possible paint in my tank.

[cody hendrix]

I had a angry roommate that I have kicked out of my house put what I think is black spray paint in my tank. I am finding black stuff stuck to all of the piping and walls of the tank. I have lost all but two fish. What would be the best thing to do. I have done some large water changes and added chimi pure blue to the tank.
thanks

 

[prsnlty]

This is sad and I would say criminal as well.


#reefsquad @Randy Holmes-Farley @dbl @143MPCo ... not sure who else might be able to answer this question but I'll check.

 

[prsnlty]

@Sabellafella any advice?

 

[cmcoker]

Adding a Boyd poly filter probably wouldn't hurt.

 

[Girthrockwel]

Sorry man. That sucks.

 

[SDReefer]

Do you have a 5 gallon bucket you can put the fish and corals in with new saltwater and a rock from the display?

 

[Sabellafella]

I had a angry roommate that I have kicked out of my house put what I think is black spray paint in my tank. I am finding black stuff stuck to all of the piping and walls of the tank. I have lost all but two fish. What would be the best thing to do. I have done some large water changes and added chimi pure blue to the tank.
thanks

Lets get a photo. You may want to start getting your animals out as quick as you could into some fresh tank matched saltwater. If fish are starting to die, its obviously something very bad that has gotten in yourtank.

 

[Maritimer]

I think Sabellafella's right - get the remaining animals out of the tank. A 100% water change doesn't sound like a bad idea, but if whatever got in there isn't aquarium-safe, you may wind up with a leaching issue, where the stuff keeps leaking out of wherever it got into. Even with all new water, a PolyFilter will remain a good idea. What worries me a bit is that this toxin isn't something you're going to be able to test for and assure yourself that it's out of your system.

Document _everything_, in case of some kind of dispute from this person, or in case charges need to be pressed.

~Bruce

 

[redfishbluefish]

Agree with pulling any remaining survivers and going water changes, and then run carbon for anything leaching out.

Similar case here in NJ, where his now ex wife dumped dish detergent in the tank and killed everything. Couldn't do anything legally since nobody saw her do it.

 

[143MPCo]

Agree with the steps mentioned above to remediate the issues caused by the chemicals being added to your system. Unless you have video proof of the act by the individual you noted, it's basically a conjectured opinion in the eye of the law, but I would still file a report with your local PD so you have it on record.

 

[cody hendrix]

Thanks for all the response everyone. I went ahead and put the last two fish in my frag tank. I filed a report the night I kicked him out. He was already trying to steal stuff. So my next question is with the leaving am I going to be able to save this tank from a complete break down? I'm just lucky it wasn't my reef tank. It's my fish only tank so no coral.

 

[Humblefish]

Thanks for all the response everyone. I went ahead and put the last two fish in my frag tank. I filed a report the night I kicked him out. He was already trying to steal stuff. So my next question is with the leaving am I going to be able to save this tank from a complete break down? I'm just lucky it wasn't my reef tank. It's my fish only tank so no coral.

The black stuff you are finding in the tank ... Can it be peeled off or is it permanently stuck on?

 

[cody hendrix]

It still has the consistency of wet paint. The water is keeping it from drying inside the tank.

 

[Humblefish]

It still has the consistency of wet paint. The water is keeping it from drying inside the tank.

Can you siphon it out? Manually remove the black stuff using a cheap hose you can throw away afterwards. Most hardware stores sell vinyl or polyethylene tubing cheap: http://www.acehardware.com/product/index.jsp?productId=28973226

Try to get some just a little wider than air line tubing so you can target the paint without sucking out too much water. You could even try air line tubing first, but odds are the paint will get clogged inside.

 

[cody hendrix]

Ok I'll do that. The stuff I can so I can remove. I'm worried about what I can't see. Will carbon and water changes take care of it all?

 

[Humblefish]

Will carbon and water changes take care of it all?

That's really hard to say, because there are no guarantees you will ever get it all out. For example, if some of the paint sticks to the underside of a rock or some other out of the way place. Personally, I'd have to break the tank down, sterilize everything and start over.

 

[domination2580]

Any carbon in the system?

 

[cody hendrix]

Any carbon in the system?

Yes there is carbon in the system.

 

[cody hendrix]

That's really hard to say, because there are no guarantees you will ever get it all out. For example, if some of the paint sticks to the underside of a rock or some other out of the way place. Personally, I'd have to break the tank down, sterilize everything and start over.

Thats what I'm afraid of its a 265 gallon tank and it'll be a lot to start over. It's my Predator tank. I list my golden moray eel ((

 

[domination2580]

In a rector? How much flow? Is it tightly packed?