A horrible, horrible end to my day - Nemo was gone...

[Beverly]

Because you don't know the reason(s) for the loss of your fish, I would leave the tank fallow (fishless) for six weeks in case ich or some other parasite caused the deaths.

[andsoitgoes]

There are a few other fish in the tank currently - so without removing them I'm kind of stuck

I'm making sure to keep a close eye on all fish, no signs of any parasites or inhibited behaviour. I've got the UV system running to ensure no problems, and the flow is enough to destroy any parasites.

It's a little odd that he showed no signs of any disease prior to or after his demise..

[Scavenger]

While decease might be a factor here, I would like to say that while I do respect the opinion, a healthy fish can negate the inflow and avoid it, I do however disagree with that idea. I believe that with a broken or missing guard, a fish would be suddenly sucked into the pumps very focused suction at the broken part of the guard without time to react. It would like being sucker punched while walking in a crowd. There is no time to react to what you don't detect. As the guard is broken, it would be like going from minimal current into a whirlpool in no time flat. Once sealed against the pump there would be no escape.

I am sure that in my case, the fish was very healthy and actively feeding only about one hour before his/her demise.

Either/or, get a guard over that pump. I myself used a wiffleball and it works just fine.

[andsoitgoes]

Originally Posted by Scavenger

While decease might be a factor here, I would like to say that while I do respect the opinion, a healthy fish can negate the inflow and avoid it, I do however disagree with that idea. I believe that with a broken or missing guard, a fish would be suddenly sucked into the pumps very focused suction at the broken part of the guard without time to react. It would like being sucker punched while walking in a crowd. There is no time to react to what you don't detect. As the guard is broken, it would be like going from minimal current into a whirlpool in no time flat. Once sealed against the pump there would be no escape.

I am sure that in my case, the fish was very healthy and actively feeding only about one hour before his/her demise.

Either/or, get a guard over that pump. I myself used a wiffleball and it works just fine.

that was the thing as well, he was going like crazy just a little while before this happened, he was one of the more active and voracious members of the tank - which again, is a large part of my concern with this.

Either way - the pump has been swapped out for one that has a full inflow cover that I'm much more confident on - at least this time I'll SEE If something got stuck.

[Beverly]

Originally Posted by andsoitgoes

There are a few other fish in the tank currently - so without removing them I'm kind of stuck

Keeping an eye on the fish still in the tank is a great idea. Just don't add any more until you are sure there aren't parasites, etc. in the tank.