# Help!!



## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

I got me a bit of an issue. I started a ten gallon saltwater tank just over a month ago and everything seemed to be going good. It had 10lbs of live rock and about 15lbs of live sand. Everything was going well, except keeping it cool as it is a little warm here. So I decided to upgrade to a bigger tank so we could add a chiller to keep the temp down. We got a 35g hex tank and cleaned it and set it up using about 55lb of live sand and ten lbs of live rock, I know it needs more and more is on the way. Anyway I added the ten to the tank including the water sand and rock, and my mini cuc, two peppermint shrimp, three hermit, and 3 snails. Adding things slowly is the plan.(Had the cuc for two weeks in the ten and all was good). Yesterday we got the 35 up and going and things seemed ok. Today hubby decides the tank needs fish. So he goes to petco and the try to sell him all kinds of stuff from starfish to puffers. Told him no, but they talked him into 3 jumbo green chromis. So I figured alot of water changes the next few weeks, ok dear you can have them. They all died as did everything else in the tank*frown. I have know idea why or what could of happened. Any ideas?? I know its a long post and am sry for that but I was trying to give as much info as possible. I need to know what went wrong before I put another thing in that tank!!


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

Need water parameters;ammonia,nitrite,nitrate,pH,kH,cA and SG.
What is your source water?Tap,RO......
How did you acclimate everyone to new tank.
The Hex doesn't offer alot of room or surface area.
What is your filter,circulation?


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Petco's water is notorious for being low on the SG side, especially if you got them over on 59th ave. Those idiots don't know what they are doing over there. If your going to get Petco Fish, go to the one up on Happy Vallye Rd and I-17. They have a nice set up.
Anyways, you need to drip acclimate your fish, that would be my recommendation.
I recommend Tropical Treasures for all your fish needs anyways, Don over there is fantastic, and has the cheapest dry goods in town. 35th ave and Greenway. I don't go anywhere else.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

nitrate- 0
nitrite- 0
ammonia- 0
salinity- 1.025
ph- i dont have a liquid test for but the strip came out a little low
will get one tho
treated tap water with Kordon water conditioner. Acclimation I left in their bags, in the tank for fifteen minutes and slowly changed their water to my tank water by dumping the bag water out and adding tank water. It has a cascade 700 filter and a hydor circulation and wave pump flow rate 240gph.
It had been cycling and after three weeks added the pep shrimp, snails and hermits. Everyone was doing well until I made the mistake of adding the fish.
So mad!!

@Rf He went to the one on 91st and Northern.


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Drip acclimation. I don't like the bag way.
just my opinion


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

I'll look into it. But would that have killed the fish and everything else in my tank? I am pretty sure that if all my shrimp, hermits and snails are dead then so is all the bacteria and everything else is also dead so I have to start from scratch again.


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Ah, missed that part, about everything dying. My bad. Thought it was just the fish.
Are you using Test strips for testing all your other water params? How low are we talking on the PH. I don't see a Calcium or ALK reading, so that may be the reason your Inverts died, may have been a coincidence.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

Yes just the strips for the ph. 
calcium-440
Alk- between the 180 and 300 mark (test strip)
the ph was between 7.4 and 7.8


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Couple things I see. Your ALK is between 10 and well over 16. To much to guess in there. If its over 16, you have big problems.
PH is to low at 7.4 but not bad at 7.8. That still is low, but not deathly low to its inhabitants.
You want your ALK more or less between 7 and 9, surely nothing over 12. Test Strips leave to much to the imagination. You need liquid test kits.
Alkalinity Conversion Chart
Other than that, I see nothing else that should have bombed your entire tank.
You didnt' have a Sea Slug in there by chance did you?


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

No sea slug.
I did buy the API Reef master test kit.
Ok so what do i need to do to get the Alk right?


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

With the API kH you want 7-11 drops to turn you from blue to green.8-10 is very comfortable ,7;boarderline low,11 most you want it.
You'd like your pH around 8-8.3 ideally.
Kent super DKH will raise your pH and if available kent coral builder will raise kH.Sea chem "reef builder" also raises KH,as the kent stuff seems to be discontinued.(Damn you central Gardens!)
http://www.aquariumforum.com/f2/drip-acclimating-fish-11327.html


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Your alk, being as nothing is alive, we can knock that down right quickly using Muriatic Acid. You will probably only need a few milliliters of this to get it down. I use it myself, with live stock in the tank, so don't worry. Now the PH will come down even further once we do this. So to get it up some, I would like your powerhead pointed at the surface to get a much better gas exchange. I don't remember seeing a Skimmer on the tank, so your not getting any exchange with that not being there. If you have a lid on the tank, please remove that also. We can do all of this in a about 4-5 hours, you will know if it all worked.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

So I figured a water change couldn't hurt and guess what as I was putting new water in two of my crabs started moving!!! So happy! And one snail survived. I am sending my son down to Ocean Floors to grab the tests.  And thank you very much. Will do as you suggested with the powerhead until I can test and thanks again.


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Stay away from the Ocean Floor, that place sucks. Tropical Treasures, best prices in town.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

Ok no problem. They are way over priced. 
*thumbsup thanx


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

Ocean Floor employees work off of commission, they will try to sell you the sun, or top of the line whatever, that you don't need.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

Thats probably why my son came home with a 37 dollar powerhead. So did the kh and it took 12 drops to go from blue to yellow.
I forgot to mention that there is a spraybar at the top of the tank for movement.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

I have an aqueon internal filter I was thinking of adding in case the fish brought something with them. Good idea or bad??
ph-8.0


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## Reefing Madness (Aug 12, 2011)

If the fish brought something with it, you already have inverts in the tank so adding something to kill bacteria or a parasite at this point would kill them also. For your tank, you need a minimum of 360gph in water movement, the more the better also, and spray bars won't cut it, they don't move any water, thats only for surface agitation, kinda.
If you added 12 drops, using an API test kit, your ALK is 12, and is at the top range, a bit high for my taste still, especially with your Cal only 440.
PH 8 is fine.


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## LisaF316 (May 5, 2012)

I will get it fixed one way or another.Just frustrating.


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