Went out of town for 2 months

Preble · 05/25/2012, 03:29 PM

Well I had to go out of town for 2 months and when I left I had

2 clowns 1 goby 2 lyretail anthias and 2 banggai

Came back with 2 clowns and 1 goby.

What's steps should I take to get back on the right path.
I know I can get a fish sitter and just remove my to is and clean them up.... But I really don't want to becuase I kinda wanna take in the whole hobby the good the bad and the ugly.

The Fish look healthy. Right now I have no idea what my water details, pretty sure they are not good.

Preble · 05/25/2012, 04:29 PM

Well I cleaned the skimmer cup.....it was just jam packed and dumping back in to the tank and here is a before pic.

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2

KatyMunoz · 05/25/2012, 04:38 PM

Leaving your Fishtank for 2 months and purposely not getting a fish sitter because you want to see the "good, bad, and ugly" sounds a bit sadistic to me. Saltwater tanks are not made to run for 2 months on their own, and all your going to do is harm the fish and/or kill them in the process. While you can set up all of the proper equipment, there is bound to be a problem with equipment failure, and tempting fate to "see what happens" makes no sense in my opinion. I'm pretty sure you will get similar responses from people who actually care about responsibly taking care of your fish.

Preble · 05/25/2012, 04:54 PM

Woah, no I had a fish sitter....just didn't think I would have to be gone so long.

I'm talking about not. Trust me I love my Fish, I would not harm them like that.

I'm talking about now. I could get a sitter and take my tank sort to fix it. But I want to deal with it, and really get in to learning how to recover a tank.

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2

KatyMunoz · 05/25/2012, 05:01 PM

Ahhh.... Whew ok, well that makes me feel better :-) thought I was going to have to call FPS (fish protective services) lol.

Ok, well I don't think it will really take much to get your tank back on track. A series of large water changes will probably be the number one thing you can do. With getting new water in the tank, the parameters should stable out. I would do maybe a 50% water change first and then repeat every day until your parameters measure fine. Other than that and a bit of time, I wouldn't say there is much you can do. Oh and change out all of your media. Carbon can pull out a lot of crap out of your system!

KatyMunoz · 05/25/2012, 05:03 PM

Oh and just make sure you search the tank to find any dead critters even caught under the rock and in the rock, because they will keep soiling your water even with the water changes.

husslr187 · 05/25/2012, 06:48 PM

wouldn't 50% water change be too much of a shock to the fish? i mean think about it the nitrates are probably sky high after sitting for 2 months with little attention. i know i haven't been here long but i wouldn't that much water at a time. maybe 25% today and again tomorrow and so on until its down to at least 60-80ppm then go to town to knock the rest out. i would also think alk,cal,and mag level would be better at a slow change since thats probably off the field as well.

but im a newb so i could be wrong. in anycase it been two month whats a few more days?

KatyMunoz · 05/25/2012, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by husslr187

wouldn't 50% water change be too much of a shock to the fish? i mean think about it the nitrates are probably sky high after sitting for 2 months with little attention. i know i haven't been here long but i wouldn't that much water at a time. maybe 25% today and again tomorrow and so on until its down to at least 60-80ppm then go to town to knock the rest out. i would also think alk,cal,and mag level would be better at a slow change since thats probably off the field as well.

but im a newb so i could be wrong. in anycase it been two month whats a few more days?

Normally, yes it could be, but when your dealing with ammonia (assuming its high) that is going to be the most deadly to the fish, and it needs to be removed ASAP. The only area I would be concerned with shocking the fish is if the salinity is way off, then I would still do a 50% water change but only adjust the salinity .1 in the correct direction.

husslr187 · 05/25/2012, 08:29 PM

i didn't read anything about him having ammonia, valid point though. so then my revised advice since parameters weren't posted would be if no ammonia or nitrite go with my earlier post. if you have ammonia or nitrite go with KatyMunoz post.

Sytje1234 · 05/25/2012, 08:44 PM

Please post water parameters ASAP so we know exactly where your tank is at present time....This way it will be easier to pinpoint what to do 1st. Sorry about your tank. Really need to know your water parameters to help you tackle this situation and be able to learn and be able to do this right.

KatyMunoz · 05/25/2012, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by husslr187

i didn't read anything about him having ammonia, valid point though. so then my revised advice since parameters weren't posted would be if no ammonia or nitrite go with my earlier post. if you have ammonia or nitrite go with KatyMunoz post.

Yea I just assumed coming home to a tank with a bunch of dead fish and a skimmer overflowing back into the tank would cause the ammonia to be high, but if not, then large water changes aren't necessary at all.

SushiGirl · 05/25/2012, 10:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sytje1234

Please post water parameters ASAP so we know exactly where your tank is at present time....This way it will be easier to pinpoint what to do 1st. Sorry about your tank. Really need to know your water parameters to help you tackle this situation and be able to learn and be able to do this right.

Exactly.

Frantz · 05/26/2012, 08:20 AM

How big is your tank? If its a large system and someone was topping off then he has a fairly small bioload and huge WC won't be needed. But I agree, water test are first step, anything else is just guessing and playing with fire (or in this case poisoned water)

aleonn · 05/26/2012, 12:05 PM

I assume the OP's tank is 50 gallons. The plan of attack depends on water parameters, and taking steps to prevent something like this from happening again. I've automated many things for my tank, but wouldn't feel comfortable leaving it for 2 months (although sometimes life circumstances change things).

05/25/2012, 03:29 PM	#1
Preble Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: High Point North Carolina Posts: 341	Went out of town for 2 months Well I had to go out of town for 2 months and when I left I had 2 clowns 1 goby 2 lyretail anthias and 2 banggai Came back with 2 clowns and 1 goby. What's steps should I take to get back on the right path. I know I can get a fish sitter and just remove my to is and clean them up.... But I really don't want to becuase I kinda wanna take in the whole hobby the good the bad and the ugly. The Fish look healthy. Right now I have no idea what my water details, pretty sure they are not good. __________________ I can't afford to take you to a fancy dinner, but we can go back to my place and eat in-front of my fancy reef tank. Current Tank Info: 50 mixed

05/25/2012, 04:29 PM	#2
Preble Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: High Point North Carolina Posts: 341	Well I cleaned the skimmer cup.....it was just jam packed and dumping back in to the tank and here is a before pic. Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2 __________________ I can't afford to take you to a fancy dinner, but we can go back to my place and eat in-front of my fancy reef tank. Current Tank Info: 50 mixed

05/25/2012, 04:54 PM	#4
Preble Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: High Point North Carolina Posts: 341	Woah, no I had a fish sitter....just didn't think I would have to be gone so long. I'm talking about not. Trust me I love my Fish, I would not harm them like that. I'm talking about now. I could get a sitter and take my tank sort to fix it. But I want to deal with it, and really get in to learning how to recover a tank. Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2 __________________ I can't afford to take you to a fancy dinner, but we can go back to my place and eat in-front of my fancy reef tank. Current Tank Info: 50 mixed

05/25/2012, 06:48 PM	#7
husslr187 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: perryville md Posts: 100	wouldn't 50% water change be too much of a shock to the fish? i mean think about it the nitrates are probably sky high after sitting for 2 months with little attention. i know i haven't been here long but i wouldn't that much water at a time. maybe 25% today and again tomorrow and so on until its down to at least 60-80ppm then go to town to knock the rest out. i would also think alk,cal,and mag level would be better at a slow change since thats probably off the field as well. but im a newb so i could be wrong. in anycase it been two month whats a few more days? __________________ 210 gallon FW tank w/ 125gal sump, reeflo super dart gold 2 oscars, pleco, & 5 tinfoil barbs

05/25/2012, 08:29 PM	#9
husslr187 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: perryville md Posts: 100	i didn't read anything about him having ammonia, valid point though. so then my revised advice since parameters weren't posted would be if no ammonia or nitrite go with my earlier post. if you have ammonia or nitrite go with KatyMunoz post. __________________ 210 gallon FW tank w/ 125gal sump, reeflo super dart gold 2 oscars, pleco, & 5 tinfoil barbs

05/25/2012, 04:38 PM	#3
KatyMunoz Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Michigan Posts: 60	Leaving your Fishtank for 2 months and purposely not getting a fish sitter because you want to see the "good, bad, and ugly" sounds a bit sadistic to me. Saltwater tanks are not made to run for 2 months on their own, and all your going to do is harm the fish and/or kill them in the process. While you can set up all of the proper equipment, there is bound to be a problem with equipment failure, and tempting fate to "see what happens" makes no sense in my opinion. I'm pretty sure you will get similar responses from people who actually care about responsibly taking care of your fish.

05/25/2012, 05:01 PM	#5
KatyMunoz Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Michigan Posts: 60	Ahhh.... Whew ok, well that makes me feel better :-) thought I was going to have to call FPS (fish protective services) lol. Ok, well I don't think it will really take much to get your tank back on track. A series of large water changes will probably be the number one thing you can do. With getting new water in the tank, the parameters should stable out. I would do maybe a 50% water change first and then repeat every day until your parameters measure fine. Other than that and a bit of time, I wouldn't say there is much you can do. Oh and change out all of your media. Carbon can pull out a lot of crap out of your system!

05/25/2012, 05:03 PM	#6
KatyMunoz Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Michigan Posts: 60	Oh and just make sure you search the tank to find any dead critters even caught under the rock and in the rock, because they will keep soiling your water even with the water changes.

05/25/2012, 08:44 PM	#10
Sytje1234 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2011 Location: Warm Springs, OR Posts: 103	Please post water parameters ASAP so we know exactly where your tank is at present time....This way it will be easier to pinpoint what to do 1st. Sorry about your tank. Really need to know your water parameters to help you tackle this situation and be able to learn and be able to do this right.

05/26/2012, 08:20 AM	#13
Frantz Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Pennsylvanian Posts: 109	How big is your tank? If its a large system and someone was topping off then he has a fairly small bioload and huge WC won't be needed. But I agree, water test are first step, anything else is just guessing and playing with fire (or in this case poisoned water)

05/26/2012, 12:05 PM	#14
aleonn Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Posts: 4,041	I assume the OP's tank is 50 gallons. The plan of attack depends on water parameters, and taking steps to prevent something like this from happening again. I've automated many things for my tank, but wouldn't feel comfortable leaving it for 2 months (although sometimes life circumstances change things).