Tank Water Turned Black

[slief]

Originally Posted by trae

DanReedRogers, I don't think it is your rock. I lived in a place where my RoDi could only get the water to 35-45 PPM. I had dark brown water off and on for a month after it cleared. I had no intentions of starting over with 240 gallons of water so after the brown algae, I lived with a green hair algae bloom from hell for six months before I emptied the tank. Tank clear and bacteria eaters seemed to feed it.

Your issue sounds like a bacterial bloom. I'm sure your water didn't smell like rotten eggs or decaying matter like the OP's.. His issue is different given the smell that he noted and is much more serious in my opinion. There isn't a snowballs chance in hell that I would start a new system with water like his. If it were me, I would cure the rock in a trash can with full of new water,a pump and a decent skimmer. I would cycle the tank with sand only and new clean water. That is the right way (IMO) to do it under his circumstances.

[DanReedRogers]

Hmm, We have a problem. The ammonia is already at 8.00ppm. I setup it up yesterday..... 100% water change?.

I think it might be my water, Im going to go to a shop and buy some water.
The water I am using is rainwater, so It has no or barely any chemicals.

[Bobbofin]

Wow, you're start off with a bang; cheap skimmer, store brand salt instead of known quality salt, questionable live rock. If there's one bit of advise I can give you is if you cheap out or take short cuts in this hobby you will fail. I'd empty the tank, throw away the rock and sand, buy a good quality dead rock and at least Instant Ocean salt and start over. I've only seen black water in a lobster tank that 50lb of lobster has died and is rotting!

[airtime23]

To the OP, not to sound mean or disrespectful, but please tear down what you have, get rid of the "live rocks", get rid of the sand. Throw away that salt, and the skimmer.

Then use the next several months to educate yourself about the hobby. Read, read, and read some more.

This is not a hobby that one gets into without having a clear idea of how the process works.

Again, with all due respect.

[Bobbofin]

Originally Posted by airtime23

To the OP, not to sound mean or disrespectful, but please tear down what you have, get rid of the "live rocks", get rid of the sand. Throw away that salt, and the skimmer.

Then use the next several months to educate yourself about the hobby. Read, read, and read some more.

This is not a hobby that one gets into without having a clear idea of how the process works.

Again, with all due respect.

I agree! Is there a reef club in your area that mentors newbies? I live in Southern NH and belong to three reef clubs in MA, NH & CT. We mentor newbies so they have success.

[acabgd]

I suspect your rain water could have all sorts of contaminants in it. You should get a RO/DI filter or at least use store bought distilled water.

[Aquarist007]

Originally Posted by tmz

Ro/di is certainly worth having but would not have made a difference with decaying live rock in anoxic salt water.Many folks run tanks without ro/di though it's safer to use it.

Air out the room. Dump the water .

Rinse the rock thoroughly with salt water,brush off any decaying material you see. Wear gloves. Cure it in circulating water for few weeks. Monitor ammonia and change the water if it gets high ,say more than 2. Keep the water aerated with power head at the surface and/or an air stone. Sulfate reducing bacteria need oxygen free water to live. Ammonia oxidizers and other beneficial players in the nitrogen cycle use and/or need oxygen.

A more drastic set of measures involves bleaching the rock ,followed by and acid bath. I'd just clean it up and put it in new salt water and keep it aerated.

H2S, hydrogen sulfide oxidizes eventually. It should be ok but might take a while .

This is a link to Wikipedia's site on H2S. Section 6 deals with toxicity including signs and symptoms of poisoning:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_sulfide#Toxicity

Please follow TMZ's advice

[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by airtime23

To the OP, not to sound mean or disrespectful, but please tear down what you have, get rid of the "live rocks", get rid of the sand. Throw away that salt, and the skimmer.

Then use the next several months to educate yourself about the hobby. Read, read, and read some more.

This is not a hobby that one gets into without having a clear idea of how the process works.

Again, with all due respect.

I agree with this.

I honestly do not think I have ever seen someone with this problem. It is definitely not right.

[Aquarist007]

Originally Posted by shaginwagon13

I agree with this.

I honestly do not think I have ever seen someone with this problem. It is definitely not right.

The op is on the right track by posting on Reef Central. Luckily with only a few bucks wasted

[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by Aquarist007

The op is on the right track by posting on Reef Central. Luckily with only a few bucks wasted

Agreed!

[whiteshark]

Originally Posted by shaginwagon13

Agreed!

For sure. This site was the best thing for my reefing career.

[shaginwagon13]

Originally Posted by whiteshark

For sure. This site was the best thing for my reefing career.

This forum saved so many of my fish and corals' lives haha

[tmz]

I've seen tanks with newly added mostly dead and decaying rock giving off lot's of H2S before. The OP needs advice on the next steps. I think the rock can be saved and used with patience. The black sulfide is harmless;the H2S will oxidize and dissappear.

[jennmac415]

Hes also in Australia, if you had read the entire thread, he has to deal with the brand and products he can get there.

[Ontheway]

I do not know what happens to my heart when I get home and see my tank in black. Are you sure there are no offense from home? wify, gf, kids, they may become a threat, from time to time, lol

You definitely need fresh start. Treat and rinse equipment very well, you can consider bleach. Please keep in mind equipment includes PS, aquarium itself and pipes, too.

[trae]

Originally Posted by slief

It doesn't hurt. You won't loose any life in the live rock due cold temps if you have a heater. Normally the answer would be a resounding yes dependant on your local temps. At this stage though, I'm not sure how much difference it will make anyway. I think most life has already been lost on those rocks based on the pictures, smell etc. Then again, the heater may help acclerate the decomposition of the dead stuff.

Originally Posted by slief

Your issue sounds like a bacterial bloom. I'm sure your water didn't smell like rotten eggs or decaying matter like the OP's.. His issue is different given the smell that he noted and is much more serious in my opinion. There isn't a snowballs chance in hell that I would start a new system with water like his. If it were me, I would cure the rock in a trash can with full of new water,a pump and a decent skimmer. I would cycle the tank with sand only and new clean water. That is the right way (IMO) to do it under his circumstances.

Negative..It was the exact same problem the op is unfortunately dealing with. Never seen it before like many have stated here. Skimmer won't pull it out. You have to do at least 50% water change and it goes away after a few days. Subscribed

[kabe87]

Ive seen other people having this issue (water turning black) cuz they tried to accelerate their cycling by adding sugar (lots)... by any chance did you do the same ?