Help!! Ammonia Spike

keith10 · 11/30/2016, 07:00 PM

Man I could really use some help with this. I got some water from my LFS last Tuesday and everything was fine. Then Thursday some of my fish started acting different. Then they all started dying. After the first 2 fish died (a PJ Cardinal & Coral Beauty). I check my pars and my ammonia was at 30 ppm, my phosphates were under .25, nitrates were 40 pm. I never had nitrates before, my Ph was 8.2. I couldn't believe it. I NEVER had anything like this happen. I did a 15 gallon water change in my 37 gallon reef and added some prime to neutralize some of the ammonia. The next day the black capped basslet died. I check my ammonia again it wasn't as high but still between 10 and 20. I also lost my clown fish. So I changed another 10 gallons. I checked it the yesterday and the ammonia was gone. I came home today and it is back up to 30 pm. I added some more Prime. Now I have lost all my fish except my Hoeven's Wrasse. He seems fine. Surprisingly, all my corals are fully extended and doing great.

Is there any thing else I can do? I am beside myself. I have never had this happen.

Could the water from my LSF have this. I did a 10 Gallon change with it.

Any feedback would be appreciated,

Thanks in advance

GimpyFin · 11/30/2016, 07:15 PM

How old is your tank?

keith10 · 11/30/2016, 08:15 PM

It will be a year on January 1

GimpyFin · 11/30/2016, 08:49 PM

Have you changed anything notable recently? Seems unusual (Outside of cycling a new tank) to get an ammonia spike like that, especially if it zeroed and came back after a water change and an ammonia neutralizer. Corals won't be affected as much with ammonia as fish.

CrayolaViolence · 12/01/2016, 04:37 AM

Have you tested the water you got from your LFS for impurities? Unless the water is contaminated I don't see how it can be responsible for an ammonia spike.

keith10 · 12/02/2016, 03:15 PM

So my water has stablized and all the death has been eaten by the clean up crew. Ammonia is a zero again. Only one fish made it. My wrasse. How long do you think I should wait before starting to add fish again?

75mixedreef · 12/02/2016, 03:31 PM

Did you make sure it was saltwater used from the lfs and not RO? Or maybe you thought you got RO and got saltwater then added more salt to it. Either way did you check the salinity before you dumped that water in the tank? Did you match temps? Any other noob mistakes you might have made or not caught someone else making that could have caused this?

How about livestock. Did you lose a nem or a cucumber? Anything die that could have triggered the spike? Did you pull any live rock out of the tank and/or leave it exposed to air for more than 30 sec to 1 min?

Cancun · 12/03/2016, 12:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 75mixedreef

Did you make sure it was saltwater used from the lfs and not RO? Or maybe you thought you got RO and got saltwater then added more salt to it. Either way did you check the salinity before you dumped that water in the tank? Did you match temps? Any other noob mistakes you might have made or not caught someone else making that could have caused this?

How about livestock. Did you lose a nem or a cucumber? Anything die that could have triggered the spike? Did you pull any live rock out of the tank and/or leave it exposed to air for more than 30 sec to 1 min?

What he said......!

11/30/2016, 07:00 PM	#1
keith10 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Tampa, Florida Posts: 47	Help!! Ammonia Spike Man I could really use some help with this. I got some water from my LFS last Tuesday and everything was fine. Then Thursday some of my fish started acting different. Then they all started dying. After the first 2 fish died (a PJ Cardinal & Coral Beauty). I check my pars and my ammonia was at 30 ppm, my phosphates were under .25, nitrates were 40 pm. I never had nitrates before, my Ph was 8.2. I couldn't believe it. I NEVER had anything like this happen. I did a 15 gallon water change in my 37 gallon reef and added some prime to neutralize some of the ammonia. The next day the black capped basslet died. I check my ammonia again it wasn't as high but still between 10 and 20. I also lost my clown fish. So I changed another 10 gallons. I checked it the yesterday and the ammonia was gone. I came home today and it is back up to 30 pm. I added some more Prime. Now I have lost all my fish except my Hoeven's Wrasse. He seems fine. Surprisingly, all my corals are fully extended and doing great. Is there any thing else I can do? I am beside myself. I have never had this happen. Could the water from my LSF have this. I did a 10 Gallon change with it. Any feedback would be appreciated, Thanks in advance __________________ 75 Gal, 10 gal sump 165wLED, 59w/led strip CBAngel, Six-L Wrsse. BCS, SerptStar, hmits, snls. Xenia, Trumpet, Polyp, Toadstool Lth, shrooms, LTE, Frogspawn, Duncan, Stylo.

11/30/2016, 07:15 PM	#2
GimpyFin Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 2,032	How old is your tank? __________________ Brian Current Tank Info: 110 gallon

11/30/2016, 08:15 PM	#3
keith10 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Tampa, Florida Posts: 47	It will be a year on January 1 __________________ 75 Gal, 10 gal sump 165wLED, 59w/led strip CBAngel, Six-L Wrsse. BCS, SerptStar, hmits, snls. Xenia, Trumpet, Polyp, Toadstool Lth, shrooms, LTE, Frogspawn, Duncan, Stylo.

11/30/2016, 08:49 PM	#4
GimpyFin Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 2,032	Have you changed anything notable recently? Seems unusual (Outside of cycling a new tank) to get an ammonia spike like that, especially if it zeroed and came back after a water change and an ammonia neutralizer. Corals won't be affected as much with ammonia as fish. __________________ Brian Current Tank Info: 110 gallon

12/02/2016, 03:15 PM	#6
keith10 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Tampa, Florida Posts: 47	So my water has stablized and all the death has been eaten by the clean up crew. Ammonia is a zero again. Only one fish made it. My wrasse. How long do you think I should wait before starting to add fish again? __________________ 75 Gal, 10 gal sump 165wLED, 59w/led strip CBAngel, Six-L Wrsse. BCS, SerptStar, hmits, snls. Xenia, Trumpet, Polyp, Toadstool Lth, shrooms, LTE, Frogspawn, Duncan, Stylo.

12/01/2016, 04:37 AM	#5
CrayolaViolence Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: North Carolina Posts: 1,867	Have you tested the water you got from your LFS for impurities? Unless the water is contaminated I don't see how it can be responsible for an ammonia spike.

12/02/2016, 03:31 PM	#7
75mixedreef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2016 Posts: 255	Did you make sure it was saltwater used from the lfs and not RO? Or maybe you thought you got RO and got saltwater then added more salt to it. Either way did you check the salinity before you dumped that water in the tank? Did you match temps? Any other noob mistakes you might have made or not caught someone else making that could have caused this? How about livestock. Did you lose a nem or a cucumber? Anything die that could have triggered the spike? Did you pull any live rock out of the tank and/or leave it exposed to air for more than 30 sec to 1 min?