cherry red massive die off :(:( HELP!

other than plants, the only decors in my tank are the 4 pieces of petrified wood (from ebay seller who specializes in aquarium decor woods). Here's the ebay auction:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7754195017&rd=1&sspagename=STRK:MEWN:IT&rd=1

I researched into those before purchase too, they are probably the safest rock/wood to put in a tank. They are also boiled fully submerged for half hr, brushed, and soaked for 1+week before placed in my new tank.

I took a large pint of the tank water (before started doing water changes). Will test those tomorrow for copper. From what everyone is suggesting, here are the possible causes:

1) excessive copper - from eco complete / flourish mixed with tap water
2) decor giving off lethal "stuff"
3) plant anchor (really dont think this is the cause, read a couple detailed artcles all pointing to the fact that you need extreme ph level(<4 >9) for lead/zinc to start affecting shrimp/fish)
4) normal water param issues - with such sudden massive death, very unlikely.
5) pesticide on plants - the hairgrass / anubias i did get from singapore plant farms and the seller confirmed the hairgrass was grown submersed. So it is likely they used some type of lethal chemical on it and 3 week in the tank wasnt enough to remove them.

i am hopeful it is high copper, so at least i know how to fix it. Otherwise i am at a loss on what to do, adding any livestock at this point just doesnt sound like a good idea :(
 
anything new going on here?
 
My guess would be osmotic shock ?
Some of the Eco complete is known to mess heavily with kH, gH (which is why i decided not to spend money on it). So there could've been a big difference between both tanks. And this is what it seems everyone always talks about on this board - its not the pH difference that creates problems but a difference in gH.

If you didnt acclimate the shrimp maybe thats why they died.
 
i know 30 ways to cook a shrimp, but not one to save um, sorry
 
Maybe you forgot to dechlorinate? Though most New Jersey Water is chlorinated, Bergen and Hudson counties are chlorminated. Chloramines are indefinately stable in the water and could cause the shrimp death.
 
Copper and chlorine are good suggestions, but wouldn't they affect the snails too? What kind of snails are they? If they are just as sensitive to copper and chlorine as the shrimp then you can rule them out.
 
minnesotagal866 said:
FWIW, I have eco-complete in both my shrimp tanks and haven't had a problem.

Jackie
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Jackie,

He's not referring to having Eco-Complete in the tank. He's referring to the transfer of animals from a non-Eco Complete tank to an Eco Complete tank. If there is a large difference in TDS et al, it could cause osmotic shock and death.

Roan
 
Roan Art said:
Jackie,

He's not referring to having Eco-Complete in the tank. He's referring to the transfer of animals from a non-Eco Complete tank to an Eco Complete tank. If there is a large difference in TDS et al, it could cause osmotic shock and death.

Roan
Click to expand...


It just seems odd to me--I bought my cherry shrimp from a fish store (non-eco-complete tank) and put them in my eco-complete tank with no problems. Like I said, my info was FWIW and that is probably not very much!!!

It would be great to find out what exactly caused these mysterious deaths--so as to avoid them! I occasionally transfer fish from tank to tank and have never thought about the difference in water due to eco-complete. I've also never had a problem (knock on wood).

jackie
 
I remember there was a bad batch of Eco that caused huge spikes in KH and GH. CaribSea (I think that is the maker) acknowledged the problem and replaced faulty bags. That was a while back though, about a year or so. Eco shouldn't alter water chemistry, or at least that is the claim.

Skimming through the thread, I can't see a reference to GH or KH posted. Maybe worth a check, at least to rule something out, or in.
 
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