Losing fish to vortechs :(

[dynamite]

This is how I have my Vortechs... I'm sorry for the film on the glass but I ordered a new blade, salt, the Prodibio Bioclean kit and I was suppose to receive everything on tuesday but Canada Post got lockout... So yeahhh I'm mad.
The pictures were taken with my iphone

[asylumdown]

I've got a tail spot blenny in a 20 gallon with an mp10 and the little burrow he's claimed as his is about 4 inches from the bottom of the pump. He never seems to even struggle against the pull of the pump.

I too have a hard time getting my head around a healthy tang not being able to cope with one of these pumps, but then again freak accidents are always hard to imagine until they happen.

[regent2009]

I have the mp 40 ESW (60-70%) in my 72 bowfront for 2 months now. no foam mesh. no fish lost.

[mike31154]

From the photo your pumps certainly appear to be positioned lower than I have mine. Looks like close to 12 inches down from the top? I just measured mine and the top of the dry side motor is about 4 and a half inches from the rim of the tank on the right side and the left side one is about 5 inches below the rim. Still think healthy fish of a reasonable size and cognizant of being in the vicinity of a VorTech should not easily get trapped. Cleaner shrimp, blenny & baby clown are smaller critters and perhaps just bad luck that they got too close at the wrong time. Might not be a bad idea to raise your VorTechs just a bit more. Aside from getting them a bit farther away from the livestock, it will improve surface agitation and as a consequence, better gas exchange/oxygenation. Downside to the increased surface agitation (on my system anyhow) is that it really messes up my once highly polished T5 & MH reflectors, can't get 'em clean any more, grrr... Will be switching to LEDs some day anyhow, no more reflectors.

[StirCrazy]

as everyone has said, a yellow tang should not get stuck unless he was not good to start with or extreamly small.

the positioning shouldn't matter at all as I had 6 of thoes types in my tank when it was running, I am a big proponant that your flow should be spread over as much of the tank as possible as long as your sand bed will alow it. I had two right on the bottom, two in the middle and two towards the top as I had a bare bottom.

look for a healthy yellow that is at least 3" in dia. and you shouldn't have problems

Steve

[dynamite]

Thanks again for all your replies... Well I have BAD news...
Just when things couldn't get WORSE... Not receiving anything of what I bought online for my tank or the present I bought my dad for Father's Day.. because of the Canada Post's strike (Thank you I'll start using UPS).
I just saw that my small Yellow Tang 2in.. Once healthy... has a few tiny black spots.. So I'm guessing it's black ich.
It's the 1st time in 3years with this tank that one of my fish gets sick and the worst part it's I don't know what to do!!! He seems healthy he's swiming, playing and schooling with the other fish like always and he's pooping huge green poop He seems ok.. But I don't know what to do! I don't want him to die or my other fish to get infected! What should I do??? I don't have a quarantine tank It's the black ich going to go away if I keep him "healthy" and well fed? And what caused this black ich outbreak?

SOS!!!

[naesco]

Give her a freshwater bath and the black ich will drop off.
What is the size of your tank?

[dynamite]

I have a 90g tank
My Yellow Tang is quite small tho, like 2 inches?
I don't know if is Black ich.. he seems fine.. 2 days ago I added carbon and I didn't rinse it Do you think it may be some particles of carbon? How can I tell if it's black ich or carbon?

[abcha0s]

You really must rinse your carbon. There is a suspected link between carbon dust and HLLE. There was a study being done a while ago to validate this, but I haven't heard anything more since and I do not know the results. However, it's not hard to imagine that carbon dust could be very bad for fish.

- Brad

[cwatkins]

Originally Posted by abcha0s@conceptaquatics

You really must rinse your carbon. There is a suspected link between carbon dust and HLLE. - Brad

Or just buy the Carbon from BRS that has minimal dust.

I don't rinse mine, what I do is just let the first few gallons of water run through it into a pale, and then when the water is running clear then I put the output back into the sump. In effect this is rinsing it, but it's much easier than trying to rinse it by hand at the sink.