big problem

[MatthewScars]

Keep in mind that fish DO urinate..

Not to hijack, but that can seriously up the ammonia to a detectable level in a water column of 75 gallons?

Seems like a 'pissing into the ocean' type scenario?

 

[Jarrett]

well i found the fish, the hermit crabs grabbed him and dragged him into this little crevice. they made good work with him he was already almost gone. got to re do a lot of rock scape in the mean time so not a total loss. and about the salinity i don't know i am at a loss with that i wish i had enough money to buy a new one but i really don't see why this one would be broken or anything.

 

[Jarrett]

and wingo my last water change was telling me 1025 same as the water a couple days ago and now i got this low reading so i was thinking the same thing but apparently my water change water wasn't 1025 like it said? who knows.

 

[KathyC]

Not to hijack, but that can seriously up the ammonia to a detectable level in a water column of 75 gallons?

Seems like a 'pissing into the ocean' type scenario?

I was told this by someone whose opinion I HIGHLY respect that yes it is true.
I would think the size/amount of fish can have a bearing on it and who knows, maybe an unlucky grab at some water for testing gives you water from a place a fish recently urinated. Murphy's Law and all that...lol

Always good to run a test like this twice

Should you see an ammonia reading on a consistent basis..no

Jarrett - good that you found the body, as I said, most folks don't look upwards to find a dead fish, but once they start to decompose - they do tend to float upwards. A 2 1/2" copperband has a lot more body volume than say a 2 1/2" cleaner wrasse.

 

[Jarrett]

yea one problem solved now i just need to figure out what i am going to do about this salinity situation. i just made up 10 gallons of water for a water change. i am at the point where i just wanna trash the refracto and just count how many cups i put in for a water change and just do the same thing every time lol then i can guarantee consistency as long as my tank never leaks water or an ATO malfunctions.

 

[Arati]

u can go down and by nutrasea water in a pinch just mix/heat it check ph and in it goes.

until u get a new refractor

 

[Jarrett]

yea ill have to look into it thanks arati out of curiosity isnt a half cut for every gallon of water will give you a 1025 reading?

 

[KathyC]

yea one problem solved now i just need to figure out what i am going to do about this salinity situation. i just made up 10 gallons of water for a water change. i am at the point where i just wanna trash the refracto and just count how many cups i put in for a water change and just do the same thing every time lol then i can guarantee consistency as long as my tank never leaks water or an ATO malfunctions.

Before you decide to pitch the refractometer.. I don't know that I saw any answers to the questions I asked earlier about how you are using it...it does make a difference

so here they are again..

Also, when you are checking the salinity - are you using a refractometer that adjusts to the room/water temp? At what point are you reading the salinity - immediately after you put the water on the slide or a few minutes later?
Time does make a difference.

Did you calibrate it properly according to the instructions?

..and one new question..are you rinsing the plate and cover off between tests with ro water?

 

[Jarrett]

sorry, yes the refractometer is temperature automated and i am using calibration fluid not RO so i 0 it out to 35 ppt and i just took a reading again and waited 5 minutes and it still gave me 1021. and i wipe the slide down after every use.

 

[Jarrett]

if i 0 my refractometer out with RO water it gives me a bogus reading of 1015 so i dont calibrate with RO water anymore i read a couple articles and talked to a couple people and everyone insist there is no true accuracy using RO water so i am sticking with the calibration fluid.

 

[don]

redundancy is the most important make sure to have 2 plastic hydrometers and compare readings..... refrac style have calibration adjustments if not set correctly the results are inaccurate choas....a 75 gallon should easily absorb a fish death .....most species hyper stress before death and frequently go underneath or force there way into extremely small small spaces to protect themselves from eventual predation. ammonia spikes are prevented by the use of chemical scavenging resins and proper biologic nitrification processing which occurs in live rock and sand beds or any engineered media substrate....get a pad by poly bio marine and toss it into the sump or a spot that gets adequate circulation it should absorb ammonia .....do you skim? most fish will exhibit extreme darting behavior and lose there equilibrium in the water column toxic ammonia poisoning happens quickly and it will kill everything if not abated fast

 

[Jarrett]

well i got the fish out the ammonia went back to 0 so i dont think i have anything worry about there. as far as the refractometer goes i wonder if this hydrometer would be more accuarate.

http://www.google.com/products/cata...93VHKqw0AHrxoXoBg&ved=0CKcBEPMCMAU#ps-sellers

 

[albano]

redundancy is the most important make sure to have 2 plastic hydrometers and compare readings.....

there is NO guarantee that either is correct!...hydrometers need to be 'calibrated' against a 'calibrated' refractometer.

 

[Jarrett]

if my salinity was really 1021 wouldnt my inverts be dead or dying? i have a cleaner shrimp which is fine right now

 

[KathyC]

1.021 is not that low..but you should bring it up with a water change or 2 with a higher value.

If the salinity dropped slowly, the inverts would be ok. It is not low enough to kill them yet, but I would act on getting it higher..soon...real soon, before things start having issues

 

[Josh]

if my salinity was really 1021 wouldnt my inverts be dead or dying? i have a cleaner shrimp which is fine right now

I received 3 hydrometers once and tested all three of them with the same water. 2 of them reported the salinity 2-3 points higher than the other (which was the only one that was accurate).

So from my non scientific experience (and these particular hydrometers were provided direct from the manufacturer), they are 66% like to be incorrect by as much as 3 points. So your 1.021 could be 1.018 or worse.

 

[rambler67]

in my experience hydrometers are normal Constant not always right but as far as water change goes as long as the are the same on the hydrometer you should be safe with the water change. Do you have an ato that could have dumped a bunch of fresh water in to make a chance that big?

 

[Jarrett]

i do have an ATO but i have a fail switch that would stop that from happening and my water level is always constant its never been above my marked line so i am clueless to where my salt is going or how it could be dropping.

 

[Jarrett]

how many points can i raise it from 1021 i am about to do a 10 gallon water change would 1024 be to much?

 

[JT101]

I bought a cheap POS refractometer a while ago, and two different bottles of cal solution from two different locations (sort of like a "double blind" test). My refrac was off by 0.01 - and BTW both solutions were identical. I recalibrated the refrac and every few months I recheck it. It has never been off ever again. And why should it? Unless you drop it, it should never be off.