So my and a friend were eating just chilling next to my tank...and my friend asked me the question "would a couple of dimes and pennies destroy the whole tank"?.....i was also curious 2 since i know copper in any reef tank would lead to disaster....So my first question is....will Coins in particular or any other metal objects destroy a tank.....and my second question is if a really small amount of oil is dripped in your tank would it destroy the tank 2? i heard that a drip of oil in the ocean destroys gallons of water.....:Thinking: :bablefish
Coins and oils
- Thread starter nycfatcow
- Start date
- Location
- Ossining, NY
FC,
coins would eventually destroy your tank - oil, I believ, depending on what kind it is, would get skimmed out if your system was efficient.
House
coins would eventually destroy your tank - oil, I believ, depending on what kind it is, would get skimmed out if your system was efficient.
House
- Location
- NY
GQ22 said:
I'm sure she was just making a wish.........that their fish would live and not suffer anymore! :skull:
jenniebutterfly
Senior Member
- Location
- Greenpoint, Brooklyn
i had a metal wahser of some sort wreak havoc on my tank. it started to rust and i noticed corals dying. my powerhead had blown sand out of a corner in my tank and i noticed the washer. once removed, everything that survived bounced back fairly quickly
- Location
- Upper West Side
Modern pennies actually contain very little copper. (Hold a penny over a fire and it melts) BUT- if allowed to oxidize the surface copper can cause problems in a smaller system.
As for oil, crude does not actually cause as much harm to a reef environment as you would think. A recent study showed that the cleanup efforts caused more damage, with the exception of birds and seals, etc. Oil is broken down fairly quickly. (I don't remember where I read this- it was either in the Times, National Geographic or one of a dozen publications I read on a regular basis)
-Alfred
As for oil, crude does not actually cause as much harm to a reef environment as you would think. A recent study showed that the cleanup efforts caused more damage, with the exception of birds and seals, etc. Oil is broken down fairly quickly. (I don't remember where I read this- it was either in the Times, National Geographic or one of a dozen publications I read on a regular basis)
-Alfred
- Location
- NY
Like house said, since the oil floats on water, if you have an overflow, the skimmer should really take care of it. Oil and water don't mix so the only detriment to corals would be the reduced light.
As for birds and seals, they need to surface so the slick would coat them and that's where the problems arise for them. Obviously some fish would perish as well when they surface.
All in all, just a drop of oil in your tank should be no different than someone starting a brand new skimmer without cleaning it first. There are factory oils on them, that's why there is a break in period.
JM $.02,
Russ
As for birds and seals, they need to surface so the slick would coat them and that's where the problems arise for them. Obviously some fish would perish as well when they surface.
All in all, just a drop of oil in your tank should be no different than someone starting a brand new skimmer without cleaning it first. There are factory oils on them, that's why there is a break in period.
JM $.02,
Russ
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