Firefish dead after water change

[clownfish_reefer]

Yesterday evening I did a 5 gallon water change on my 45 gallon tank. Did everything as usual. Made saltwater using tap water but using prime water conditioner. Made sure salt level was 1.023 and temperature was 80 degrees. Then went to go clean the glass and after that turned off everything to remove the filtration for cleaning. Tank was off for about 2 hours while cleaning and removing water. One thing I did change was adding new filtration. Added 1 new sponge, 2 new filter socks, bag of carbon, bio max, and Nitra-zorb by api. Everything was rinsed thoroughly before putting it in.
Then I turned the pumps back on and noticed the fish were breathing heavily and firefish was going to parts of the tank it wouldn’t usually go. Usually they tend to breath heavily previous times that’s why I didn’t think much of it. Woke up and found the firefish dead and my female clown had white marks on her face. I don’t know what happened I don’t believe it’s the oxygen. Any help would really be appreciated as I am worried for my other fish.

 

[splunty]

I am not an expert and hopefully somebody more experienced will offer help.

With that said, are you absolutely positive that the water change was properly treated with prime? Those symptoms scream to me of toxicity, possibly chlorine. If it was my tank, I would dose the display with prime immediately.

 

[clownfish_reefer]

I am not an expert and hopefully somebody more experienced will offer help.

With that said, are you absolutely positive that the water change was properly treated with prime? Those symptoms scream to me of toxicity, possibly chlorine. If it was my tank, I would dose the display with prime immediately.

Got some help on Reddit and people were saying it could’ve been the oxygen or ammonia. They also said to invest in an rodi system which I’m leaning more torwards doing. Luckily the marks on the clownfish and heavy breathing went away already all other fish seem ok for now. 1 chromis isn’t looking the best right now though.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I really doubt it is the water change.... 5 gallons out of 45 is like 5-ish percent. Even if the salinity and temperature were way off, that small of a water change would not affect the overall tank.

Even if you forgot to use the prime I don't think it would have much negative affect, after all there is prime in the water from previous water changes...

Without any details its hard to offer any suggestions, but it was not the water change IMO.

Can we see a pic of the tank? How old is the tank? Did you do an ammonia test? How do you oxygenate the water?

 

[clownfish_reefer]

I am not an expert and hopefully somebody more experienced will offer help.

With that said, are you absolutely positive that the water change was properly treated with prime? Those symptoms scream to me of toxicity, possibly chlorine. If it was my tank, I would dose the display with prime immediately.

Got some help and Reddit people were saying it could’ve been the oxygen or ammonia. They also said to invest in an rodi system which I’m leaning more torwards doing. Luckily the marks on the clownfish and heavy breathing went away already all other fish seem ok for now.

 

[splunty]

I really doubt it is the water change.... 5 gallons out of 45 is like 5-ish percent. Even if the salinity and temperature were way off, that small of a water change would not affect the overall tank.

Even if you forgot to use the prime I don't think it would have much negative affect, after all there is prime in the water from previous water changes...

Without any details its hard to offer any suggestions, but it was not the water change IMO.

Can we see a pic of the tank? How old is the tank? Did you do an ammonia test? How do you oxygenate the water?

Howdy, Mojo!

Just FYI, Prime only lasts a few hours before breaking down in the water column. From Seachem's website:

A: Prime® will bind up those compounds for up to 48 hours. If they are still present after that time frame, they are released back into the water, unless Prime® is re-dosed accordingly. Also, if your ammonia or nitrite levels are increasing within a 24-hour period, Prime® can be re-dosed every 24 hours.

I certainly don't mean to be argumentative, just pointing out that it's safe to dose the display occasionally since it theoretically doesn't pollute the tank over time.

Thank you!

 

[Tamberav]

It’s probably oxygen issue, heavy breathing and that algae releases co2/uses oxygen at night which means oxygen drops at night… and fish died overnight and sounds like tank flow was off awhile during the cleaning… so they were already struggling..

Use RODI and not tap and get the algae under control.

 

[clownfish_reefer]

I really doubt it is the water change.... 5 gallons out of 45 is like 5-ish percent. Even if the salinity and temperature were way off, that small of a water change would not affect the overall tank.

Even if you forgot to use the prime I don't think it would have much negative affect, after all there is prime in the water from previous water changes...

Without any details its hard to offer any suggestions, but it was not the water change IMO.

Can we see a pic of the tank? How old is the tank? Did you do an ammonia test? How do you oxygenate the water?

This is all the info I have right now before doing more tests
Tank has been set up since December 19 2023 so for about 9 months. Previous live rock and 5 gallons of water was used
I have 2 return pumps both with random flow generators. Also have a Nero 5 power head for more flow.
Previous filtration included 1 filter sponge, carbon, biomax, and a protein skimmer.
Parameters after water change
Salinity: 1.025
Temp: 79.4
Ph: 8.2
Ammonia: 0.5
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 20 ppm
Phosphate: 0.5 ppm

 

[clownfish_reefer]

It’s probably oxygen issue, heavy breathing and that algae releases co2/uses oxygen at night which means oxygen drops at night… and fish died overnight and sounds like tank flow was off awhile during the cleaning… so they were already struggling..

Use RODI and not tap and get the algae under control.

Been thinking about getting that rodi system now. Probably gonna be for the better in the long run. Sadly the weaker chromis passed too but I noticed when it swam near the rocks the tang was a bit aggressive to it.

 

[CallmePablo]

i don’t think it was the water change either, but you had the tank down for 2 hours, im thinking more about lack of oxygen killed him.

 

[Jesse Sunday]

I might be the outlier here, but 5g of tap water stands out to me... I know you treated it, but there's no substitute for RODI. I don't want to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but I don't trust tap water.

From various sources: Exposure to harmful chemicals, such as cleaning agents, untreated tap water (containing chlorine or chloramine), or medications added to the tank, could stress the fish and affect breathing.​

Are you, or could you, start running carbon?

Also, I would recommend adding aeration.

 

[clownfish_reefer]

I might be the outlier here, but 5g of tap water stands out to me... I know you treated it, but there's no substitute for RODI. I don't want to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but I don't trust tap water.

From various sources: Exposure to harmful chemicals, such as cleaning agents, untreated tap water (containing chlorine or chloramine), or medications added to the tank, could stress the fish and affect breathing.​

Are you, or could you, start running carbon?

Also, I would recommend adding aeration.

I am running carbon at the moment so far the fish seem ok. Sadly lost the firefish and a chromis but thankfully my whole tank wasn’t wiped. Not gonna do another water change until I get an rodi system or get some water from the lfs.

 

[clownfish_reefer]

i don’t think it was the water change either, but you had the tank down for 2 hours, im thinking more about lack of oxygen killed him.

Same the heavy breathing was a sign I should’ve taken more seriously. I just want to learn from this mistake to ensure it never happens again. Currently won’t do a water change unless it’s water from the lfs or until I get a rodi system.

 

[CallmePablo]

Same the heavy breathing was a sign I should’ve taken more seriously. I just want to learn from this mistake to ensure it never happens again. Currently won’t do a water change unless it’s water from the lfs or until I get a rodi system.

You can do your water changes but try not to take that long or at least have a powerhead on

 

[Jesse Sunday]

I am running carbon at the moment so far the fish seem ok. Sadly lost the firefish and a chromis but thankfully my whole tank wasn’t wiped. Not gonna do another water change until I get an rodi system or get some water from the lfs.

I use this system now, but I started with a smaller "RO Buddie Plus DI Four Stage"... the smaller one was around $70, and made about 5g in a few hours.

It's totally worth it for peace of mind and convenience not to have to run out and buy water every week or so.

 

[clownfish_reefer]

You can do your water changes but try not to take that long or at least have a powerhead on

Next time I will leave the power head on plus an air stone for extra safety. Many people saying to get rodi so I think just to be safe I’ll do that. Hoping to have a nice reef tank and I know parameters matter a lot. Not trying to blindly put in tap water into the tank

 

[clownfish_reefer]

I use this system now, but I started with a smaller "RO Buddie Plus DI Four Stage"... the smaller one was around $70, and made about 5g in a few hours.

It's totally worth it for peace of mind and convenience not to have to run out and buy water every week or so.

Someone told me to avoid the ro buddie as they had it and had to be changing the filters or something in it which costed more in the long run. How often would you have to change the filters in the one you use and how easy is it to use? Never used an rodi before seems a little intimidating lol

 

[Jesse Sunday]

Someone told me to avoid the ro buddie as they had it and had to be changing the filters or something in it which costed more in the long run. How often would you have to change the filters in the one you use and how easy is it to use? Never used an rodi before seems a little intimidating lol

Ha, well, part of the reason I upgraded from the 50g/day Buddie to the 100g/day model I have now is the filters are less expensive in the long run - AND - I went from a 90g tank to a 150g so I needed the faster filtering. BUT, the Buddie was still usable when I took it out of service and I gave it to the guy who took my 90g tank.

So, with a 45g tank... doing a 5g each week, the Buddie should last years before you need to change the filters.

Changing the Buddie or the one I have now is super easy. But I understand the intimidation, I felt the same way when I first got one!

 

[clownfish_reefer]

Ha, well, part of the reason I upgraded from the 50g/day Buddie to the 100g/day model I have now is the filters are less expensive in the long run - AND - I went from a 90g tank to a 150g so I needed the faster filtering. BUT, the Buddie was still usable when I took it out of service and I gave it to the guy who took my 90g tank.

So, with a 45g tank... doing a 5g each week, the Buddie should last years before you need to change the filters.

Changing the Buddie or the one I have now is super easy. But I understand the intimidation, I felt the same way when I first got one!

I think I will go with the buddy then as it is cheaper than some of the rodi systems on the market. As I’m not old enough to get a job yet I’m gonna have to work some night shifts with my dad to pay it off. You think this one will be ok? https://a.co/d/8s0LBTP

 

[Jesse Sunday]

I think I will go with the buddy then as it is cheaper than some of the rodi systems on the market. As I’m not old enough to get a job yet I’m gonna have to work some night shifts with my dad to pay it off. You think this one will be ok? https://a.co/d/8s0LBTP

Yep, that's the exact one I bought when I first got into the hobby!