Stagnant Tank

[Quinn]

For those who might be interested, I can confirm that a tank without circulation goes stagnant quickly. While I was on vacation I had my temporary sump circulation setup screw up and dump about 30 gallons of water on my floor. My dad killed the power to the entire tank, and ~100 gallons of water in my display tank sat stagnant for a week. When I came back yesterday, the tank wreaked of sulphur and my cuke, urchin and hermit crabs were kaput. As well, hordes of dead bristle worms were floating around. The only thing that seemed to do well was an orange mossy looking algae which I expect thrives in anoxic conditions.

[DOO-E]

extreme skimming/ water changes, and flow might bring it back around. but i would still drain it keep the rock wet. hope it works out. sounds bad

[Bob I]

I wonder how long one would have to leave a tank stagnant to get rid of just "Bristol Worms" sic :question:
BTW, you said "wreaked" sic, You might want to inform Ispell you did not mean it :razz: . You actually wanted to say "reeked" :biggrin:

[Quinn]

Dammit Bob, you got me. I actually don't even have ISpell here at work but I might install it.

[kris_willard]

Where do you get thia ISpell you speak of?

[johnny rock]

how do you get ''extreme skimming'' as opposed to regular skimming? go out and buy a bigger skimmer and pump. "lol"

[Aquattro]

how do you get ''extreme skimming'' as opposed to regular skimming? go out and buy a bigger skimmer and pump. "lol"

And really loud rock music in the background!! New reality show coming this fall!! Extreme Skimmers and the reefers who love them :razz:

[Stretch]

Yuck that should be fun to clean up.

Well at least not a whole lot was lost, but still pretty crummy

I think as long as i have a saltwater tank I won't be going on vacation, Seems everytime someone goes on vacation something goes horribly wrong. :neutral:

[Bob I]

I think as long as i have a saltwater tank I won't be going on vacation, Seems everytime someone goes on vacation something goes horribly wrong. :neutral:

Or you get someone to take care of your tank. :eek: As a matter of fact I am off to Jim Barry's place to take care of his stuff while he is away. :cool:

[Bob I]

Where do you get thia ISpell you speak of?

You download it. It is an add on for IE, and outlook express. I have forgotten where to get it though. :sad:

[Cap'n]

Agreed. Whenever I go on vacation I leave a detailed care sheet and my cell phone number in case of emergency. Have yet to have any problems except a dirty tank to clean when I get home. Hope my luck continues!

[Quinn]

http://www.iespell.com

The only important living things left in the tank were the cuke and the urchin. I had disconnected my sump from my main tank and had the former circulating with a Minijet and the latter with two MJ1200s. Unfortunately though, I had a piece of vinyl tube running from the Minijet in the last chamber of the sump back to the fuge, which was intended to keep water moving through the entire sump tank while I was away. Unfortunately the vinyl tube still had some coil in it and wasn't secured and flipped out of the tank, draining the sump onto the floor and raining water down onto our bottom floor. My dad turned off the power since he wasn't sure what was going on, thereby killing circulation in the main tank, which proceeded to wipe out everything up there. Apparently he tried to call me but it was not only evening but I was away from the phone number I had given him. No one bothered to tell me about the spill when I called later that week.

At this point in time the water is green as if Caulerpa spp. had gone sexual in it, but there was no Caulerpa in the tank... I am thinking of just draining the water and killing the sand and rock. My room still reeks of sulphur.

I wouldn't have gone on vacation if I thought anything could go wrong, but obviously I didn't think things through. As Steve and Jim in Calgary can tell you, I was very certain to ensure my main livestock was gone before I left. I figured the urchin and cuke and a handful of crabs would be fine without lights or skimming and minimal circulation. But Murphy's law got me.

So what do you guys figure, let the rock and sand recure, or dry it all out?

[EmilyB]

Recure for sure. You'll probably be surprised what survives. :biggrin:

[sea gnome]

Sorry about your disaster Quinn, trust me I know that smell and share your pain, good luck. I have no suggestions for you, still trying to get my tank up again. Rachel

[Quinn]

Right then, I'll either let it cure here or sell it to someone else to cure it.

[EmilyB]

Right then, I'll either let it cure here or sell it to someone else to cure it.

How much (if the other guy doesn't take it) ? :wink: And would one have to drive to Red Deer.... :razz: :lol:

[Cap'n]

That sucks man. No idea where I'd start, probably be asking the same questions as you.

How long before you reclaim all your livestock?

[Quinn]

I won't be reclaiming any of the livestock except perhaps frags of some of my corals. The livestock liquidation was part of http://www.canreef.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=8046&highlight=

[kuatto]

When your ready for frags,let me know,I'd be happy to help you out :mrgreen:
The green monti cap and birds nest are both doing fine.

[bear27]

How do you cure live rock

[Quinn]

Throw it in a tank and let it sit. Whether you light or skim the tank is an open debate, I won't be doing either.

Jim wasn't the birdsnest dying back?

[kuatto]

It seems to be a stage where its doing fine,not really growing fast,but still doing well.

[bear27]

How long do you let the rock sit for

[Quinn]

Well traditionally until your NH3, NO3 and NO2 are near or at zero, but I'll be letting mine sit until either I sell it or I see life coming back, in which case I'll sell it. :lol: I don't need to monitor the cycle because I won't be putting any more livestock in this tank. As soon as I get rid of the rock and sand, I'll empty it and sell it, the stand, the sump and whatever equipment I have left and don't need for my nano.