Ex girlfriend tried to nuke my tank...help please!

[Steve Jewell]

My ex girlfriend moved out while I was gone and as she was walking by my 150 gallon tall tank that is just finishing it's cycle (Nitrites 0.5) Dumped 1/2 a bottle of beer (Michelob ultra light) into the tank.

Anyone had any experience in this and what do you recommend??

 

[LVE]

Do you have any livestock in the tank currently? Either way, I'd start by doing the largest water change possible to be safe

 

[Dr. Reef Verified Sponsor]

It's not a big deal. Tank is still cycling. Just do couple of water changes, maybe 10% today and another 10% tomorrow etc and let it be.
Beer has carbohydrates and they will break down to sugar and it's like carbon dosing.
No harm here. Honestly I wouldn't even worry about water change either.

 

[rob safron]

Well she’s a nice gal.

 

[clsanchez77]

Well, if your tank is like me, it will now have the ***** for half a day, but otherwise will be fine. In all seriousness, your ex dumped a large carbon source in the tank. Since you were just cycling the tank, you probably have a decent nitrate and phosphate source. This will lead to a small one time bacteria bloom. Turn the skimmer up to remove the extra biomass and prevent an oxygen depletion event. Otherwise, perhaps drop in some activated carbon to remove any other traces the beer would have left.

Water changes are always a good idea, especially after cycling. No harm in doing that, but don't kill yourself over it if you can't come up with another 150 gallons right away. Skimmer plus carbon will get you through this.

Be thankful she chose a beer and not a household cleaner. Know that people dose vodka in their tanks for a controlled carbon source - this is not the end of the world, just an inconvenience.

I would say be ticked about losing the beer, but Michelob

Best of luck!

 

[JDowns]

That’s one more to add to the list.

Ex-GF....NOT Reef Safe!

 

[Sarah24!]

Hello,

Good lord, and she did this to be mean. I’m sorry but if someone did this to my tank to be mean and malicious I certainly would press charges. Even if your tank is cycling, as others have stated, (not huge biggie) but do you know if she put anything else in there? These systems are not cheap to set up. I’m sorry this happened, your better off with out someone who is that destructive. Hope everything goes okay with your tank.

 

[tangtime]

Why is it all the g/f or wife trying to poison ppl tanks? You rarely hear about that from a guy.

But half a beer or so, things should be alright.

 

[Steve Jewell]

Thank you all for your responses...Moral of the story...find a girlfriend that loves your tank as much as you!!

 

[K. Steven]

You're fine, she basically poured 6 ounces of water in your tank.

 

[tangtime]

You're fine, she basically poured 6 ounces of water in your tank.

Haha

 

[redfishbluefish]

I have to agree that half a bottle of beer is nothing....barely feeding the bacteria with that weak load.

But what bothers me more is that this is the third time I've heard ex's attempting to poison the tank on their way out. One was with supposedly dish soap that killed the entire tank. Tried to take it to court, but it was he said, she said. Why, why, why kill totally harmless, defenseless animals. I don't get it.

 

[Steve Jewell]

They know how much you love it and they are trying to inflict pain. She also too my 5 yo German Shepherd...That one hurts worse!!

 

[drawman]

Looks like she did you a favor by walking out the door .

 

[andyg1960]

Thank her for leaving

 

[Tautog]

Apparently you made the mistake spending more time with the tank. But in the early going? That’s not fair, but you should call her or text her to thank her for adding a beer, it’s helping cycle your tank. But here’s just another reason to involve your other half. Or a great reason to have Piranhas, leave for week, and ask her to hand feed your fish. When you return, no girlfriend and fat fish!

 

[Skynyrd Fish]

She should be seen by a professional for alcohol abuse.

 

[Jeepguy242]

She showed her true colors.


I lost a lot more than a tank when my wife decided to show her true colors. Half a house and 1k a month child support, and she was the one who cheated!

 

[OriginalUserName]

The lesson here is don't date crazy. Or maybe the lesson is do date crazy but make sure they prefer lite beer to hard liquor.

 

[Greybeard]

Consider yourself lucky. There are lots of other items around the typical household that would have been disastrous. Lite lager style beer? No big deal. It's 'hop and grain tea'. 90% + Water, a very small amount of alcohol, and some plant extracts. Eh.

Couple of ounces of diswashing detergent... you could have had a heck of a mess on your hands.