Had to have a disaster sooner or later!! Help!

[untamed]

Detectable Nitrite worries me. To lose two fish that fast requires something pretty toxic. Nitrite is toxic, but ammonia is more toxic.

Get a new Ammonia test kit and check for ammonia. Maybe you've destroyed your bacteria somehow and the tank is cycling. Detectable Nitrite suggests some sort of cycle going on.

[hillbillyreefer]

Thanks Untamed,

No chance of getting an ammonia kit. One of the problems of living in the boonies you never think of it till you need it. 3 hr drive to the closest place I might get one.

Update: Nitrate less than 5
Nitrite 0.3

everything else pretty much constant. Will do another change in a couple hours, things still look happier than a couple hours ago.

Here is a noob question that I think I know the answer too already. I have some fluval zeo carb and fluval ammonia remover. The zeocarb says not to use it in salt. The ammonia remover doesn't can I run either of these as a bandaid for a couple days?

Thanks
Brad

[fkshiu]

Boonies, eh? Have you tried mail order from someplace like J&L?

My guess is ammonia as well. Nitrite and ammonia almost go hand-in-hand. You're probably going through some sort of re-cycle after removing all the bioballs at once.

[Myka]

You've already received great advice, but to prevent this in the future build you tank slower!!! Your tank is very heavily loaded for a 10 week old tank. Your tank isn't old enough to be "stable"...give it at least a year before you start calling it stable. At 10 weeks you have nothing to compare it to. There's an old saying, "Nothing good happens fast in a reef tank." It's very true. When my tank was 10 weeks old it had three LPS corals in it (and a small clean up crew)...that was it. It didn't get the dirty little fish until it was almost 5 months old. That said, my tank is nearing its first birthday (and is now about as stocked as your 10 week old tank is) and looks great.

[hillbillyreefer]

Congratulations. Thanks for the advice, things were going so well, pushed it too fast, did a lot wrong now my critters are paying for it. Some call it reeftarded on another site. I agree with them. Hope your 65 is all you hope it to be.

[hillbillyreefer]

Thanks to all the people who gave advice yesterday. As of this morning all water parameters are returning to normal, did a third 5 gal water change and all surviving animals are doing well and looking normal.

When it rains it pours, the stock pump crapped out on me this morning. The impellor was badly worn after only a couple months run time what a disappointment. I ordered two new MJ 1200's and a lockline Y to mod the tank somewhat. As a temporary fix I took apart a Regent powerhead and used the impeller out of it in the stock pump. Works well. Had to change the rubber end bushings then it dropped right in.

Also ordered new test kits. More chemi pure and carbon. I'm running 3 bags of fluval carbon and two bags of chemi pure in the back. The sponge is going to be removed tonight and only put back in on water change days to catch larger chunks. Then it will be removed washed and not put back in until the next water change. What would you guys do with the ceramic media? It's been in since day 1 should I leave it in or remove it at some point? Until I get some input on this one it will remain in the tank.

Again, Thanks everyone!!

Brad

[hillbillyreefer]

Crap now I'm reading about carbon shock!! Just can't win!!