So... I am an idiot

[bjmartie]

Anything new added to the tank that could have brought in some nasties? I like to shorten my lights if there is stress in a tank. So sorry

Shelley

Added a flame angel and a fair wrasse. They were in there 2 weeks before the deaths started.

If the fish were in the new tank for over a month and you made no other changes, then I highly doubt it was lack of oxygen. Is it possible something got into the tank from outside, like a chemical of some sort?

Trying to think, but i highly doubt it. Im consistent with what i add and do not add to the tank,
When i clean the outside glass, i spray ammonia free windex onto the napkin. Got a glass tank lid and the tank is enclosed inside a stand with a canopy.

 

[Sophie"s mom]

Oh man! So very sorry for your losses. As another has asked, did you acclimate everyone over to the new tank! It would be odd for the fish to die from lack of oxygen but not the inverts.

 

[bjmartie]

Oh man! So very sorry for your losses. As another has asked, did you acclimate everyone over to the new tank! It would be odd for the fish to die from lack of oxygen but not the inverts.

I didnt. I did make sure the temp and salinity was the same though.
Would they start to die off a month after moving them over though, if they were not acclimated?

 

[NanoNana]

Fish don’t behave fine during the day and die overnight from a power head misplacement. They are going to be at the top gulping air in daylight too. This points to infection. Stress of the move weakened immune systems, introduced new fish that may have brought in a pathogen and stressed fish succumbed is the more likely answer.
I’m going to default to the experts on how to proceed with new additions. Very sorry for your losses. You aren’t an idiot.

 

[Sophie"s mom]

I didnt. I did make sure the temp and salinity was the same though.
Would they start to die off a month after moving them over though, if they were not acclimated?

I would think not! But honestly not sure. Fish are more active than inverts, so they would run out of oxygen faster I suppose. No matter at this point, it just really sucks> I am so sorry this happened. Hopefully you will find a way to be sure. We learn from our mistakes.

 

[Mickey]

If you added the flame angel and the wrasse two weeks before the deaths, and the flame angel was one of the first to die, my guess is some disease came in with the flame.

Did you quarantee them before adding them?

 

[phillyb614]

So i feel like this hobby, well anything in life really, is about lessons learned.

So i upgraded my 35 FOWLR to a 55 FOWLR. Everything was great and established in the 35 that been up and running for probably 18 months, no issues.
Once i upgraded to the 55, i lost my valentine puffer, 2 clowns, a new flame angel and fairy wrasse, all fish dying mysteriously. All looked fine after death, besides the marks from the emerald crab eating on them, so i had NO clue what was going on.

But i thing i figured it out after killing off a few hundred dollars worth of fish, which i am ticked OFF at my self for doing.

I had a wave maker, but it was not directed towards the surface. The water i filled up almost to the brim, so the HOB filter did not really create much surface agitation....

I think i may have suffocated my fish. They were dropping one by one, all at night. During the day before, all swimming around totally fine. Next morning we wake up and one is dead.

I feel like such an idiot.... I directed the wave make towards the surface now, added a bubbler, and dropped the water level some so the HOB filter can help as well.

Sorry to hear this. I feel your pain. I got to the point once where I was super gun shy to pull the trigger on getting a new fish, because everything I added would die a couple days later. Had to figure some things out and learned all my lessons. Haven’t lost a fish in years now. Just how things go with this hobby. It is CONSTANT “live and learn”. I think everyone in this hobby has had one, if not more, pricey education. Hopefully you have things remedied now. Good luck!

 

[Uncle99]

The HOB filter running itself would be enough to prevent suffocating.

The only time I seen low oxygen affect fish is in still waters after 5 hours, biggest fish started to lie down.

This sounds more like infection type stuff, keep in mind we don’t always see dots.

And certainly, your not an idiot.

 

[Northern Flicker]

I am curious - how long between deaths?

It really would be mysterious if they didn't show any kind of behavioural clues. Even with disease, I would expect some changes in behaviour.

@Jay Hemdal any thoughts on this? Ammonia and lack of oxygen feel unlikely if the fish were acting normal. Only thing we don't know is if this was an overnight event or happened over a longer time period.

 

[code4]

Are the two new fish among those that died? I am not an expert at treatment. But I am thinking that is where the problem could have came. I wish you luck.

 

[Mickey]

It is always sad when we lose animals in our care. It's usually an opportunity for us to learn from it and make us better. Don't let this make you give up. We've all been there.