ATO "oops"

[Anonymous]

I finally got around to installing a Tunze ATO to the nano last week and put sensors in the chamber with the return pump (last chamber in the back). I ran the feed from the reservoir into the first chamber. Thought it was working fine. I got home tonight and the maxima clam is dissolving into a pile of purple goo. I check the SG is its way low...dammit! I'm mixing water for a massive WC now, I haven't got an ammonia test kit but I'm sure it's ugly.

link to unit

The only thing I can figure is that running the top off water into the first chamber caused a delay in that water level rising (the water goes into a chamber filled with chaeto, then flows up into that last chamber where the sensor is) so its putting too much freshwater in.

Any thoughts :lol: ? I mean besides chucking the whole thing for a betta in a shot glass.

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry to hear about this Tracy.

Louey

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Buddy. Still haven't figured out why it happened, will pull the unit apart today. The tank is cloudy this morning, and that bowl-o-bettas is looking better all the time

 

[Ben1]

Seems odd, how much top off could that thing have added? If the back only holds a small percent of the water unless the water was overflowing from the tank the SG drop seems odd. I know my sons AIO tank I manually top off and when I see the return putting bubbles in the tank I throw my RO/DI line in the tank. I have overflowed it a few times and the SG didnt really drop. Did the ATO add so much it overflowed the tank? Sorry to hear about the troubles.

 

[Anonymous]

The SG was 1.018 last night, last week post water change it was my usual 1.025. The back holds almost 7 gallons, I only had it set for about 4 gallons and it was full enough it floated the skimmer cup off a bit (which Im sure has contributed to the crash). The container had almost 4 gallons of FW in it and it was about empty so that tracks. The display has space for almost 1.5 gallons over the level I had it set at before it'd overflow. In total the system is only about 17 gallons so 3 gallons of fresh could cause that big of a drop. Oh, and it wasn't just freshwater, it was a weak Kalk-1 tsp/gallon.

I lost all my acans, they polyp bailed at some point last night, the challices look bad too. The fish, the zoas/palys look ok and curiously the Xenia isn't withering-yet. Doing more water changes today.

Well, it is an excuse to tear it down and start over I guess..sigh.

 

[Anonymous]

Oh and I did double check the SG, both with the hydrometer and a swing arm I keep for "just such an emergency".

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry to hear and hope you get it recovered.

I was just wondering how did the s.g. drop with no flood? Or perhaps there was a flood.

Did you have some kind of automated water change system for instance?


my .02

 

[Anonymous]

:lol: you'd be correct Bob, which is why I mentioned the ATO (auto top off) system and linked to it in my first post Bob. As far as it not flooding, it just didn't overflow the tank but diluted the water enough with top off freshater. The tank is a Solana, it has a sump integrated in the back where the pumps, skimmer etc are.

http://www.current-usa.com/solana.html

 

[Anonymous]

Man, that sucks. Sorry to hear it

 

[Anonymous]

That stinks. Sorry to hear it.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Sarg, what really blows is you were quite right about the peppermint shrimp-they have eliminated that aptasia problem I had :roll:

 

[Ben1]

Ouch, I didn't realize the solana hold so much water in the back. Sorry to hear about the troubles all the loss, I know how it hurts. I re-scaped my tank a few months back and lost two nice large SPS colonys. Then the other day was using some Joe's Juice on some majonos and the stuff dripped on a rose milli and it RTN'd over night. Now today I pulled a single rock out from near the bottom to move a cyphastrea I thought I'd get out no problem and the rocks tumbled and I had to spend hours rescaping again...just got finished at 1am lol. Not only that but it smashed my hollywood stunner to a bunch of chunks. Reefing can be a PITA some times.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm telling ya, I lost all my stonies but one lord and one chalice-frags people from here sent me, etc. My softies are fine, zoas, palys and surprisingly ricordia.

I'm so bummed, if it wasnt for the fish and invrts I have I'd shut it down for a while.

 

[Anonymous]

That really sucks. I am glad some stuck around to keep you in the hobby. I know some time back you were thinking about packing it in, but you stuck it out. Take care of those survivors.

Let us know how the survivors fare.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the kind words. I haven't lost anything else so far, though the cyphastrea isn't lookin great. I'm not ready to pack it in entirely...yet :|

 

[Anonymous]

I lost some corals from my power outage. It is hard to get over, but you will, for the rest of the inhabitants and the love of the hobby.

 

[Anonymous]

Any updates?

Hope all are well.

 

[Anonymous]

Just seen this. Really sorry Tracey. Hope things are starting to turn a corner back in the right direction.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks guys, not much to update. No further losses but I'm growing the most wonderful turf algae I've ever seen :? :| . Anyway, I'm just letting things run their course for the moment. Will let ya know when I pull things apart to redo them.

 

[Anonymous]

Geese, that really sucks. Stick in there!