Moo

[EmilyB]

Just to end this thread, the cukes were both found alive and well. Yesterday the red sea butterfly dropped dead on the spot. All of the other fish, etc are doing well and the tank looks better than it has in ages.

So I tested into the wee hours of the morning, tested everything under the sun.

Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0-5
ph 8.1
Phosphate 2.5

So seeing the phosphate, I wondered wtf? Reducing phosphate can be done by water changes, which is what has been happening all along, plus I have been water changing out to a rock cycling tank almost every day for weeks.

I tested the other tank. No phosphate. I tested the water change nsw, no phosphate. I tested all the foods I feed. Minimal with nori and mysis, the flake was bad. But I haven't changed feeding, probably cut way back on flake now anyway.

The only thing I could think of next was to test the rest of the remaining rock curing. Phosphates were 2.5.