Dead Inverts

katlongo · 05/09/2013, 12:27 AM

I'm so confused and upset:
I'm downsizing from a 180 to a 29 on my way to a 57 rimlesss....

The 29 has cycled for almost three months, all parameters were perfect. I move my livestock (2 clowns and a pj cardinal, 3 turbo snails, a shrimp and a star fish) into the 29 -- they were beautiful for the past four weeks. Two days ago the water was cloudy and all inverts are dead, my bubble is dead and slimed away, the mushrooms haven't opened up.

The only thing I did different was switch from a 78 watt T5 light fixture to a 160 w Maxspect. The light change explains the mushrooms, possibly the bubble, but it doesn't explain the inverts!

ammonia is through the roof with the dead animals,
sg is 1.022 copper is detectable (I've never had any copper in this tank -- ever!!!!)

Any thoughts before I re - add inverts?

NeilFox · 05/09/2013, 12:36 AM

Was this a used tank that may have been a QT to treat fish with copper in the past?

SushiGirl · 05/09/2013, 07:11 AM

Salinity is low. One death in a tank that size could've caused a snowball effect.

Sugar Magnolia · 05/09/2013, 07:16 AM

Was this tank cycled with new LR or did you transfer the LR from your old tank? If it was new LR, that is a huge bioload to toss into it at one time. Not enough nitrifying bacteria on/in the rocks to handle the bioload could have caused a large ammonia spike, killing things off.

katlongo · 05/09/2013, 08:46 AM

The tank has never had copper in it -- I've owned it for 20 years and it's had saltwater most of them. I moved water from my 180 into this tank, added some LR from the 180 and then let it cycle for 3 months -- then I slowly added livestock to it

I'm not in the habit of testing my water frequently, but it was clear and everything was healthy until this weekend.

Woke up Sunday to a cloudy tank, all corals closed up and my bubble dead. I started doing daily water changes as I figured ammonia would be through the roof. Tuesday I found that my starfish was dead and when removing him found the skeleton of my shrimp and three huge turbos were dead - that's all that was in there, no small snails or crabs. I had attributed the cloudiness and ammonia to the bubble which maybe burnt out from the new lights? But all the inverts dead made me think of copper which made me think that maybe all of them dying put the ammonia over the top

Can't figure out how any copper would get into this tank but the brand new test clearly shows .25! which is definitely enough to kill my inverts.

SushiGirl · 05/09/2013, 08:51 AM

Sounds to me like the anemone died, and the resulting ammonia killed the other inverts. Did you do the copper test more than once? Any bits of copper wiring from lights that could've gotten in the tank? Are you using Kent carbon? Any brass fittings on plumbing?

MrClam · 05/09/2013, 10:54 AM

I have also heard of pumps malfunctioning and releasing copper and other metals into the tank. I would check to make sure all the pumps are working and sealed.

Pittsburgh · 05/09/2013, 10:59 AM

Find out what's leaching copper, fix it. Make sure your copper test is good. Then run some cuprisorb to neutralize any remaining copper in water.

05/09/2013, 12:27 AM	#1
katlongo Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Ossining, NY Posts: 656	Dead Inverts I'm so confused and upset: I'm downsizing from a 180 to a 29 on my way to a 57 rimlesss.... The 29 has cycled for almost three months, all parameters were perfect. I move my livestock (2 clowns and a pj cardinal, 3 turbo snails, a shrimp and a star fish) into the 29 -- they were beautiful for the past four weeks. Two days ago the water was cloudy and all inverts are dead, my bubble is dead and slimed away, the mushrooms haven't opened up. The only thing I did different was switch from a 78 watt T5 light fixture to a 160 w Maxspect. The light change explains the mushrooms, possibly the bubble, but it doesn't explain the inverts! ammonia is through the roof with the dead animals, sg is 1.022 copper is detectable (I've never had any copper in this tank -- ever!!!!) Any thoughts before I re - add inverts? __________________ Kathy Longo Current Tank Info: 65 gallon rimless, Tunze 1073.05 return, ReefOctopus 110NW and MaxSpect LED lights

05/09/2013, 07:11 AM	#3
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,267	Salinity is low. One death in a tank that size could've caused a snowball effect. __________________ Visit my Homepage or "My Albums" (via Profile) for hitchhiker pics. Current Tank Info: 55g softy/LPS tank & 20L reef tank

05/09/2013, 07:16 AM	#4
Sugar Magnolia Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Northern VA Posts: 17,691	Was this tank cycled with new LR or did you transfer the LR from your old tank? If it was new LR, that is a huge bioload to toss into it at one time. Not enough nitrifying bacteria on/in the rocks to handle the bioload could have caused a large ammonia spike, killing things off. __________________ Adrienne The only thing to fear is fear itself....and spiders.

05/09/2013, 08:46 AM	#5
katlongo Premium Member Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Ossining, NY Posts: 656	The tank has never had copper in it -- I've owned it for 20 years and it's had saltwater most of them. I moved water from my 180 into this tank, added some LR from the 180 and then let it cycle for 3 months -- then I slowly added livestock to it I'm not in the habit of testing my water frequently, but it was clear and everything was healthy until this weekend. Woke up Sunday to a cloudy tank, all corals closed up and my bubble dead. I started doing daily water changes as I figured ammonia would be through the roof. Tuesday I found that my starfish was dead and when removing him found the skeleton of my shrimp and three huge turbos were dead - that's all that was in there, no small snails or crabs. I had attributed the cloudiness and ammonia to the bubble which maybe burnt out from the new lights? But all the inverts dead made me think of copper which made me think that maybe all of them dying put the ammonia over the top Can't figure out how any copper would get into this tank but the brand new test clearly shows .25! which is definitely enough to kill my inverts. __________________ Kathy Longo Current Tank Info: 65 gallon rimless, Tunze 1073.05 return, ReefOctopus 110NW and MaxSpect LED lights

05/09/2013, 08:51 AM	#6
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,267	Sounds to me like the anemone died, and the resulting ammonia killed the other inverts. Did you do the copper test more than once? Any bits of copper wiring from lights that could've gotten in the tank? Are you using Kent carbon? Any brass fittings on plumbing? __________________ Visit my Homepage or "My Albums" (via Profile) for hitchhiker pics. Current Tank Info: 55g softy/LPS tank & 20L reef tank

05/09/2013, 12:36 AM	#2
NeilFox Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: DuPont, WA Posts: 947	Was this a used tank that may have been a QT to treat fish with copper in the past?

05/09/2013, 10:54 AM	#7
MrClam Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Posts: 557	I have also heard of pumps malfunctioning and releasing copper and other metals into the tank. I would check to make sure all the pumps are working and sealed.

05/09/2013, 10:59 AM	#8
Pittsburgh Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 577	Find out what's leaching copper, fix it. Make sure your copper test is good. Then run some cuprisorb to neutralize any remaining copper in water. __________________ Pittsburgh Current Tank Info: 95g Oceanic SPS reef. 30g sump, Sicce Syncra Silent 4.0 return, Reef Octopus 2000SSS skimmer, fuge with chaeto, BRS Carbon reactor, MR1 GFO reactor, BRS 2part dosing, Tunze ATO, 2x Tunze 6095 powerheads on a Tunze 7095, Gyre 130, 2xRadions xr30w pro.