Bad reaction in dt to chemiclean

[Aluco]

So, I used chemiclean for the first time to help rid tank of cyano. Seemed to help a bit, mostly with algae on the rocks. But a couple days after adding it I seem to have 2 dead fish. 1 for sure, another I can't find. One fish I've had for almost a year, the other I've had for like 4 months.

Besides that some corals look unhappy and the tank just looks a bit sad, lots of microbubbles and fish coloration has dimmed. I followed the directions including 20% water change after EXCEPT I didn't turn off gfo reactor or uv which runs overnight.

But I have done 30 gallons water change, 100 gallon water volume, since but don't know if I should do carbon or something.. I'm not sure if it's just excess toxins from algae die off or if gfo reacts poorly if introduced to chemiclean.. idk but wish I hadn't done this..

Any advice at this point?

 

[exnisstech]

Hmm can't really help but to say I have used chemiclean several times with no issues. I do not run gfo tho

 

[paragrouper]

Hmm can't really help but to say I have used chemiclean several times with no issues. I do not run gfo tho

Same here

 

[To(meany)Tang]

What's your stocking list? Did you add extra aeration?

 

[Aluco]

What's your stocking list? Did you add extra aeration?

100g dt, I have

foxface
Tomini tang
2 ocellaris
2 damsels
1 flame angel
Mandarin
Midas blenny
Valentini toby puffer
2 lyretail anthias
Melanarus wrasse
Sunrise dottyback

The fish I've pulled that died was a flameback angel and the missing one was a small yellow candy hogfish

I know some of these fish can be aggressive with each other but I swear they all had gotten along very well for months.for aeration I didn't add anything but have 3 wavemakers and skimmer cranked all the way up. I have almost too much surface agitation, sometimes splashes over the glass

 

[To(meany)Tang]

That stocking list doesn't seem too bad for a 100. I too am stumped. Gotta see @vetteguy53081 might know whats going on.

 

[Aluco]

That stocking list doesn't seem too bad for a 100. I too am stumped. Gotta see @vetteguy53081 might know whats going on.

Think I'm gonna run out and get some carbon I can just add to the sump. Looks like my flame angel has a couple spots of lympho which is very odd. I think there's toxins in the water. My tank has been cleared of any parasitic fish pathogens by edna test very recently. Then I'll run all parameters.

 

[Aluco]

I do have flatworms that live on corals, eating their mucus as a food source. Would chemiclean kill these? I heard mass die off of these worms can cause big problems

 

[vetteguy53081]

So, I used chemiclean for the first time to help rid tank of cyano. Seemed to help a bit, mostly with algae on the rocks. But a couple days after adding it I seem to have 2 dead fish. 1 for sure, another I can't find. One fish I've had for almost a year, the other I've had for like 4 months.

Besides that some corals look unhappy and the tank just looks a bit sad, lots of microbubbles and fish coloration has dimmed. I followed the directions including 20% water change after EXCEPT I didn't turn off gfo reactor or uv which runs overnight.

But I have done 30 gallons water change, 100 gallon water volume, since but don't know if I should do carbon or something.. I'm not sure if it's just excess toxins from algae die off or if gfo reacts poorly if introduced to chemiclean.. idk but wish I hadn't done this..

Any advice at this point?

I regard chemiclean as an alternative and not solution in many cases. The concerning part of the use is it contains Erythromycin Cetyl Sulfate which is an antibiotic which lowers oxygen and prevents growth of bacteria. Multiple doses will make matters worse.
You will want to increase oxygen with air stone, do a good water change, add carbon or even chemiPure blue to keep phos and nitrate in check.
The best way to address cyano is to start with the cause and eliminate it before adding any type of chemical.
Cyano blooms typically start when water nutrient concentrations of phosphate, nitrate and other organic compounds are too high.
Some of the most common causes include:
- Protein skimmer which fills water with tiny air bubbles. As bubbles form from the reaction chamber, dissolved organic compound molecules stick to them. Foam forms at the surface of the water and is then transferred to a collection cup, where it rests as skimmate. When the protein skimmer does not output the best efficiency or you do not have the suitable protein skimmer to cover the tank, the air bubbles created by the skimmer might be insufficient. And this insufficiency of air bubbles can trigger the cyano to thrive.
- Overstocking / overfeeding, your aquarium with nutrients is often the culprit of a cyano bloom
- Adding live rock that isn’t completely cured which acts like a breeding ground for red slime algae
- If you don’t change your water with enough frequency, you’ll soon have a brightly colored red slime algae bloom. Regular water changes dilute nutrients that feed cyanobacteria and keeps your tank clear
- Using a water source with nitrates or phosphates is like rolling out the welcome mat for cyano. Tap water is an example
- Inadequate water flow, or movement, is a leading cause of cyano blooms. Slow moving water combined with excess dissolved nutrients is a recipe for pervasive red slime algae development

I recommend to reduce white light intensity or even turn them off for 3-5 days. Add liquid bacteria daily for a week during the day at 1.5ml per 10 gallons. Add Hydrogen peroxide at night at 1ml per 10 gallons. Add a pouch of chemipure Elite which will balance phos and nitrate and keep them in check.

After the 5 days, add a few snails such as cerith, margarita, astrea and nassarius plus 6-8 blue leg hermits to take control.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Dead cyano may release toxins, and different cyano species may release different toxins. GAC seems like a good thing to try.

 

[piranhaman00]

I have an 800 gallon bottle of chemiclean and never opened it and probably never will. If you truly have cyano use peroxide. Other “cyano” species can be difficult.

 

[Aluco]

I did have a big nutrient spike about 3 weeks ago. Got it back down and no3 has since been stable at about 20ppm the last 2 weeks. My test results weren't great but for sure not too bad. My po4 shows a bit elevated but my dumb gfo reactor always gives me issues and I went in and fixed that. It will come down.

Added carbon and purigen to the sump and did another 15 gallon water change. Blah, I have a big jug of h2o2 I should have used that 100%. Here's my test results prior to this water change

@Randy Holmes-Farley do you know if either chemiclean itself or the cyano toxins could cause a massive flatworm die off? I'm curious to know if these flatworms died and may have caused more issues

 

[Aluco]

Well, if anyone knows, the flatworm in question showed as an acoela, Waminoa sp. They like my red goni and they showed on the edna test. Heard they could be highly toxic if killed en mass.

I'll leave it there otherwise. Thanks for the responses, appreciated

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I have an 800 gallon bottle of chemiclean and never opened it

I didn't know they made bottles that large. lol

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I did have a big nutrient spike about 3 weeks ago. Got it back down and no3 has since been stable at about 20ppm the last 2 weeks. My test results weren't great but for sure not too bad. My po4 shows a bit elevated but my dumb gfo reactor always gives me issues and I went in and fixed that. It will come down.

Added carbon and purigen to the sump and did another 15 gallon water change. Blah, I have a big jug of h2o2 I should have used that 100%. Here's my test results prior to this water change

@Randy Holmes-Farley do you know if either chemiclean itself or the cyano toxins could cause a massive flatworm die off? I'm curious to know if these flatworms died and may have caused more issues

View attachment 3153085

I've not heard that chemiclean/antibiotics kill flatworms.

It would not surprise me if cyano toxins could kill flatworms (they can kill dogs, after all), but I've not seen data on that.

 

[taricha]

I followed the directions including 20% water change after EXCEPT I didn't turn off gfo reactor or uv which runs overnight.

I don't know that either of these things are harmful - but they might make how chemiclean treatment progresses in the tank a little harder to predict.

UV could be expected to have a breakdown effect on many medications.

Personally I worry about O2 more than anything else with chemiclean.

 

[Aluco]

One more question, so I've changed like 40g of water in my dt, added carbon etc but my skimmer has still been going crazy. It's been a few days now and am ready for it to actually start skimming again.. to mitigate this I turned my skimmer pump down almost all the way and choked off the air to it. But this doesn't seem like a great solution.. do I just have to keep waiting? More water change?

 

[iamacat]

One more question, so I've changed like 40g of water in my dt, added carbon etc but my skimmer has still been going crazy. It's been a few days now and am ready for it to actually start skimming again.. to mitigate this I turned my skimmer pump down almost all the way and choked off the air to it. But this doesn't seem like a great solution.. do I just have to keep waiting? More water change?

Let the skimmer overflow into something and replace the water. It will take time. I pulled out probably 2 gallons before mine calmed down in a 75