My clownfish is spazzing out! What did I do wrong?

jessipoof · 02/08/2018, 08:37 PM

I have had my clownfish in qt for about a month and a half now. I have transferred him from tank to tank on occasion, and I’ve had him in hyposalinity. I’m currently slowly raising the salinity (extremely slowly, and we are currently at 1.015, with a target of 1.020) he does get stressed out when I transfer him to a different tank, and will spazz out on the bottom of the tank intermittently. I just switched him to a 10 gallon from a 20 gallon, and he is (flashing?) spazzing out on the bottom of the tank and in his pvc pipe a lot. It’s freaking me out. The salinity is the same as the tank he came from, and the temperature matches as well. He was completely fine before I moved him, and I’ve been watching him closely. He’s about five years old if that matters. Thanks for your help in advance.

avery155 · 02/08/2018, 09:59 PM

With salinity that low keep an eye on your ph

lagatbezan · 02/08/2018, 11:52 PM

Why is he in qt? What are you treating for?
Also how long are you mixing your salt water prior to using it?

jessipoof · 02/09/2018, 08:59 AM

I was treating him for ich. The ph is 7, and I mixed it for 20 minutes prior to placing him in. He is still flashing this morning, but not as much.

jessipoof · 02/09/2018, 09:02 AM

also I just checked, he has no visible ich spots.

j.falk · 02/09/2018, 10:48 AM

20 minutes? I have ALWAYS mixed, aerated and heated my water to the correct temperature for at least 24 hours before using. 20 minutes is asking for something to go wrong.

jessipoof · 02/09/2018, 11:18 AM

Alrighty. Good to know. Does that apply only when adding new solute? Or also when diluting a solution with RODI water that has been thoroughly mixed for 24+ hours?

lagatbezan · 02/09/2018, 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by j.falk

20 minutes? I have ALWAYS mixed, aerated and heated my water to the correct temperature for at least 24 hours before using. 20 minutes is asking for something to go wrong.

This^
you always want to thoroughly mix the salt water for 24 hours. In emergencies you can get away with less but ideally 24 hours is best.
If you made a batch and want to lower the SG by adding fresh water to it, then you can mix for 30min or so. but if adding salt, you want to give it some time to fully dissolve.
Doing hypo for ich would require the SG to be at 1.009 (measured by a calibrated refractometer) and to stay at that level constantly without going up for a full 30 days. Hope thats how you treated.

jessipoof · 02/09/2018, 07:23 PM

Yes, I did the hypo correctly fortunately. I will also be doing ttm before I place him back in his tank. Thanks for the help. I honestly didn’t know.

j.falk · 02/10/2018, 02:56 AM

http://www.instantocean.com/Instant-.../Sea-Salt.aspx

Q: What is the proper way to mix salt water?

A: Always add the salt mix to the water, not the other way around. Adding water to the salt mix briefly creates a highly concentrated solution that can lead to precipitation of some ingredients.

Always allow newly mixed salt water to circulate with a powerhead or airstone at least overnight before use. This allows the carbon dioxide in the aquarium water to reach equilibrium with the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which normalizes pH. It also adds oxygen.

02/08/2018, 08:37 PM	#1
jessipoof Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Ohio Posts: 18	My clownfish is spazzing out! What did I do wrong? I have had my clownfish in qt for about a month and a half now. I have transferred him from tank to tank on occasion, and I’ve had him in hyposalinity. I’m currently slowly raising the salinity (extremely slowly, and we are currently at 1.015, with a target of 1.020) he does get stressed out when I transfer him to a different tank, and will spazz out on the bottom of the tank intermittently. I just switched him to a 10 gallon from a 20 gallon, and he is (flashing?) spazzing out on the bottom of the tank and in his pvc pipe a lot. It’s freaking me out. The salinity is the same as the tank he came from, and the temperature matches as well. He was completely fine before I moved him, and I’ve been watching him closely. He’s about five years old if that matters. Thanks for your help in advance. __________________ New to the hobby! I inherited 2 reef tanks; a 30 gal and a 220 gal. each 12 y.o. the tanks were moved, and ich killed all but 1 fish in each tank. need to recover, restock, and find balance. Current Tank Info: 30 gal reef tank and 220 gal reef tank

02/08/2018, 11:52 PM	#3
lagatbezan Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Long Island, NY Posts: 1,109	Why is he in qt? What are you treating for? Also how long are you mixing your salt water prior to using it? __________________ Ryan. 300g with velocity t4 for return and a Reflo dart on a closed loop, T5 lights & SRO3000 skimmer. Current Tank Info: 300g

02/09/2018, 08:59 AM	#4
jessipoof Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Ohio Posts: 18	I was treating him for ich. The ph is 7, and I mixed it for 20 minutes prior to placing him in. He is still flashing this morning, but not as much. __________________ New to the hobby! I inherited 2 reef tanks; a 30 gal and a 220 gal. each 12 y.o. the tanks were moved, and ich killed all but 1 fish in each tank. need to recover, restock, and find balance. Current Tank Info: 30 gal reef tank and 220 gal reef tank

02/09/2018, 09:02 AM	#5
jessipoof Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Ohio Posts: 18	also I just checked, he has no visible ich spots. __________________ New to the hobby! I inherited 2 reef tanks; a 30 gal and a 220 gal. each 12 y.o. the tanks were moved, and ich killed all but 1 fish in each tank. need to recover, restock, and find balance. Current Tank Info: 30 gal reef tank and 220 gal reef tank

02/09/2018, 10:48 AM	#6
j.falk Registered Member Join Date: May 2017 Posts: 632	20 minutes? I have ALWAYS mixed, aerated and heated my water to the correct temperature for at least 24 hours before using. 20 minutes is asking for something to go wrong. Last edited by j.falk; 02/09/2018 at 10:56 AM.

02/08/2018, 09:59 PM	#2
avery155 Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: South of Pittsburgh Posts: 79	With salinity that low keep an eye on your ph

02/09/2018, 11:18 AM	#7
jessipoof Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Ohio Posts: 18	Alrighty. Good to know. Does that apply only when adding new solute? Or also when diluting a solution with RODI water that has been thoroughly mixed for 24+ hours? __________________ New to the hobby! I inherited 2 reef tanks; a 30 gal and a 220 gal. each 12 y.o. the tanks were moved, and ich killed all but 1 fish in each tank. need to recover, restock, and find balance. Current Tank Info: 30 gal reef tank and 220 gal reef tank

02/09/2018, 07:23 PM	#9
jessipoof Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: Ohio Posts: 18	Yes, I did the hypo correctly fortunately. I will also be doing ttm before I place him back in his tank. Thanks for the help. I honestly didn’t know. __________________ New to the hobby! I inherited 2 reef tanks; a 30 gal and a 220 gal. each 12 y.o. the tanks were moved, and ich killed all but 1 fish in each tank. need to recover, restock, and find balance. Current Tank Info: 30 gal reef tank and 220 gal reef tank

02/10/2018, 02:56 AM	#10
j.falk Registered Member Join Date: May 2017 Posts: 632	http://www.instantocean.com/Instant-.../Sea-Salt.aspx Q: What is the proper way to mix salt water? A: Always add the salt mix to the water, not the other way around. Adding water to the salt mix briefly creates a highly concentrated solution that can lead to precipitation of some ingredients. Always allow newly mixed salt water to circulate with a powerhead or airstone at least overnight before use. This allows the carbon dioxide in the aquarium water to reach equilibrium with the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which normalizes pH. It also adds oxygen.