Need advise

kalymnos1971 · 01/16/2019, 08:15 PM

I started a new aquaruim servicing company today. They came in and performed a 25% water change on my 65 gallon Red Sea c250 aquarium. All my fish were fine and my bubbletip. Since they did the water change, the temp of my aquarium dropped from 79 to 71 degrees. It’s been about 6 hours now and the temperature is back to normal. I guess since it’s cold outside the water they used was cold too. When they did the change I saw the temp and they told me that it was my thermometer going bad. I believed it but since then my bubbletip has closed up and for the first time my Regal Tang did not eat and was breathing very heavy and instead of swimming around he has sat in a corner since the water change. Now is is laying flat on a rock not moving at all. I assume the change in temp that happened so drastically quick hurt by livestock? Is there anything I can do to turn this around? I think I am not using this service again. Please let me know what I should do. Thanks

Uncle99 · 01/16/2019, 09:10 PM

I would agree that a sudden 8 degree drop is going to cause some problems, hopefully not fatal. I can't figure anything else that would help at this time other than time itself.

When I do a 20% water change on my 65g running at 79 degrees, the incoming water is 63 degrees and I only drop 2 degrees.

That water they used must be either real real cold or the temp reading is skewed.

marzvt · 01/17/2019, 05:38 AM

I agree with Uncle99 if the water was that cold to change the temp that much it must have been fridged entertaining the tank, if that hit a fish directly it could put it into shock.

Kevin Guthrie · 01/17/2019, 08:30 AM

Wow. Florida has 70 degree groundwater.

To get an 8 degree drop from a 25% water change their water temp would have to be 78 minus (8 times 4), minus enough to cancel the thermal mass of your rock. I'm guessing they refrigerate it to keep it fresh.

I wouldn't let the service touch my tank.

Vinny Kreyling · 01/17/2019, 08:50 AM

When I did service we had a brute with heated RO water in the home I would use.
Cold water was a NO NO. Only used it on a Piranha tank.

Crooked Reef · 01/17/2019, 09:53 AM

I would check the salinity as well. If they don’t care enough to get the water to a decent temp, even room temperature, before taking it out in their vehicle to service people’s tanks, they may be cutting all sorts of corners.

slief · 01/17/2019, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kalymnos1971

I started a new aquaruim servicing company today. They came in and performed a 25% water change on my 65 gallon Red Sea c250 aquarium. All my fish were fine and my bubbletip. Since they did the water change, the temp of my aquarium dropped from 79 to 71 degrees. It’s been about 6 hours now and the temperature is back to normal. I guess since it’s cold outside the water they used was cold too. When they did the change I saw the temp and they told me that it was my thermometer going bad. I believed it but since then my bubbletip has closed up and for the first time my Regal Tang did not eat and was breathing very heavy and instead of swimming around he has sat in a corner since the water change. Now is is laying flat on a rock not moving at all. I assume the change in temp that happened so drastically quick hurt by livestock? Is there anything I can do to turn this around? I think I am not using this service again. Please let me know what I should do. Thanks

I would seek a different service company immediately. If the water they used dropped the tank that much, they aren't qualified to be doing service. They should have been using heated water for that size water change. I would have suggested getting a different temp probe to verify the temperature immediately but given that you saw the temp increase and the fish react adversely, I suspect they used really cold water. If the temp did in fact drop that much, I would immediately invest in a quarantine setup and get it up and running because you will more than likely see an ick outbreak in the very near future and will need that qt setup to treat the fish. In the mean time, I would have suggested bringing the temp back up slowly but it's too late for that.

WVfishguy · 01/17/2019, 02:49 PM

I recently retired from my maintenance business afyter more than 20 years.

First off, I can't figure out why more than one person is needed for a 65 gallon aquarium. That's just nuts.

If possible, I kept water on the premises, heated and ready to go for FOWLERS. I tested salinity religiously - every dead fish was an unhappy customer.

If I could not store it, I made it up there. Using strong pumps, the water was perfectly fine to use by the time I cleaned algae and siphoned the bottom. I never had losses.

If RO was needed, I got if from a heated barrel in my shop. The water was about 90 degrees when I placed it in containers, in the cold WV winter, so it would not shock the fish after transport. It would often loose ten degrees by the time I got to the account.

Placing cold water in an aquarium is incompetent and amateurish.

The problem is employees who do not give a damn. I actually had an employee who did not test salinity when making up water, and did not measure the salt when adding it to water. He truly believed he was so good he could "eyeball it."

If you can, get a service where the owner does the service, NOT employees. Or better yet, do your own. Hell, it's only a 65.

outssider · 01/17/2019, 06:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WVfishguy

do your own. Hell, it's only a 65.

+1

Ever heard the expression....."If you want something done right, do it yourself"

01/16/2019, 08:15 PM	#1
kalymnos1971 Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: florida Posts: 51	Need advise I started a new aquaruim servicing company today. They came in and performed a 25% water change on my 65 gallon Red Sea c250 aquarium. All my fish were fine and my bubbletip. Since they did the water change, the temp of my aquarium dropped from 79 to 71 degrees. It’s been about 6 hours now and the temperature is back to normal. I guess since it’s cold outside the water they used was cold too. When they did the change I saw the temp and they told me that it was my thermometer going bad. I believed it but since then my bubbletip has closed up and for the first time my Regal Tang did not eat and was breathing very heavy and instead of swimming around he has sat in a corner since the water change. Now is is laying flat on a rock not moving at all. I assume the change in temp that happened so drastically quick hurt by livestock? Is there anything I can do to turn this around? I think I am not using this service again. Please let me know what I should do. Thanks

01/17/2019, 08:50 AM	#5
Vinny Kreyling Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Miller Place, NY Posts: 7,206	When I did service we had a brute with heated RO water in the home I would use. Cold water was a NO NO. Only used it on a Piranha tank. __________________ 250 gallon mixed reef, 2 Reefbreeder's Photon V 2, Deepwater BLDC 12, DAS EX-3 Skimmer, MTC mini cal, 2-3/4" Sea Swirls, Aquacontroller & 6 Tunze pumps.

01/17/2019, 09:53 AM	#6
Crooked Reef Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 1,765	I would check the salinity as well. If they don’t care enough to get the water to a decent temp, even room temperature, before taking it out in their vehicle to service people’s tanks, they may be cutting all sorts of corners. __________________ “In wine there is wisdom; in beer there is freedom, in water there is bacteria.” - Benjamin Franklin Current Tank Info: 90 gallon reef. Biocube 29 lionfish tank. Mantis tank.

01/16/2019, 09:10 PM	#2
Uncle99 Crab Free Zone Join Date: Sep 2017 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 2,906	I would agree that a sudden 8 degree drop is going to cause some problems, hopefully not fatal. I can't figure anything else that would help at this time other than time itself. When I do a 20% water change on my 65g running at 79 degrees, the incoming water is 63 degrees and I only drop 2 degrees. That water they used must be either real real cold or the temp reading is skewed.

01/17/2019, 05:38 AM	#3
marzvt Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2017 Location: Vermont Posts: 52	I agree with Uncle99 if the water was that cold to change the temp that much it must have been fridged entertaining the tank, if that hit a fish directly it could put it into shock.

01/17/2019, 08:30 AM	#4
Kevin Guthrie Registered Member Join Date: May 2013 Posts: 506	Wow. Florida has 70 degree groundwater. To get an 8 degree drop from a 25% water change their water temp would have to be 78 minus (8 times 4), minus enough to cancel the thermal mass of your rock. I'm guessing they refrigerate it to keep it fresh. I wouldn't let the service touch my tank.

01/17/2019, 02:49 PM	#8
WVfishguy Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Huntington, WV Posts: 677	I recently retired from my maintenance business afyter more than 20 years. First off, I can't figure out why more than one person is needed for a 65 gallon aquarium. That's just nuts. If possible, I kept water on the premises, heated and ready to go for FOWLERS. I tested salinity religiously - every dead fish was an unhappy customer. If I could not store it, I made it up there. Using strong pumps, the water was perfectly fine to use by the time I cleaned algae and siphoned the bottom. I never had losses. If RO was needed, I got if from a heated barrel in my shop. The water was about 90 degrees when I placed it in containers, *in the cold WV winter, so it would not shock the fish after transport. It would often loose ten degrees by the time I got to the account. Placing cold water in an aquarium is incompetent and amateurish. The problem is employees who do not give a damn. I actually had an employee who did not test salinity when making up water, and did not measure the salt when adding it to water. He truly believed he was so good he could "eyeball it." If you can, get a service where the owner* does the service, NOT employees. Or better yet, do your own. Hell, it's only a 65.