Help--my new fish keep dying as fast as I add themfish

rs2822 · Jun 5, 2016

I've got a 90 gal tank, 4 months old, my corals are all doing great as are the 2 original clownfish and a blue Damsel but I have added a Harlaquin (sp) wrasse which died in less then a week, a bi colored angel made it 2 days, a blue tang lasted 1 day and a pair of firefish is no longer a pair--1 only made it a day and the other is probably living on borrowed time!
I have tested my water for everything and all is well, I do weekly water changes and like I said, everything is looking great, just can't get a new fish to make it.
I acclimate them by putting them in a bucket with the water they came with then slowly adding a little water from my tank until there is more water from my tank then there is water they have been living in then I dip net them into my tank.
Any suggestions on what I may be doing wrong would be greatly appreciated! Is it possible I'm just having a run of bad luck?
Thanks,
Steve

Duke4Life · Jun 5, 2016

How did these look? Possible disease, gotta quarintine nowadays or take a huge gamble.

TUSI · Jun 5, 2016

Welcome to reef to reef. Acclimating them is a big part, first check the water the fish came with so you will have an idea what is the difference between your water and theirs, as you drip your water with theirs take out water as you do it and don't put them in your tank until the parameters are the same. A lot of times fish stores keep their levels very low compared to reef tanks.

eatbreakfast · Jun 5, 2016

How long does the acclimation process last? I don't recommend any longer than 20-30min, if it goes over an hr complications may ensue.

Disease or parasites are also a possibility, though with as quickly as fish died it would be brooklynella or marine velvet. QT is always the best protocol.

millertyler22 · Jun 5, 2016

Did u buy all the fish from the same place?
Check ammonia?
Possible any cleaning products got in the tank?

Lynn52 · Jun 5, 2016

You have a damsel that is doing well, could he be taking out the new additions?

I've heard bicolor angels can be difficult. Personally I've never gotten one out of QT.
Fire fish have been known to kill one another. They don't always work in pairs.
Your tank is way too small for a harlequin or a blue tang. This didn't cause their death but in general no tangs in a tank less than 6 feet long. I don't believe Harlequins are considered fully reef safe. You can look at the liveaquaria web site. They give good recommendations for minimum tank sizes.

Steve Maxwell · Jun 5, 2016

Check out this thread...I've had a massive die off and you might have the same thing going on

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/fish-die-off.250903/

rs2822 · Jun 5, 2016

Thanks for all the suggestions--fish all came from the same very reputable store--ammonia and all other levels test to be fine and no cleaning products or such is a possibility. The Damsel could be the problem, he has been very aggressive both times I've added the new fish. It's also possible I have taken too much time in the acclamation process.
I'm not familiar with QT, could someone explain that to me?
I'm new here and have to say that I was very surprised by the number of replies I got in such a short time--thanks to everyone for being so helpful

saltyhog · Jun 5, 2016

Which species of damsel? Clowns are also damsels and also could be aggressive to newcomers if they are mature. The deaths could be unrelated but that many makes that unlikely IMO. Did the new fish eat well? Did they hide in the rocks a lot? Any tattered fins, lesions or spots on them?

Steve Maxwell · Jun 5, 2016

As far as QT goes, check out this thread...he explains it way better than I could!

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/how-to-quarantine.189815/

rs2822 · Jun 6, 2016

saltyhog said:
Which species of damsel? Clowns are also damsels and also could be aggressive to newcomers if they are mature. The deaths could be unrelated but that many makes that unlikely IMO. Did the new fish eat well? Did they hide in the rocks a lot? Any tattered fins, lesions or spots on them?

It's a blue Damsel is all I know, the 2 clowns don't seem to be bothered by new fish but both times I've added new fish the damsel has gone after them immediately. No signs of disease on any of the dead fish. I added a blue tang and 2 firefish this past Saturday afternoon and the tang and 1 of the firefish were dead by Sunday midday, same thing with the bi colored angel I added a few weeks ago. I'm going to remove the damsel and transfer him to a friends tank with about 30 other fish in it, that should change his attitude and hopefully solve my problem.
Thank you for responding, the help and suggestions I've gotten from people on this forum has been wonderful!

Naiad · Jun 6, 2016

If you would post a pic of your living clowns. They could be passing on a disease they have built up some resistance to. Also if you loose another fish please take a photo if you find it right after death. That can help a lot in ruling out illnesses. Hopefully the damsel is the problem and this is not needed!

rs2822 · Jun 6, 2016

Steve Maxwell said:
As far as QT goes, check out this thread...he explains it way better than I could!

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/how-to-quarantine.189815/

Thanks Steve, that would have been a bit hard to explain!!
I buy my fish and corals from a local fish store that has a very good reputation. He keeps the fish in QT and medicates them (not sure with what) he won't sell a fish until he's satisfied it's healthy, eating well and disease free. He also stands behind them for 72 hours. I have a 60 mile drive to get them home. Considering the way he treats his fish and I'm not having them shipped in by FedEx ect do you still feel it's necessary for me to go thru the QT process once I get them home?

leemosh · Jun 6, 2016

Just a thought, but is your tank the same salinity as the store you buy from? Some places keep their tanks closer to 1.020, so if you take a fish from that water and put it in your 1.026 tank, you can have troubles. If this is the case with you, you'll have to slowly raise the salinity over several days.

saltyhog · Jun 6, 2016

rs2822 said:
. Considering the way he treats his fish and I'm not having them shipped in by FedEx ect do you still feel it's necessary for me to go thru the QT process once I get them home?

This wasn't directed at me but I'll chime in anyway. Yes! No LFS can afford to properly QT fish and make a profit. What most LFS use for medication is a low level of copper. This is actually a detriment as it doesn't really cure anything and can mask illness .....until they get in your tank and come down with something that can wipe out your whole tank. Some people take the gamble but it's not worth it for me. Of course the more fish the greater risk so a small tank has a little better odds. Play at your own risk.

Is this the damsel you have?

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+28+111&pcatid=111

eliramos · Jun 6, 2016

Blue damsel are also known as blue devils for a reason.
I really think he may be the culprit, I had a damsel once that would stress any fish to death in less than 2 days.
They just aren't meant to be added to any tank first. If you're not around to watch them after you add them and everything is fine at the lfs and they are eating. They are being bullied to death. I would have to think if it were a disease that the other fish would be symptomatic but that doesn't seem to be the case.
Good luck! I would get the damsel out if possible

Steve Maxwell · Jun 6, 2016

rs2822 said:
Thanks Steve, that would have been a bit hard to explain!!
I buy my fish and corals from a local fish store that has a very good reputation. He keeps the fish in QT and medicates them (not sure with what) he won't sell a fish until he's satisfied it's healthy, eating well and disease free. He also stands behind them for 72 hours. I have a 60 mile drive to get them home. Considering the way he treats his fish and I'm not having them shipped in by FedEx ect do you still feel it's necessary for me to go thru the QT process once I get them home?

saltyhog said:
This wasn't directed at me but I'll chime in anyway. Yes! No LFS can afford to properly QT fish and make a profit. What most LFS use for medication is a low level of copper. This is actually a detriment as it doesn't really cure anything and can mask illness .....until they get in your tank and come down with something that can wipe out your whole tank. Some people take the gamble but it's not worth it for me. Of course the more fish the greater risk so a small tank has a little better odds. Play at your own risk.

Is this the damsel you have?

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+28+111&pcatid=111

Yep, I would still QT. I am extremely impatient when adding fish to my tank, so I decided to skip the QT process on a few fish that I got from a very successful/highly regarded LFS. I believe doing so has cost me 7+ fish (that and my stupidity...newbness). I think I've got the strain of velvet that is mentioned in the first message I posted, so not only am I out hundreds of dollars, I now have to re-QT my original surviving fish and wait even longer to add anything new

Naiad · Jun 6, 2016

I would still qt. As I mentioned earlier fish can build up resistance and be asymptomatic. Then you add a fish that has never encountered the illness and it dies. For a store it is hard to determine these plague fish are carrying an illness. Holding and treating an apparently healthy fish for a month doesn't make a sound business practice but is a sound investment practice.

rs2822 · Jun 7, 2016

saltyhog said:
This wasn't directed at me but I'll chime in anyway. Yes! No LFS can afford to properly QT fish and make a profit. What most LFS use for medication is a low level of copper. This is actually a detriment as it doesn't really cure anything and can mask illness .....until they get in your tank and come down with something that can wipe out your whole tank. Some people take the gamble but it's not worth it for me. Of course the more fish the greater risk so a small tank has a little better odds. Play at your own risk.

Is this the damsel you have?

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=15+28+111&pcatid=111

I understand what you're saying about QT--guess I'll be setting up a small tank. My damsel has a yellow tail