Fish keep dying

[jordan5522]

Ok so I’ve been in fish for a while and I’ve never had a problem with this before. Every time I add a new fish to the tank they eat for one day and then they don’t eat again the next day or the following day and then they die but I have a clown fish that has survived the process, and he eats every single day, but any other fish I add will just die and they’re healthy fish that I’m getting from the fish store. I have some corals and some margarita hermit crabs and some snails to help clean up the tank. But I got a water test done and everything came back great except for phosphates works for a little higher but I put some GFO in reactor the sump to help reduce that. But I was wondering if anyone has an idea of what it possibly could be the fish don’t have any spots on them. Nothing when they die the bellies look sunken in that’s about it.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Ok so I’ve been in fish for a while and I’ve never had a problem with this before. Every time I add a new fish to the tank they eat for one day and then they don’t eat again the next day or the following day and then they die but I have a clown fish that has survived the process, and he eats every single day, but any other fish I add will just die and they’re healthy fish that I’m getting from the fish store. I have some corals and some margarita hermit crabs and some snails to help clean up the tank. But I got a water test done and everything came back great except for phosphates works for a little higher but I put some GFO in reactor the sump to help reduce that. But I was wondering if anyone has an idea of what it possibly could be the fish don’t have any spots on them. Nothing when they die the bellies look sunken in that’s about it.

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

It’s possible that the cases aren’t all related. Or there could be a similarity - for example, if your tank is at full salinity, but your store keeps there fish in low salinity, the fish could just be failing to acclimate. Clowns can also be rough on new fish, that could play a role.
I’d suggest quarantining all new fish with copper and praziquantel….it takes time and an extra tank, but it cuts losses quite a bit.
Jay

 

[Sharkbait19]

What is your acclimation process? I’d agree it has something to do with that.

 

[jordan5522]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

It’s possible that the cases aren’t all related. Or there could be a similarity - for example, if your tank is at full salinity, but your store keeps there fish in low salinity, the fish could just be failing to acclimate. Clowns can also be rough on new fish, that could play a role.
I’d suggest quarantining all new fish with copper and praziquantel….it takes time and an extra tank, but it cuts losses quite a bit.
Jay

Ok I can try quarantining new fish but I never did that before because I never had that problem of quarantining fish to get them acclimated, but it never hurts to try guess but how long would you recommend to keep them in quarantine before putting them in the display Tank?

 

[jordan5522]

What is your acclimation process? I’d agree it has something to do with that.

I acclimate fish. I do the drip method for at least an hour, and then I add them into the tank. and it’s never been a problem for me in the past but now, for some reason they just won’t survive like they’ll just eat and then they’ll just stop eating the next day.

 

[AydenLincoln]

What are your parameters?

 

[jordan5522]

What are your parameters?

I can’t remember what the guy at the fish store had told me but he told that everything was good except my phosphates. He ran a full test on it for me. He told that he would suggest mixing general cure and focus in the fish food for 2 weeks just to see if that could be the problem w internal parasites. But I tried today and the new fish wouldn’t eat it.

 

[Lavey29]

Your tank needs to stay fallow for 76 days

 

[1fastfxr]

+1 to some parameter is off if every new introduction is dying. How many have there been? I highly recommend qt also. My method is to make sure the fish is eating. Then raise copper level (I use Copper Power) to approximately 2.5 ppm over a 4 or 5 day period. I also add MetroPlex to the water column every other day for 10 days during this period. Monitor the copper level and leave the fish here for 15 days, just to give them an extra day in copper. If copper needs to be added throughout to maintain levels I do this. Then I do a water change, add PraziPro and feed food with MetroPlex and KanaPlex bound by Focus for a minimum of 10 days or until I run out of what I have mixed up. After 7 days in PraziPro I do a water change and do a 2nd round of Prazi. Another 7 days later I do another water change and add Cupramine to the hob, give the fish a week then add it to the main display. This method has worked for me thus far. I have quarantined about 13 fish this way and have ever only lost a batch of chromis ( not included in the 13 fish). I should also add that I add Stability every 3 or 4 days.

 

[KrisReef]

How big is the display.
I recently bought 3 clown fish. Two of them are starting to share a nem and the third is being ousted by the pair. Clownfish are notorious for picking at other fish, sometimes making thems stop eat and die. This would be more likely in a small tank, but some clownfish are so territorial that new fish can't relax and die in the tank.
Just guessing.

 

[jordan5522]

Your tank needs to stay fallow for 76 days

So would u recommend putting the clown in a separate tank until the display has time down. But would it hurt for the coral to stay in it or no?

 

[jordan5522]

+1 to some parameter is off if every new introduction is dying. How many have there been? I highly recommend qt also. My method is to make sure the fish is eating. Then raise copper level (I use Copper Power) to approximately 2.5 ppm over a 4 or 5 day period. I also add MetroPlex to the water column every other day for 10 days during this period. Monitor the copper level and leave the fish here for 15 days, just to give them an extra day in copper. If copper needs to be added throughout to maintain levels I do this. Then I do a water change, add PraziPro and feed food with MetroPlex and KanaPlex bound by Focus for a minimum of 10 days or until I run out of what I have mixed up. After 7 days in PraziPro I do a water change and do a 2nd round of Prazi. Another 7 days later I do another water change and add Cupramine to the hob, give the fish a week then add it to the main display. This method has worked for me thus far. I have quarantined about 13 fish this way and have ever only lost a batch of chromis ( not included in the 13 fish). I should also add that I add Stability every 3 or 4 days.

In a year I’ve probably tried like 10-12 fish. And out of all of them only one has survived. When sat up I had the tank cycled for 2 weeks or so for bacterial for the tank

 

[jordan5522]

How big is the display.
I recently bought 3 clown fish. Two of them are starting to share a nem and the third is being ousted by the pair. Clownfish are notorious for picking at other fish, sometimes making thems stop eat and die. This would be more likely in a small tank, but some clownfish are so territorial that new fish can't relax and die in the tank.
Just guessing.

The display is 40 gal. Would you recommend taking out the current clown and releasing the new fish in so that he can get comfortable and then release the clown back in it?

 

[1fastfxr]

In a year I’ve probably tried like 10-12 fish. And out of all of them only one has survived. When sat up I had the tank cycled for 2 weeks or so for bacterial for the tank

How many fish are you trying to introduce at a time?

 

[jordan5522]

How many fish are you trying to introduce at a time?

1 normal but when it was chromis I would do 3 for them only but I would only introduce 1 fish at a time about a month

 

[jordan5522]

How many fish are you trying to introduce at a time?

1 normal but when it was chromis I would do 3 for them only but I would only introduce 1 fish at a time a month

 

[davidcalgary29]

The display is 40 gal. Would you recommend taking out the current clown and releasing the new fish in so that he can get comfortable and then release the clown back in it?

People are giving you advice on two separate issues here.

First, you might be experiencing fish deaths because you're not quarantining new arrivals. The most common diseases that you'll encounter are parasitic infections, and you have to be vigilant about keeping them out of new tanks. You should look for @Jay Hemdal's excellent advice in the disease forum.

You may already have a parasitic infection established in your tank. You will have to remove your clown if you want to try to get rid of it. The appropriate "down time" (translation: going fallow) for your tank may be 45 days @27C or 72(76) days.

Second, you may have aggression issues with your clown. If you feel that you do not have a disease, and do not want to let your display go fallow, I suggest that you set up a remote camera when you introduce your next fish. That will let you see if your clown is, in fact, the cause of your other fish deaths.

 

[KrisReef]

The display is 40 gal. Would you recommend taking out the current clown and releasing the new fish in so that he can get comfortable and then release the clown back in it?

Yes, if it works then you probably isolated your source of difficulty.
Some folks get an acclimation box, I would put the clown in that and the new fish in the tank.
Some people put naughty fish in their sump. If it's safe to do so, while the new fish lives in the tank with the aggressor in the sump you could eliminate aggression as a variable. Again, this is only a guess. I have not seen your fish, the tank, etc so I clearly don't have all the info. Others are leaning towards disease, I think its stress/aggression possibly.

 

[1fastfxr]

1 normal but when it was chromis I would do 3 for them only but I would only introduce 1 fish at a time a month

Tbh I'm a newbie also. I would think the bacterial filter would compensate in that case and there wouldn't be an ammonia spike. Again, if you have the space and the funds available. I will always say quarantine, quarantine, quarantine. Then you know if they make it through that it's something in your tank killing them. Again, I am a BIG believer in prophylactic treatment.

 

[jordan5522]

People are giving you advice on two separate issues here.

First, you might be experiencing fish deaths because you're not quarantining new arrivals. The most common diseases that you'll encounter are parasitic infections, and you have to be vigilant about keeping them out of new tanks. You should look for @Jay Hemdal's excellent advice in the disease forum.

You may already have a parasitic infection established in your tank. You will have to remove your clown if you want to try to get rid of it. The appropriate "down time" (translation: going fallow) for your tank may be 45 days @27C or 72(76) days.

Second, you may have aggression issues with your clown. If you feel that you do not have a disease, and do not want to let your display go fallow, I suggest that you set up a remote camera when you introduce your next fish. That will let you see if your clown is, in fact, the cause of your other fish deaths.

Ok so would recommend getting a tank for quarantine and putting the clown in it for a while and letting the main display tank sit and treat the clown fish just incase of internal parasites but that clown fish eats every day though but I still understand what you’re saying and if I do that what I need to treat the main display tank while the clown fish is in quarantine being treated or I just let the display tanks sit so that the parasite can die in there and what I need to remove the coral or is the coral fine staying in there and as well with the hermit crabs and snails?