HELP! Wrasse and shrimp stuck in overflow return reservoir!

[vipulgshukla]

Please read and help. Thanks, in advance.

I recently removed ALL live rock from my 150g FOWLR display tank, which has a 80g sump below it, because of a stubborn long-standing green hair algae problem. The night the inhabitants (including about 15 different community fish) and 2 shrimps had to spend without any live rock to sleep in, was apparently a traumatic one.

Next morning, we found the blood shrimp was being the breakfast for some of the older bigger tangs/angels/zebra damsels/diana's hogfish, and another cleaner shrimp and common cleaner wrasse missing.

Today, after 2 days, as I was reintroducing the thoroughly cleaned live rock back, I discovered the shrimp and the wrasse were inside the overflow return reservoir chamber, where they apparently found refuge from the nocturnal frenzy or were sucked in due to the flow, from a small gap in the grate/sieve design.

The return reservoir is on one side of my display tank and has the inverted-J return pipe and the pipe that brings water up from the submersible pump in the sump to the display tank. About 6" x 4" and the plumbing within it. It is a sheltered area, but I have been unable to get these refugees back into the display where now the clean live rock offers ample sleeping/hiding room. I tried using a common red fishnet and tried using the Python cleaning tubing, but just not enough room to maneuver anything in there. They hide in the narrow space between the pipes. At my wit's end now. I know that the shrimp or wrasse cannot climb against the flow of the water, so they might eventually starve to death.

Please give me your suggestions, whatever they might be, as I dont wish to lose these important 'cleaning crew' to a plumbing oversight!

Thanks.

[mike_cmu04]

Turn the water off then the should be able to move then snag them with the net. Make sure to check your ammonia and make sure you didnt start a cycle when you moved everything

[A sea K]

I've had that happen several times and so far the easyist way I have found was to remove the "j" pipe overflow entirely and let the critters wash down into the sump where they can be trapped with a net and returned to the main display. It sounds treacherous but is much kinder than trying to net one out of an overflow you dont have good access to.

This has worked very well for me on fish but I'm not sure how well it will work on the shrimp.

[vipulgshukla]

Hello Sea K, How do I remove the J-pipe assembly? Is it screwed in? Is it easy to reassemble it back? I know the top part also has the air intake valve, to ensure that the display does not flood up. Thanks for all your help.
I saw them this morning, the shrimp is definitely alive, the wrasse looks not so good.

[A sea K]

It is usually a slip fitting. Some people use glue, i assembled my own so its not glued, takes a little wiggling to get them out but don't use excessive force (might be glued), once out the hardest part is finding the hole when you cant see it, otherwise it will slip right back in.

[hammmerhead]

I have the same issue at times with wrasses. I have a net that barely fits in my overflow and I position it facing the back of the tank at a very slight angle. I then get one of those plastic window blind rods to coax him into position and simply lift up on the net. It takes a few times, but always works. I have the old school drains on my overflows, so when I shut off the main pump only about 4 or 5 inches of water remain in the box. You will probably have to drain your down that far as well.

[vipulgshukla]

SUCCESS!!!
Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I shut of the pump, then using my PYTHON, drained the return reservoir till about 3 inches water remained, then with net on the glass side, used an inverted coat hanger to prod them into the net, first the shrimp, then the cleaner wrasse.
The new issue now: As soon as the cleaner shrimp (about 4 inches long) got into the main tank, it was persistently attacked by my Diana's Hogfish (about 4 inches long), even before I could intervene, one long whisker was gone and the shrimp was fighting for its life!
The shrimp was actually swimming INTO the red fishnet to escape the attack!
After a while, I put the shrimp (minus one whisker, and one leg half gone) into a floating hospital plastic transparent box, where it was promptly seen by the Hogfish who attacked the plastic case, and using the net, I have now removed the hogfish and left it into a bucket of saltwater.
This bad guy probably ate the first blood shrimp too, and has tasted fresh shrimp, so it will go back to the LFS. I never bought him in the first place, it was a birthday gift from my staff last year.
Probably will exchange him for another blood shrimp or something. What a nightmare! But thanks everyone!

[tkeracer619]

Once they taste fresh shrimp they never go back.