Problem of the year...

[Monashee]

Hi everyone, I am posting this as a last ditch effort before I loose my mind (and probably marriage) from insanity.

If I put a coral, SPS, LPS, snail, anything into the tank they are dead in a day. I put a hammer in yesterday and it evacuated itslef the next day. Muhroom in, boom gone in 24 hours. Snails, dead the next day. I have purcahsed digital testers from Hanna for every test possible. HEre are the params:

25C
1025
8.3pH
9.6 dHk
* all these have been stable for 6 months at least

Ca 400
Mag 1250
NH3 0
No2 0
No3 0
Phospate 0.03
Iron 0

Hers a strange part. I was leaning towards metal as the killer as the fish are all doing great. So I purchased the hanna copper tester and the Seachem tester and just wacky results.
Ive tested the RO water and it came out at 0.06ppm on the Hanna, 0 on the Seachem. So I replaced the whole system as it was getting older with a brand new one. I tested the DT water and it came out at 0.03 the frist test, 0.06 the second time, 0 the next time all bsack to back wit the Hanna. The Seachem always has read 0 for copper.

I made new RODI water and brand new salt, did 2 massive water changes 4 days apart - 40% changes each time. Put it polyfilter and coper absorbant and bags or activated carbon. Tested all the levels it said zero for copper. Grabbed 3 corals and 2 snails yesterday and tossed them in and all dead by this morning. Tested all paramaters again and and Seacheam says 0 for copper as always and Hanna is reading 0.25, 0.01, 0.10, 0.16, 0, 0.03 all back to back tests which leads me to belive its very innaccurte.

I dont know what else to do here other than tear down the tank... I have put thousands of dollars into it but it is just not wokring for me. All my crabs are great and healthy, coraline algea is growing on my live rock, fish are stocked and eating lots of fresh good food...

I did grab a meter this morning and found voltage in the tank but i know nothing of this. I ahve a solid 34V AC in the tank currently when tested from the Ground to the tank. I unplug the Hydor heaters and it drops to 22V. Shut down the other pumps and goes lower. I do not have a grounding plug in place but one is on order as a last result.

A few more specs:

90 Gallon Tank, cycled with Dr Tims for 6 months prior to fish being added (I know.. bvut covid slowed it all down)
40 Gallon Sump with 18 gallon refugium, Trigger pods, cheato, kessil light
Running a 5 stage RODI system for the water
80lbs Live Rock
80lbs live sand
Flow is around 2500gph but varies thru timers and day
Reef octo skimmer
Hydor heaters
ATO sytstem
All the rthings I could need

Livestock went in adding in Jan, 1 fish ever 2 weeks. No spikes in levels
1 Flame Angel
2 Clowns
1 Bicolor Dotty
1 Azure dam
1 Firefish goby




Please if anyone can help me on this it would be amazing, every one I have spoken to has no idea...

Thank you .

Josh

 

[dvgyfresh]

Hi everyone, I am posting this as a last ditch effort before I loose my mind (and probably marriage) from insanity.

If I put a coral, SPS, LPS, snail, anything into the tank they are dead in a day. I put a hammer in yesterday and it evacuated itslef the next day. Muhroom in, boom gone in 24 hours. Snails, dead the next day. I have purcahsed digital testers from Hanna for every test possible. HEre are the params:

25C
1025
8.3pH
9.6 dHk
* all these have been stable for 6 months at least

Ca 400
Mag 1250
NH3 0
No2 0
No3 0
Phospate 0.03
Iron 0

Hers a strange part. I was leaning towards metal as the killer as the fish are all doing great. So I purchased the hanna copper tester and the Seachem tester and just wacky results.
Ive tested the RO water and it came out at 0.06ppm on the Hanna, 0 on the Seachem. So I replaced the whole system as it was getting older with a brand new one. I tested the DT water and it came out at 0.03 the frist test, 0.06 the second time, 0 the next time all bsack to back wit the Hanna. The Seachem always has read 0 for copper.

I made new RODI water and brand new salt, did 2 massive water changes 4 days apart - 40% changes each time. Put it polyfilter and coper absorbant and bags or activated carbon. Tested all the levels it said zero for copper. Grabbed 3 corals and 2 snails yesterday and tossed them in and all dead by this morning. Tested all paramaters again and and Seacheam says 0 for copper as always and Hanna is reading 0.25, 0.01, 0.10, 0.16, 0, 0.03 all back to back tests which leads me to belive its very innaccurte.

I dont know what else to do here other than tear down the tank... I have put thousands of dollars into it but it is just not wokring for me. All my crabs are great and healthy, coraline algea is growing on my live rock, fish are stocked and eating lots of fresh good food...

I did grab a meter this morning and found voltage in the tank but i know nothing of this. I ahve a solid 34V AC in the tank currently when tested from the Ground to the tank. I unplug the Hydor heaters and it drops to 22V. Shut down the other pumps and goes lower. I do not have a grounding plug in place but one is on order as a last result.

A few more specs:

90 Gallon Tank, cycled with Dr Tims for 6 months prior to fish being added (I know.. bvut covid slowed it all down)
40 Gallon Sump with 18 gallon refugium, Trigger pods, cheato, kessil light
Running a 5 stage RODI system for the water
80lbs Live Rock
80lbs live sand
Flow is around 2500gph but varies thru timers and day
Reef octo skimmer
Hydor heaters
ATO sytstem
All the rthings I could need

Livestock went in adding in Jan, 1 fish ever 2 weeks. No spikes in levels
1 Flame Angel
2 Clowns
1 Bicolor Dotty
1 Azure dam
1 Firefish goby




Please if anyone can help me on this it would be amazing, every one I have spoken to has no idea...

Thank you .

Josh

Have you done an ICP test? Also stray voltage is alarming could be a heater / wave maker as you tested , everything plugged into GFCI? I would also get a ground probe for the tank

 

[Cory]

Do you have a deep sand bed? Any rusting things in or near the tank? Inverts are sensitive to metal contamination. Not just copper.

 

[dvgyfresh]

Also I would put some cuprisorb in the sump if you are worried about metals

 

[jeffchapok]

Stray voltage could certainly be a problem. Get the ground probe in ASAP

Also, If your NO3 is truly zero, your corals will starve. Corals need some level of nutrients in the water to survive. Are you doing anything for nutrient export?

 

[KrisReef]

The fish are not observed picking at the coral or snails? If you don't have a toxic irritant it seems that something else must be battering the corals and snails. And it is acting very fast to kill by the next day?

 

[Monashee]

Have you done an ICP test? Also stray voltage is alarming could be a heater / wave maker as you tested , everything plugged into GFCI? I would also get a ground probe for the tank

Got an ICP on order right now and should h e it by next week. Grounding probe will be here by end of week.

 

[Monashee]

Have you done an ICP test? Also stray voltage is alarming could be a heater / wave maker as you tested , everything plugged into GFCI? I would also get a ground probe for the tank

ICP is ordered and will be here next week. Same with the grounding probe too.

 

[Monashee]

The fish are not observed picking at the coral or snails? If you don't have a toxic irritant it seems that something else must be battering the corals and snails. And it is acting very fast to kill by the next day?

I’ve never been able to keep a coral in the tank longer than 24hours! Zoas, mushrooms, hammers, candy canes, GSP, nothing!

 

[Monashee]

Stray voltage could certainly be a problem. Get the ground probe in ASAP

Also, If your NO3 is truly zero, your corals will starve. Corals need some level of nutrients in the water to survive. Are you doing anything for nutrient export?

The N03 is usually slightly elevated but considering the two massive water changes they are at zero right now.

export is with chaeto, pods, skimmer and water changes.

 

[Monashee]

Also I would put some cuprisorb in the sump if you are worried about metals

Loaded it up 2 weeks ago with it and levels are all over the place.

 

[Monashee]

Do you have a deep sand bed? Any rusting things in or near the tank? Inverts are sensitive to metal contamination. Not just copper.

I am leaning towards this option that something got dropped in there possibly. It would make sense for the reason. Iron test with the Hanna is 0.00 though and everything else should be inert other than copper.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Pictures?
Sorry you post perfect parameters and say stable for 6 months. Give me a fts front tank shot. Ty
D

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Please change the heaters and pumps and re test for stray.voltage.
D

 

[vetteguy53081]

Perfect parameters ?
What is age of tank ?
What test kits are you using?
What type of water are you using (tap water from faucet or RODI water) ?
Are you acclimating the coral before intro to display tank ?

I suspect false readings and what may be some very fast stocking in which you experienced both false readings and spikes.

 

[Smirkish]

What kind of lights are you running? Only light I see listed is the kessil under the sump section.

 

[Smirkish]

Your fish and crabs won’t care if your lighting is insufficient but your coral sure will.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Flow is a another consideration.
D

 

[Smirkish]

Also, what kind of acclimation are you doing. “Tossed” them in makes me uncomfortable, lol- coral and things like snails can croak from being dunked into a tank with way different parameters than what they are coming from. Crabs and fish are much more capable of coping with this.

 

[dedragon]

any coral wouldnt die this fast from lighting or issues other than parameter issues, i dont really even acclimate most corals anymore (other than temp),
I worry about a faulty rodi or misreading of some parameters which will be reflected in an icp test. Snails and clams wouldnt die this fast either, i think heavy metal or even maybe electricity like the other said. Thats the only thing that would kill invertebrates that fast and not effect fish as much.