day they’ll pep

 

[Adventures In Reefing]

keep up with your water changes (might want to do more than 5 gallons for a bit) and activated carbon and you should be fine. BTW what are your phosphate levels?

 

[brandon429]

and detritus levels

we gotta attack that sandbed eventually (not shown, but fully assumed )

 

[jeffchapok]

I'll keep you posted. Rock flower nem fell but reattached himself, so he's still alive. The condy in QT is upright again but mostly withdrawn. Still no sign of the BTA. Hairy shroom looks a little better. No improvement for the hammers or Xenia.

 

[Adventures In Reefing]

I'll keep you posted. Rock flower nem fell but reattached himself, so he's still alive. The condy in QT is upright again but mostly withdrawn. Still no sign of the BTA. Hairy shroom looks a little better. No improvement for the hammers or Xenia.

So your Nitrate level is a bit high but i'm stumped as to why you have so much hair algae at those lvls. Do you have any Tangs? Algae eaters?

 

[jeffchapok]

No, no tangs. I have 5 or 6 turbo snails, same number of trochas, 3 or 4 emerald crabs, and who knows how many blue legged hermits. Just added two Halloween hermits yesterday prior to the disaster.

I've had 3 pincushion urchins but they all died within a couple of days. No idea why.

I'm already overpopulated with fish, or I'd add a lawnmower blenny.

 

[Cameron A]

Hydrogen peroxide can also kill good bacteria in your system depending on the dosage and concentration used. If you used a high concentration you might want to consider adding more live bacteria and definitely run some fresh activated carbon.

 

[jeffchapok]

The rock flower nem looks like he may pull through.

As may the condy, although I'm not as confident about this one.

Here's what he looked like before.

 

[BeejReef]

Hoping it all works out for you. I feel you on algae control. Hard to get really effective grazers in tanks our size. I like my lawnmower blenny, but he's not all that when it comes to algae. Snails, hermits, emeralds... they'll eat it when it's tiny and tender, but once it's even small tuft-sized, they ignore it.

Your corals are probably just upset cuz "Daddy's Home" and the massive overfeeding is coming to an end.. lol

 

[brandon429]

Ive never seen a group of angry anemones misbehave for as many days, are they much better now

they usually front all scary first 48 hrs, feign total loss, then poof on day 4 ish

 

[Warren_Jakarta]

Thanks. I had been soaking some old Marine Pur balls in 70% - didn't check how well they had been rinsed and dumped them (dry) into my sump before running out of the house yesterday. S&*t is going on right now in the 130g tank - snails started to drop off the sides, cleaner shrimp are missing and my BTA is going downhill. I'm running carbon with fingers crossed. I care but just very glad you posted about the other "Big Ooops" others have had. It was stupid for me to walk away yesterday - I believed that the flow and the dryness would have taken care of any residual. Yep - 70% H2O2.

 

[Warren_Jakarta]

Thanks. I had been soaking some old Marine Pur balls in 70% - didn't check how well they had been rinsed and dumped them (dry) into my sump before running out of the house yesterday. S&*t is going on right now in the 130g tank - snails started to drop off the sides, cleaner shrimp are missing and my BTA is going downhill. I'm running carbon with fingers crossed. I care but just very glad you posted about the other "Big Ooops" others have had. It was stupid for me to walk away yesterday - I believed that the flow and the dryness would have taken care of any residual. Yep - 70% H2O2.

BTA has recovered this morning - snails were toasted though. Not even a trace of my cleaner shrimp but the hermit crabs didn't missed a beat through this stupidity. I have a chiton that is a little bit ill and need to monitor. Tank is looking fresh though. I care alot for these creatures - just reporting this for the next person that does an "Oops" and presenting the brightside. Brandon429 - you are a solid dude! Thanks,