Cleaning tank after toxin wipeout

artieg · 11/01/2017, 05:46 PM

I started a second tank (nano), a nuvo fusion 10. Adorable little clown goby, pygmy angel, nice expanding coral frags. Everybody happy, up for 2 months.

Then I went against better judgment and a LFS who convinced me that nudibranchs ate algae (no really) and were no problem at all.

After a week of cruising around, the Nudibranch disintegrated and wiped out everything in less than 8 hours. No ammonia, no nitrate. Nothing detectable, except death and disintegrated Nudibranch goo.

I am throwing all rock out (no sand), and figured I would run the system and pumps with a bleach solution for a day, then empty/rinse and let dry.

Any reason to think bleach would not be the right thing for getting rid of any trace of the toxin?

Lsufan · 11/01/2017, 07:20 PM

I would think a 100 percent water change & maybe some carbon would have been enough. I don’t see a reason to have to restart the tank & have to go through another cycle.

If u want to start over then the bleach will will pretty much wipe everything out. U will have to make sure everything dries out completely.

I’m sure u will now, but it such a small tank I wouldn’t put any toxic animals in the system

eddiereefs · 11/01/2017, 08:38 PM

If your starting over most people use a solution of peroxide and water

mcgyvr · 11/02/2017, 04:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eddiereefs

If your starting over most people use a solution of peroxide and water

I think you meant vinegar and water?

peroxide/water would be more used to treat algae on rocks,etc...

And my understanding is that lettuce nudibranches (which is actually a sea slug and not a nudi) aren't toxic either.. (I'm assuming thats the type you got)
I also wouldn't do anything drastic as dumping the rock/sand is more than sufficient (overkill actually) and just doing a water change was likely enough to rid the water of any issues if there really was some..
A water change and running some carbon should be more than sufficient..

ReefNomad · 11/02/2017, 07:03 PM

Peroxide and water is also used to clean tanks. Peroxide breaks down and evaporates cleanly, as opposed to vinegar. Vinegar is nitrate once it breaks down.

sde1500 · 11/03/2017, 06:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReefNomad

Vinegar is nitrate once it breaks down.

Not so sure about that or all these people dosing Vinegar would be having some huge problems.

Also OP, lettuce nudibrach would eat algae, and I don't believe they are toxic. Sounds like you got some sort of cucumber or something. Bleach is fine, just make sure you let the tank dry for a few days so it can evaporate.

And going forward, I'd avoid putting an angel in a 10 gallon tank.

FoxFace Fish · 11/03/2017, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReefNomad

Peroxide and water is also used to clean tanks. Peroxide breaks down and evaporates cleanly, as opposed to vinegar. Vinegar is nitrate once it breaks down.

don't people douse vinegar to reduce nitrate?

but then again I have been wrong before

ReefNomad · 11/03/2017, 08:30 AM

Dosing it works because it's a food source. It's like vodka dosing. Some folks need to do it regularly, to combat heavy feeding or heavy bioload... but it can be done as a short-term solution as well.
You add a nutrient source to rapidly colonize a massive microbial population, and the microbes reach critical mass. At that point, they'll consume any nitrogen source they can, clearing out any built-up issues, and the population can be allowed to naturally subside to equilibrium.

11/01/2017, 05:46 PM	#1
artieg Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2014 Posts: 66	Cleaning tank after toxin wipeout I started a second tank (nano), a nuvo fusion 10. Adorable little clown goby, pygmy angel, nice expanding coral frags. Everybody happy, up for 2 months. Then I went against better judgment and a LFS who convinced me that nudibranchs ate algae (no really) and were no problem at all. After a week of cruising around, the Nudibranch disintegrated and wiped out everything in less than 8 hours. No ammonia, no nitrate. Nothing detectable, except death and disintegrated Nudibranch goo. I am throwing all rock out (no sand), and figured I would run the system and pumps with a bleach solution for a day, then empty/rinse and let dry. Any reason to think bleach would not be the right thing for getting rid of any trace of the toxin? __________________ 200 gallon peninsula, mixed reef 180 gallon sump, large skimmer, U/V sterilizer Three 72-inch Reefbrite XHO LED strips

11/01/2017, 07:20 PM	#2
Lsufan Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2013 Location: Baton Rouge Posts: 1,410	I would think a 100 percent water change & maybe some carbon would have been enough. I don’t see a reason to have to restart the tank & have to go through another cycle. If u want to start over then the bleach will will pretty much wipe everything out. U will have to make sure everything dries out completely. I’m sure u will now, but it such a small tank I wouldn’t put any toxic animals in the system Last edited by Lsufan; 11/01/2017 at 10:15 PM.

11/01/2017, 08:38 PM	#3
eddiereefs Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2014 Posts: 575	If your starting over most people use a solution of peroxide and water

11/02/2017, 07:03 PM	#5
ReefNomad Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 130	Peroxide and water is also used to clean tanks. Peroxide breaks down and evaporates cleanly, as opposed to vinegar. Vinegar is nitrate once it breaks down.

11/03/2017, 08:30 AM	#8
ReefNomad Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Grand Rapids, MI Posts: 130	Dosing it works because it's a food source. It's like vodka dosing. Some folks need to do it regularly, to combat heavy feeding or heavy bioload... but it can be done as a short-term solution as well. You add a nutrient source to rapidly colonize a massive microbial population, and the microbes reach critical mass. At that point, they'll consume any nitrogen source they can, clearing out any built-up issues, and the population can be allowed to naturally subside to equilibrium.