Yes. Not only that but the salinity level effects their slimecoat production.
And what his water temperature?
Clownfish keep dying. why?
- Thread starter Plague
- Start date
Yes. Not only that but the salinity level effects their slimecoat production.
And what his water temperature?
I am with Ace... And River on the Tap water ...lord knows what can be in that from day to day.
Also the scene you describe sounds like a mess. You are aware adding all that to the display will soak into it's surroundings? The medicines is what I mean...
You also mention he doesn't run carbon...well after all that dosing of this and that with no testing...and no carbon used to pull out all the stuff...you have a toxic soup going of meds.
I personally think you need to sit down ...Test the tap water...test the tank water and give us some numbers.
Low salinity is actually a favorable environment for Fish over the Corals...only when its significantly low is it a problem. Not saying this is the case here.
Also all that dosing could mean he could be still in cycles ..thanks to killing off the bio in the tank...hard to say.
My clowns have gone through hell and back and never had died...seems 12 dead clowns screams something is very wrong in that tank. The live rock may have sponged up some things and is leeching it back into the water.
TESTS please....really.
Nitrates, Nitrites, Ammonia, PH 8.0 kits (use end of photo period for proper readings), Salinity test at the store with refractormeter, Alk , calc
Also please test the tap water for kicks just to compare....
As ace said Copper test that water...
Post the results please I really like to see the results...and see if we can help him out at the same time.
Also the scene you describe sounds like a mess. You are aware adding all that to the display will soak into it's surroundings? The medicines is what I mean...
You also mention he doesn't run carbon...well after all that dosing of this and that with no testing...and no carbon used to pull out all the stuff...you have a toxic soup going of meds.
I personally think you need to sit down ...Test the tap water...test the tank water and give us some numbers.
Low salinity is actually a favorable environment for Fish over the Corals...only when its significantly low is it a problem. Not saying this is the case here.
Also all that dosing could mean he could be still in cycles ..thanks to killing off the bio in the tank...hard to say.
My clowns have gone through hell and back and never had died...seems 12 dead clowns screams something is very wrong in that tank. The live rock may have sponged up some things and is leeching it back into the water.
TESTS please....really.
Nitrates, Nitrites, Ammonia, PH 8.0 kits (use end of photo period for proper readings), Salinity test at the store with refractormeter, Alk , calc
Also please test the tap water for kicks just to compare....
As ace said Copper test that water...
Post the results please I really like to see the results...and see if we can help him out at the same time.
You may want to give him some low salinity numbers that are OK I dont have my book in front of me....nor do I run my stuff low due to Reef.
It is actually ok to run slightly lower than Reefs salinity ...worst case Ill grab my book and get the numbers for you all.
heh getting the numbers from his tank will be near impossible. He'll scold at me and set me on fire if he finds out I did this thread. Like I said he is too proud to accept defeat. I'll see what I can come up with.
BTW all the meds were administered in a separate 5 gallon bucket, never in the main tank. Only thing ever used in the main tank was melafix and pimafix.
BTW all the meds were administered in a separate 5 gallon bucket, never in the main tank. Only thing ever used in the main tank was melafix and pimafix.
Well hand him this:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php
Though its reef specific advice .... It is still a guide post for you or him.
Reefs need a little more scrutiny on some things vs Fish only. It should still act as a guide post.
here is another which actually posts some numbers targeted for Fish only:
http://www.saltwater-aquarium-online-guide.com/water-parameters.html
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You cannot generalize like that. Some fish species are ok for fairly low salinity, some are not. Clownfish are ok for lower salinity than many corals, but not for salinity as low as my instant ocean hydro was giving me (1.017).
Clownfish should optimally be kept in salinity between 1.023-1.026, and it should be fairly stable. They may be ok in slightly lower and slightly higher, but not by more than a couple of points.
The temperature should be around 78-80, IMO, though as stated in most information I've seen 75-84 is ok. Anything lower than that or higher than that would definitely not be good.
You must have been posting and didn't notice. I had asked you to provide some salinity numbers that are low but not too low for him. Since I made it clear I didn't remember.
I also then took it upon myself to get him some numbers to use to act as a guide post.
I don't see what the problem here is with my generalized answer since you proved my point that you can have lower salinity numbers than the 1.024 we normally would go for.
PS. I don't take Hydro meter readings in here seriously,since they are very unreliable. So OP...do try to get it tested by the local store by a refractormeter ...it's the only way to get a accurate reading.
I also forgot to mention that the storebought fish are often wildcaught. They are not necessarily as hardy as tankbreds. If the fish has been caught from an environment with a specific salinity/temperature and transferred several times to tanks with differing parameters that is going to cause issues with their health. And then add on top of that his tank parameters may not match the fish store OR where the fish was caught, it might cause issues.
So you should buy clowns from a store that knows where the fish were attained and knows what salinity they should be kept at, and also acclimates them properly. (not just having fish shipped in and dropping them into a differeing salinity than the bag they came out of, which some stores do. Or acclimating them to too low a salinity. Some stores keep their marine system at a fairly low salinity to save on salt, and this is detrimental to some species of fish.)
He also needs to know the difference between his salinity and the salinity the fish are being kept in at the store. If it's significantly different then it can take a fairly long acclimation process.
In addition do not buy fish from stores that just got them shipped in. These fish have been acclimated to the stores tanks recently and then to acclimate them to your own tank right afterward is stressful. Not to mention, you don't know if the fish are in good health due to the fact that they haven't been at the store long.
So you should buy clowns from a store that knows where the fish were attained and knows what salinity they should be kept at, and also acclimates them properly. (not just having fish shipped in and dropping them into a differeing salinity than the bag they came out of, which some stores do. Or acclimating them to too low a salinity. Some stores keep their marine system at a fairly low salinity to save on salt, and this is detrimental to some species of fish.)
He also needs to know the difference between his salinity and the salinity the fish are being kept in at the store. If it's significantly different then it can take a fairly long acclimation process.
In addition do not buy fish from stores that just got them shipped in. These fish have been acclimated to the stores tanks recently and then to acclimate them to your own tank right afterward is stressful. Not to mention, you don't know if the fish are in good health due to the fact that they haven't been at the store long.
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I assumed you'd read my post which mentioned the 1.017 number I got from my refractometer and you were implying a salinity that low was ok for marine fish since they don't need as high a salinity as corals. Because when I mentioned salinity I was referring to the fact that a hydrometer could be reading significantly higher than the actual salinity.
So it was apparently a misunderstanding on both our parts.
I have no issue with your assertion that marine fish can be kept in a lower salinity than corals generally need. I kept my fish only tanks around 1.022.
I assumed you'd read my post which mentioned the 1.017 number I got from my refractometer and you were implying a salinity that low was ok for marine fish since they don't need as high a salinity as corals. Because when I mentioned salinity I was referring to the fact that a hydrometer could be reading significantly higher than the actual salinity.
So it was apparently a misunderstanding on both our parts.
I have no issue with your assertion that marine fish can be kept in a lower salinity than corals generally need. I kept my fish only tanks around 1.022.
Where I was coming from was that the studies showed the slightly lower salinity environments were actually better for the fish. While Reef Tanks, prefered the higher end salinity readings.
Without having the numbers at the time I couldn't be specific.
Now that I have them and remember... Fowlr at 1.020+ was actually good for them over the 1.026 is all I was getting at. Let me emphasize though..I think personally 1.020 is too low to me...1.022 is low as I would personally go.
I really wish they would pull those Hydro's off the market. So unreliable.
