Fish Dying all of sudden

[highlite2nice]

Hello,

1st of let me start by saying I don't believe in fish dying all of a sudden, but I am losing fish and I don't know why.

3 months ago I lost a foxface that I had for over a year, it was eating and acting normally one minute and then a couple hours later it was found dead with no marks or sign of illness. I found it strange, but figured it was a random thing; now today I lost my Hippo Tang with the same type of situation eating a couple hours earlier, swimming normally then found dead with no visible sign of illness or damage

Does anyone have any idea what the issue may be? I feed once a day about a cube of frozen (am I underfeeding?)- I feed various frozen food mysis, rods, lfs, etc, sometimes throw in pellets and I usally feed a couple drops of vitamin c and or garlic)

livestock I have:
-foxface
-2 clowns
- diamond goby
cuc- blue/red leg crabs, cleaner shrimp and some snails.

I also have a Bubble tip so I wounder if the fish accidentally touched the anemone.(but agian I don't see any physical marks)

Any suggestions on what it might be?

 

[rkpetersen]

You're definitely not underfeeding.

The BTA isn't the cause.

How big is the tank? Water parameters?

When you feed pellets, do you soak them first or just toss them in dry? I had a fish die suddenly that I'm pretty sure was due to intestinal blockage caused by swelling of dry food pellets.

 

[4FordFamily]

Any other symptoms? Hiding from light, heavy breathing, loss of appetite a day or two before, dustings on the scales, spots, swimming in to powerheads?

How long has the tank been set up and can you post parameters?

Fish shouldn’t drop dead like that it’s highly unlikely to be a coincidence.

Sorry for your losses

 

[highlite2nice]

You're definitely not underfeeding.

The BTA isn't the cause.

How big is the tank? Water parameters?

When you feed pellets, do you soak them first or just toss them in dry? I had a fish die suddenly that I'm pretty sure was due to intestinal blockage caused by swelling of dry food pellets.

Tank is 150 6 foot.

nitrates 0
Temp 78-79
ph 7.82 to 8.01

I don't have a ammonia or nitrite test has I have not tested for that in a long time.

I will list reef perm, but dont think they should have an effect on fish
alk is 10.3
cal 425
mag 1300

 

[jsker]

How old is the system?

 

[cracker]

so no new fish or any changes? A fish will just up & die? Look to some sort of contaminants maybe? Have the house sprayed for bugs maybe? Ya got Little Ones ?

 

[highlite2nice]

Any other symptoms? Hiding from light, heavy breathing, loss of appetite a day or two before, dustings on the scales, spots, swimming in to powerheads?

How long has the tank been set up and can you post parameters?

Fish shouldn’t drop dead like that it’s highly unlikely to be a coincidence.

Sorry for your losses

They do not hide from light or anything they are active, eating and I can't see any physical damage or spots on them. The foxface that died 3 months ago was found stuck to the power head, but I think that was already after the fact. Now that I think about it the hippo that just died stringy poop, just looked like he ate some pieces of cheato that came up through the return line from moving my cheato around.

This tank has been up and running for a year and half.

 

[highlite2nice]

so no new fish or any changes? A fish will just up & die? Look to some sort of contaminants maybe? Have the house sprayed for bugs maybe? Ya got Little Ones ?

No new fish last one was the foxface I put in 2 months ago to replace the one that died. Yeah I have little ones, but if they contaminated the tank I would expect the other face to be struggling or the corals (including SPS) to be in ruff shape.

 

[eatbreakfast]

Were the fish juveniles or adults? Can you get pics of the other fish in the tank? If you have younger fish, then feeding only once a day isn't enough.

Unless the fish had died and been left in the tank dead, it shouldn't get stuck to the powerhead. If it was found stuck to a powerhead, then tht signifies a fish too weak to swim away.

 

[highlite2nice]

Were the fish juveniles or adults? Can you get pics of the other fish in the tank? If you have younger fish, then feeding only once a day isn't enough.

Unless the fish had died and been left in the tank dead, it shouldn't get stuck to the powerhead. If it was found stuck to a powerhead, then tht signifies a fish too weak to swim away.

This is from about 2 days before she died.

 

[eatbreakfast]

This is from about 2 days before she died.

Both of those fish are skinny. While that is likely not the cause, it very likely contributed.

 

[ccerone]

I had a Hydor Evolution powerhead with in it putting voltage in the tank. I even had a titanium grounding probe in the water. I found it when I stuck my hand in the tank and started getting shocked. The day before I lost a 6 line wrasse.

 

[Forsaken77]

Anything rusting around the tank? An algae scraper you leave in maybe? It's not always visible because it could be under the outside covers. Is there too much flow that the fish are having a hard time swimming?

 

[eatbreakfast]

Anything rusting around the tank? An algae scraper you leave in maybe? It's not always visible because it could be under the outside covers. Is there too much flow that the fish are having a hard time swimming?

If rust were the culprit,vthen the op's shrimp and other inverts would have been affected before fish. And if it were flow, the other fish would have been affected first, as the fish that were lost prefer higher flow than the other inhabitants.

 

[highlite2nice]

Thanks for the replies I am going to check for voltage and rust. Going to do a better job making sure my hands are clean before I touch the water.

 

[DeniseAndy]

Any accidental introduction of a tiny amount of chlorine will kill fish first before anything else. From hands or household spray or cleaner. Especially if it got on the food. Just a thought.

 

[4FordFamily]

Any accidental introduction of a tiny amount of chlorine will kill fish first before anything else. From hands or household spray or cleaner. Especially if it got on the food. Just a thought.

When I started this hobby I used tap water for s year and it allegedly had tons of chlorine — I wonder how that can be true?

 

[eatbreakfast]

When I started this hobby I used tap water for s year and it allegedly had tons of chlorine — I wonder how that can be true?

It would have to be a decent amount, as some have been experimenting with chlorinated bleach dosing for algae removal, and many have used tap water for top off for years.

Again, if it were a chemical contamination, the cleaner shrimp would have been the first to go.

 

[DeniseAndy]

I have unfortunately witnessed the chlorine contaminant, but it was a lot and everything died. (Not my tank). The fish went first. Just from what I experienced with that one tank. But yes, it would kill off inverts too. Did you find any stray voltage? Do you have anyone near that can do necropsies? May help.

 

[Jahalu]

Sorry for the losses. By chance, did you qt the replacement foxface you added? Just trying to be sure that the cause of death is the same for both fish.