So... how bad did I mess up?

Brainthestrong · Sep 2, 2016

Afternoon fellow reefers,
I am currently battling ich and have 2 tanks up and running. 60 gal fish only qt and 90 gal mixed reef tank with a 20 gal sump. In my qt I am utilizing coppersafe at about 20ppm. I am doing 6% water changes daily on the qt. The other day my girlfriend preformed a water change on the qt and filled my top off bottle for the display tank with used qt water. Unknowingly I have been topping off my main display tank with this water. The water was added directly into the sump and must pass through two media bags of carbon and pass by the skimmer before reaching the return pump. Will the copper pass through the carbon? If the copper is attaching to organic materials will the skimmer skim it off? Are there any copper test kits that read low levels? What coral or invertebrates would be affected first? What actions should I take? Do I restart the 10 weeks of leaving the diplay tank fallow ?

stevo01 · Sep 2, 2016

Wow dude! That's rough, and good luck.

AcanSkywalker · Sep 2, 2016

Order a Incomparable Polly-Filter pad ASAP. It's the only thing I know of that will remove copper. A 12x12 sheet is around forty dollar and worth every penny.

Brainthestrong · Sep 2, 2016

AcanSkywalker said:
Order a Incomparable Polly-Filter pad ASAP. It's the only thing I know of that will remove copper. A 12x12 sheet is around forty dollar and worth every penny.

Done. It will be delivered tomorrow. Thanks!

jsker · Sep 2, 2016

I think you might get lucky and not have an issue with the DT. The amount of copper released into the DT is small and with the carbon it is most likely out of the water column, change out the carbon and use the pad and you should be good to go. Where are you at in the follow?

Brainthestrong · Sep 2, 2016

jsker said:
I think you might get lucky and not have an issue with the DT. The amount of copper released into the DT is small and with the carbon it is most likely out of the water column, change out the carbon and use the pad and you should be good to go. Where are you at in the follow?

I was 2 and a half weeks in on the DT. And there were no visible signs of ich in QT for 1 week. Thank you for the help.

Joey waid · Sep 2, 2016

jsker said:
I think you might get lucky and not have an issue with the DT. The amount of copper released into the DT is small and with the carbon it is most likely out of the water column, change out the carbon and use the pad and you should be good to go. Where are you at in the follow?

I almost said the same thing earlier, but did not have the balls. I was thinking the daluted copper from qt tank, then to top off, then to dt, there's most likely not much. I know it does not take much... With what you did and are dong you may pull through!!!

Brainthestrong · Sep 2, 2016

Joey waid said:
I almost said the same thing earlier, but did not have the balls. I was thinking the daluted copper from qt tank, then to top off, then to dt, there's most likely not much. I know it does not take much... With what you did and are dong you may pull through!!!

Unfortunately the top off bottle was empty so it's all QT water. I may have added 1-3gals to the DT.

Joey waid · Sep 2, 2016

Brainthestrong said:
Unfortunately the top off bottle was empty so it's all QT water. I may have added 1-3gals to the DT.

1-3 gallons in 90 is not much at all. It's like 2% of your tank. I'm sure I'll be proved wrong, but I think you will pull through with what you are doing...

jsker · Sep 2, 2016

Joey waid said:
I almost said the same thing earlier, but did not have the balls. I was thinking the daluted copper from qt tank, then to top off, then to dt, there's most likely not much. I know it does not take much... With what you did and are dong you may pull through!!!

Thank you ROF

jsker · Sep 2, 2016

Oh, be nice to the girl friend

she probably got that look

Brainthestrong · Sep 2, 2016

jsker said:
Oh, be nice to the girl friend she probably got that look

Yeah she was to cute to be mad at. There is just something about an attractive girl tending to your piece of paradise.

Psiber_Syn · Sep 2, 2016

Brainthestrong said:
Yeah she was to cute to be mad at. There is just something about an attractive girl tending to your piece of paradise.

I think it's a chicks "assets" that keep them outta trouble imagine if you woulda washed her cashmere with towels and ruined it think a cute small and an im sowwey would get you outta trouble I think not lol

Now is a great time to teach her the right way though

Antics · Sep 2, 2016

Brainthestrong said:
The other day my girlfriend preformed a water change on the qt and filled my top off bottle for the display tank with used qt water.

You have a much better temperament than me! If I were in your position there is no way this threads title would be "How bad did I mess up?"