# Complete tank crash!!!



## Mudkicker1 (Aug 6, 2013)

A first in over 20 years of keeping African Cichlids. I have a 40 gallon juvie grow out tank. I had 4 white lips and 10 labs all around 1.5" - 2". Saturday morning I found all the white lips dead and all the labs breathing VERY heavily at the bottom. 
I immediately did a 80% water change, added carbon and added a powerful air stone.
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
PH 7.8
Nitrate 40
The tank is very mature been running for years. The fish showed zero signs of disease.
In the last week I changed two things.
I added two very small pieces of Mopani wood for the ancistrus. I changed their flake food from NLS to Spirulina 20.
The ancistrus is still alive.
I had soaked the wood for two weeks in a bucket and I also boiled it for several hours before adding it to the tank. 
I'm totally stumped on this one.
Any ideas?

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## Idech (Nov 8, 2020)

Did you do a water change prior to the crash (maybe the city of Montreal had problems with their water) ? Or deep vacuum the substrate ? Do you have a broken thermometer that might have leaked ? Stray current in the tank (broken heater or malfunctioning equipment) ?


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## Mudkicker1 (Aug 6, 2013)

Idech said:


> Did you do a water change prior to the crash (maybe the city of Montreal had problems with their water) ? Or deep vacuum the substrate ? Do you have a broken thermometer that might have leaked ? Stray current in the tank (broken heater or malfunctioning equipment) ?


No water change prior. The tank has no substrate. I actually unplugged the heater for a while and there was no change. Thermometer is fine. I'm thinking it's either the wood or change of food.

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## Auballagh (Jan 29, 2003)

I'm thinking its that imported Mopani wood that caused this problem.....

http://www.dapwood.com/beware-of-imported-products/

And yes, I can totally imagine your friendly government customs folks treating that imported wood with something hideously toxic to your fish. 
Throw it out!


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## Stu W2 (Nov 17, 2020)

Hmmm, I sympathize with your problems. That's a real bummer when that sort of thing happens.

I have to wonder though if it's not something other than the Mopani. I'm in Canada too and have been using dozens of pieces of Mopani over several decades. Never a problem. Under what circumstances did you acquire the wood? From LFS? Was is plastic wrapped or had it been opened? With the soaking and boiling you mentioned I'd be really surprised if that is the source of any toxins.

What does the Spirulina smell like? There have been cases of Spirulina contamination over the years. Usually identified by a rotten egg smell.

Hope you get it resolved.

Regards,
Stu


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

Sorry to hear that you've lost the fish, it always sucks.


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## Mudkicker1 (Aug 6, 2013)

Fogelhund said:


> Sorry to hear that you've lost the fish, it always sucks.


Thanks bud. It's pretty devastating, I never lost an entire tank before, not even close. The frustration is that I have no idea as to what happened.

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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

Mudkicker1 said:


> Fogelhund said:
> 
> 
> > Sorry to hear that you've lost the fish, it always sucks.
> ...


I've had heaters go... and that sucked.

One time, many years ago, the ex-wife poured bleach on the floor, and somehow into the heating ducts... the heating duct was over top an aquarium in the basement, and I lost a breeding pair of WC Lepidiolamprologus nkambae, and group of WC brichardi Fulwe Rocks. Now that she's an ex, I don't need to worry about such things. ****, I miss those fish. :lol:


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## sir_keith (Oct 30, 2018)

Fogelhund said:


> ...One time, many years ago, the ex-wife poured bleach on the floor, and somehow into the heating ducts... the heating duct was over top an aquarium in the basement, and I lost a breeding pair of WC Lepidiolamprologus nkambae, and group of WC brichardi Fulwe Rocks. Now that she's an ex, I don't need to worry about such things. darn, I miss those fish. :lol:


 :lol: :lol: :lol: :thumb:


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## RDan (Feb 19, 2021)

sir_keith said:


> Fogelhund said:
> 
> 
> > ...One time, many years ago, the ex-wife poured bleach on the floor, and somehow into the heating ducts... the heating duct was over top an aquarium in the basement, and I lost a breeding pair of WC Lepidiolamprologus nkambae, and group of WC brichardi Fulwe Rocks. Now that she's an ex, I don't need to worry about such things. darn, I miss those fish. :lol:
> ...


I had a similar experience as Fogelhund, although it wasn't my wife. I had a quarantine tank where I kept having my Electric Yellows (Labidochromis caeruleus) kept dying. I could not figure out why, until I was home when the gal we had hired to clean the house. I saw she grabbed my 5 gallon Fish buckets for water changes, to put her cleaning agents in. Since I did not know this I used it for topping off my tanks.  Dan


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