Fishies Died

So I have a new tank and it has completed its cycle.  I added a chromis as my first fish and he has been doing fine for over a week.  I also have snails and crabs that are doing ok.

Fish4U

I would be curious to know the actual Alk levels.

I am curious why a low alk would kill fish?  Is it because you get large pH swings?  Have you tested the pH first very early in the morning before any light?

Alkalinity is so very very very important. It has a large impact on the general health of the reef. Depriving a tank of Alkalinity is like depriving it of air.
Yes, pH will be lower, especially at night, when it naturally swings down. In this case the pH swing would be even more pronounced.

But in this case we also need to talk about the "cycle". My greatest wish in this hobby is to help people understand what the "cycle" really is and how to completely avoid it. It would be great if we could eliminate the term from our discussion.

I'll begin simply by stating that there are many processes in nature which have to be in balance for life to survive. The process of eating up dead organic material is one of the most important. Even in a new tank there is a lot of dead stuff. Anything that was once alive, even dirt, is dead stuff. This is pollution. New LR being placed in a tank is an example of extreme pollution.

When we add a chunk of LR to our tank, if it came from the LFS or was shipped in, it was out of water. Why am I so concerned about it being out of water. I mean it's only rock. Stop and think for a moment and consider what that means. All the plants and animals that were growing on and inside that LR must be in moving saltwater to live. What will happen when they have been high and dry for 1-7 days? To put this into perspective, consider this. What would happen if you were submerged in saltwater for 1-7 days?

Those plants and animals were high and dry(damp) several times in the last month as they were transported from the ocean to a holding tank to the distributor to a holding tank, to the LFS to a holding tank, to your aquarium. When we buy a box of LR online, the only step we skipped was the LFS. Most everything that was alive on that rock has died. Only the toughest things survive that ordeal. There is a lot of dead stuff on and inside the LR.

Now let's get to the reasons for the deaths of the new fish in Preston's/Chevmaro's new tank. The different processes that must happen in a reef tank are actually quite complicated. But we don't have to know much of the technical stuff, if we recognize one important thing. It takes time for these processes to develop and stabilize. The so called "Nitrogen Cycle", which is the process of eating up pollution, is only one of those processes.

Preston, you and I can help everyone reading this to understand how to keep a better reef aquarium. If you don't mind, I'd like to quote the first line of your OP. "So I have a new tank and it has completed its cycle." Maybe you were referring to this illustration.


Probably not. Most likely, you were thinking of this one.

But this is not the only process going on. There are many others, like this one.




Edited by Mark Peterson - February 11 2011 at 9:52am

I went to Lowes and picked up a better refugium light.  I was using a Picotope 9watt pc light and I havent got much growth.  I picked up a clip on light and a 18 watt pc bulb its much brighter going to try that for a while.  Went to Petsmart to get an alkalinity test kit and they didnt have one.  I was suprised.  I will goto Fish4u tomorrow and pick one up.  I am going to test the water again then do a small weekly change and wait i guess.

IMO $43 well spent.. Think of how much people spend on there livestock and then lose them cause the dont keep their water params in check.

Ran a full range of tests today:

Mark Peterson wrote: Alkalinity is so very very very important. It has a large impact on the general health of the reef. Depriving a tank of Alkalinity is like depriving it of air. Yes, pH will be lower, especially at night, when it naturally swings down. In this case the pH swing would be even more pronounced.

Chevmaro wrote: alk was low again this morning.  i put in some kent marine cb A, B and tested again this afternoon with the above results.  I think i put a bit much in because caclium and alkalinity are both hgih.  Are these too high?