Question for a friend

[missc4]

Hey all.A friend of mine has a 100 gallon tank and today she changed out the filters in her sump with some new ones she bought.She said she rinsed them very well.A few hours after she put the new sponges in her fish started dieing.I am thinking there wass omething in the sponges,,no idea where she got them..Anyhow.I went over and removed the sponges,,they were just black sponges and helped her change out about 30 gallons of water.The only fish still alive is the yellow tang and it is just staying in one area of the tank.the choclate chip sea star was in some rock so I brought him out so we could watch him..he apperas to be alive but hasn't moved since i moved him.DO you all think her fish will make it?

[missc4]

BTW I tested her water and salt was at 23 nitrate was a 5.0 and 0 on the rest..She called and said the tang is out swmming but slowly swimming and the sea star is still in the same spot.

[Germanman]

would do another water change to be sure and then just have to hope. im sure with u there they will pull through though!

[missc4]

Thanks G Man..All together we changed out around 40 to 50 gallons using up all the salt that she and I had.The tang is swimming around very slowly and showing some distress but still swimming..The sea star isn't moving but I can see the little tenacles or what ever they are moving on the botom of his legs..I thought her snails were dead because they had retracted back in their shales but when I went over to the tank and bent down the one snail that was there sucked him self up farther in his shell as if I had touched him..I have my fingers crossed for her..
I have her lights off in the tank to lesson any other stress as well.

[Scribble68]

You should also run carbon asap. Water changes will dilute whatever got into the water and carbon will remove whatever is left.

[missc4]

we did put carbon in it as well.Now we are watching and hoping

[Scribble68]

Thats about all u can do. Good luck

[5xevy]

What exactly died? What kind of water does your friend use?

[missc4]

She uses RO water,she had a yellow tang anf three green chromis as well as snails and hermits and a sea star.she has had them for a few weeks..All were healthy,eating and happy till she put the filters in,that is when things went bad.I brought 1 filter home with me and put it in a bowl and added water and began washing it,,there were what looked like soap bubbles coming from it.

The Chromis died very fast..we did the water change and charcoal and the tang is still alive but acting very shy and not eating this morning..no wonder though it has been through alot.The snails are dead,,hermits are fine and the sea star is fine.

[abgg118]

What other biological filtration has the tank got? Were there enough live rock and other media/area to have handled the bio-load when the bacteria in the old filters were taken out? If not, that may have caused a serious spike in your system's ammonia levels, which could have killed the fish. Would that happen in a matter of hours, though? I don't know, I guess it depends on the bio-load ...

[missc4]

She removes her filters every other day,the filters were only used to stop micro bubbles from the sump to the tank.She has over 100 pounds of rock in the tank/sump.and no idea ho wmuch sand but there is a good 4 inch sand bed.
At latest some of the snails I thought were dead are still alive and the tang and sea start are still ok.

[Germanman]

how is it all going?

[missc4]

Everything is still alive and doing well.Her yellow tang stayed hidden till she added two clowns and then he was back out swimming like nothing ever happened.I think he was scraed in the tank by himself..All her snails died but two and they are still going strong.

[SHK_ATK]

well thats good to hear by reading this I think that either she dropped something in something that was not suppost to go into a tank. or there was something already in the filter system that she did not completly remove. But its good to hear all is turning out well

[Germanman]

glad to hear that! good job to the two of you!:)