Sea chem #28 cause tank crash

[Steve Bullington]

So after years of manually dosing I decided to try that Sea chem #28 block. The fish store guys said they use it on their system as well as systems they serve. I read the instructions and it clearly states that it will buffer properly and not cause toxic shock syndrome......
WELL GUESS WHAT!?!
So I placed a block in last night, and woke up to a cloudy white water tank with death and destruction wrought upon my reef. I didn't go to work and have done a 75%eater change....NO² AND NO³ levels are through the roof. Did another 25% water change and levels will not come down......any ideas?
I had a mature tank of over 3 years, previous levels of N where at or around .000 ppm. Now I have NO² and NO³ off the charts....I don't get it any ideas? I have refugium, skimmer etc.. also a external canister filter for Xtra filtration. Nearly all fish dead, I did fish cpr on a clown and was able to save it from the toxic shock ( that's another story ) so now all my expensive corals are in a 6 gal nano till this gets better...also have some left in main tank as no more will fit....
So any help would be nice.

 

[Flippers4pups]

These are a throw back to the nineties when I remember when these came out. No way they can do what they claim and there is no way of knowing what's really in them. Toxins?

Your doing the right thing in a large water change. I'd run some GAC heavy to for a couple weeks.

 

[Steve Bullington]

What's GAC stand for? Probably going to have a duh moment, just throwing that out there.

 

[madweazl]

I used them for at least eight years with good results in the late 90s and early 2000s (no SPS but LPS, clams, various polyps etc.). They are meant to be placed in a low flow area, if not, they'll dissolve more rapidly and certainly could have increased alkalinity and/or other parameters too quickly causing a chain reaction of dying corals/anemones.

GAC = Granular Activated Carbon

 

[Steve Bullington]

GAC ok gotcha, yeah one of the first things I did. Also yes, I think the flow may have been to much, sounds logical. Funny I knew better than to try something different....sure enough bit me in the Caboose. Frustrating...

 

[Steve Bullington]

So after years of manually dosing I decided to try that Sea chem #28 block. The fish store guys said they use it on their system as well as systems they serve. I read the instructions and it clearly states that it will buffer properly and not cause toxic shock syndrome......
WELL GUESS WHAT!?!
So I placed a block in last night, and woke up to a cloudy white water tank with death and destruction wrought upon my reef. I didn't go to work and have done a 75%eater change....NO² AND NO³ levels are through the roof. Did another 25% water change and levels will not come down......any ideas?
I had a mature tank of over 3 years, previous levels of N where at or around .000 ppm. Now I have NO² and NO³ off the charts....I don't get it any ideas? I have refugium, skimmer etc.. also a external canister filter for Xtra filtration. Nearly all fish dead, I did fish cpr on a clown and was able to save it from the toxic shock ( that's another story ) so now all my expensive corals are in a 6 gal nano till this gets better...also have some left in main tank as no more will fit....
So any help would be nice.

Update: tank is perfect! Water has never been better and I was able to rid myself from a hitch hiker I received awhile back....the high all killed off a flatworm problem I had, and flat worm exit didn't seem to work. So now everything is happy, I had to reseed my copepods, but no biggy.
Zero Nitrates, Nitrites and ammonia, phosphorus...all good. So I guess some good came from the bad. I replaced all my media and used better products.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Update: tank is perfect! Water has never been better and I was able to rid myself from a hitch hiker I received awhile back....the high all killed off a flatworm problem I had, and flat worm exit didn't seem to work. So now everything is happy, I had to reseed my copepods, but no biggy.
Zero Nitrates, Nitrites and ammonia, phosphorus...all good. So I guess some good came from the bad. I replaced all my media and used better products.

Great to hear. Continue use of carbon and let me say this:

I have been using this for 6 years and NEVER , EVER had an issue or slight one with use of it. I wonder if there was a reaction with other agent/additives your tank may have? I am actually bummed. . . . I got this from Fosters and smith who no longer have this and am down to my last bottle ut do see 2# bottles on ebay and Amazon yet.

 

[Steve Bullington]

Great to hear. Continue use of carbon and let me say this:

I have been using this for 6 years and NEVER , EVER had an issue or slight one with use of it. I wonder if there was a reaction with other agent/additives your tank may have? I am actually bummed. . . . I got this from Fosters and smith who no longer have this and am down to my last bottle ut do see 2# bottles on ebay and Amazon yet.

I saved a water sample from the crash or " The Great Melt " as I call it. I'm going to do some research as my curiosity for science is ever present.
The more I have studied this situation and talked to people this is my hypothesis: so my thought is the Sea chem tab is basic in nature, being made of calcium hydroxide ( pH 12.4 ) and carbonic acid ( used to help buffer / it's an acid, salt ) I know it's super complicated and been a really long time since I took chemistry and I'm sure I'm off a bit. Any ways my point is durring hydrolysis maybe another chemical in my take reacted with the carbonic acid, neutralizing some of its properties ( pulling away some of the Ions ) therefore allowing the calcium hydroxide to dissolve into solution more than it would normally and therefore increase the PH towards more of a base, or closer to 12 making the water basic and therefore melting stuff in my tank. I also think water flow was a Variable. Like I said I could be way off as it's been 20 years since I have had a chemistry class.

Update: saved a water sample from the crash or " The Great Melt " as I call it. I'm going to do some research as my curiosity for science is ever present.
The more I have studied this situation and talked to people this is my hypothesis: so my thought is the Sea chem tab is basic in nature, being made of calcium hydroxide ( pH 12.4 ) and carbonic acid ( used to help buffer / it's an acid, salt ) I know it's super complicated and been a really long time since I took chemistry and I'm sure I'm off a bit. Any ways my point is durring hydrolysis maybe another chemical in my take reacted with the carbonic acid, neutralizing some of its properties ( pulling away some of the Ions ) therefore allowing the calcium hydroxide to dissolve into solution more than it would normally and therefore increase the PH towards more of a base, or closer to 12 making the water basic and therefore melting stuff in my tank. I also think water flow was a Variable. Like I said I could be way off as it's been 20 years since I have had a chemistry class.
So any thoughts people?

 

[vetteguy53081]

I saved a water sample from the crash or " The Great Melt " as I call it. I'm going to do some research as my curiosity for science is ever present.
The more I have studied this situation and talked to people this is my hypothesis: so my thought is the Sea chem tab is basic in nature, being made of calcium hydroxide ( pH 12.4 ) and carbonic acid ( used to help buffer / it's an acid, salt ) I know it's super complicated and been a really long time since I took chemistry and I'm sure I'm off a bit. Any ways my point is durring hydrolysis maybe another chemical in my take reacted with the carbonic acid, neutralizing some of its properties ( pulling away some of the Ions ) therefore allowing the calcium hydroxide to dissolve into solution more than it would normally and therefore increase the PH towards more of a base, or closer to 12 making the water basic and therefore melting stuff in my tank. I also think water flow was a Variable. Like I said I could be way off as it's been 20 years since I have had a chemistry class.

As I formentioned, I think there was a reaction with another ingredient in the system. You mentioned it dissolved quickly. This is a slow release particle and generally takes 2-3 days to dissolve in my tank

 

[Steve Bullington]

Great to hear. Continue use of carbon and let me say this:

I have been using this for 6 years and NEVER , EVER had an issue or slight one with use of it. I wonder if there was a reaction with other agent/additives your tank may have? I am actually bummed. . . . I got this from Fosters and smith who no longer have this and am down to my last bottle ut do see 2# bottles on ebay and Amazon yet.

This is what I tried, and they still sell/make it....but I won't try it again.lol. which product are you talking about?

 

[Softhammer]

You posted Sea Chem originally. That is a Sea lab product HUGE difference. She chem makes great stuff. What you used who knows, probably a block of Chinese toxins.

 

[Steve Bullington]

No made right here on southern California, at least that's what the company said when I called them

 

[Softhammer]

Either way, it’s not Sea Chem. Picture says Sea Lab.

 

[madweazl]

Either way, it’s not Sea Chem. Picture says Sea Lab.

Sea Lab 28 has been around for decades; many of us used it successfully over the years.

 

[Steve Bullington]

Either way, it’s not Sea Chem. Picture says Sea Lab.

True, my bad

 

[vetteguy53081]

True, my bad

Not Seachem.

 

[vetteguy53081]

This is what I tried, and they still sell/make it....but I won't try it again.lol. which product are you talking about?

Mine

 

[Softhammer]

That stuff? I don’t know guys, I think the whole premise of this thread proves that additives like this aren’t needed and can be risky if not catastrophic. There are a million methods to accomplish those same things without putting stuff like this into water with $1000s in livestock.

 

[Steve Bullington]

That stuff? I don’t know guys, I think the whole premise of this thread proves that additives like this aren’t needed and can be risky if not catastrophic. There are a million methods to accomplish those same things without putting stuff like this into water with $1000s in livestock.

That's the truth!

 

[vetteguy53081]

That stuff? I don’t know guys, I think the whole premise of this thread proves that additives like this aren’t needed and can be risky if not catastrophic. There are a million methods to accomplish those same things without putting stuff like this into water with $1000s in livestock.

One of the few things I use and after PH swings tried it and it has shown good PH and slow release CA. I carried it in my Pet store I had and many reefers praised it.
My tanks also show it.