Another day, another dead chromi..wth

[Adam]

Ok, I've been using the Kent buffer all along, it barely seems to affect the pH but I will buy the other one.
I will try to figure out this plumbing when I get home. Idk maybe I'm silly but is a 40g breeder really that small for a QT? I won't be buying any more chromis for sure but at a loss as to what to add. Tangs are out, mixed feelings about a wrasse...I'll have to do some research.

I forgot you put that 40B up. Though it was the 13gal tank still.

To be honest, I'd chill a bit on anymore new fish. You've got 3 fish now and you're still weeks away from the 125 being ready. Why risk introducing something to the QT that you'll have to treat at this point? Once the 125 is ready and you transfer the fish over you'll be ready for another batch.

 

[ichthyoid]

[QUOTE="NanCrab, post: 1232762, member

My clowns have been fine in that QT for over a month and 2 chromis dead in a week.

Thoughts?
[/QUOTE]

Three questions-
What type of clowns are they?
Were the clowns in the tank a while before the chromis?
Are the clowns paired up?

Paired clowns can be aggressive, often to new relatively docile fish. Especially some species, with maroons being notoriously aggressive.

 

[sharis100]

So sorry you are going through this . A couple of folks on YouTube have had issues with Chromis killing each other and other fish. I think BillyPipes said his Chromis killed everything on his channel. Chromis - depending on the lighting- can exhibit breeding behavior and become very aggressive. Add that to paired clowns and that might be the result if there is no disease or illness.

 

[CJD18]

So sorry you are going through this . A couple of folks on YouTube have had issues with Chromis killing each other and other fish. I think BillyPipes said his Chromis killed everything on his channel. Chromis - depending on the lighting- can exhibit breeding behavior and become very aggressive. Add that to paired clowns and that might be the result if there is no disease or illness.

and there related to dammed damsels!!

 

[NanCrab]

[QUOTE="NanCrab, post: 1232762, member

My clowns have been fine in that QT for over a month and 2 chromis dead in a week.

Thoughts?

Three questions-
What type of clowns are they?
Were the clowns in the tank a while before the chromis?
Are the clowns paired up?

Paired clowns can be aggressive, often to new relatively docile fish. Especially some species, with maroons being notoriously aggressive.
[/QUOTE]
Ocillaris clowns and they were tiny when we got them.
I'm pretty sure they were not a pair when I got them but probably have paired up now. The clowns got moved to the 40g from a 13g about a week or two before I added the chromis.

 

[NanCrab]

So sorry you are going through this . A couple of folks on YouTube have had issues with Chromis killing each other and other fish. I think BillyPipes said his Chromis killed everything on his channel. Chromis - depending on the lighting- can exhibit breeding behavior and become very aggressive. Add that to paired clowns and that might be the result if there is no disease or illness.

So what should I do now? I dont want anything to happen to my clowns, I love them, and the kids love them.

 

[NanCrab]

and there related to dammed damsels!!

Yeah I didnt know that when I bought them. I was only told they are peaceful and hardy

 

[FutureInterest]

I remember trying a school of chromis at one point because... let's face it... we all want to have schooling fish in our tanks if possible. They always school in the stores since they're packed in and cannot establish territory. They look pretty. They are cost effective... So a lot of us have tried them for own school of fish. However, that never works out. We soon learn that schooling is more in response to possible threats of predation and in our closed environments its hard to simulate that. As such, without constant threats their natural damsel territorial traits surface and eventually that awesome "school" dwindles down to just a few. They're like straight out of Highlander... there can only be one... or a few, depending on tank size. So, needless to say I don't try them anymore.

I see no physical damage to the chromis in the pic from other fish which is not abnormal. Many fish can simply die from the stress of being bullied and being in a closed environment where escape is impossible...

As for your clowns, they are one of the hardiest fish you'll ever have. Typically the last fish standing. I don't see any signs of disease that would warrant you taking other measures currently.

 

[ichthyoid]

First, it's not a certainty that it was the clowns, but in the absence of a better explanation it may be your best working theory.

The prudent thing would be to physically isolate any new fish from the clowns. Perhaps putting the clowns in a separate tank, if possible.

FWIW, while I have had problems with aggression from a multitude of damsels, blue-green chromis have not been among them. Albeit, I kept them in larger tanks.

 

[NanCrab]

I remember trying a school of chromis at one point because... let's face it... we all want to have schooling fish in our tanks if possible. They always school in the stores since they're packed in and cannot establish territory. They look pretty. They are cost effective... So a lot of us have tried them for own school of fish. However, that never works out. We soon learn that schooling is more in response to possible threats of predation and in our closed environments its hard to simulate that. As such, without constant threats their natural damsel territorial traits surface and eventually that awesome "school" dwindles down to just a few. They're like straight out of Highlander... there can only be one... or a few, depending on tank size. So, needless to say I don't try them anymore.

I see no physical damage to the chromis in the pic from other fish which is not abnormal. Many fish can simply die from the stress of being bullied and being in a closed environment where escape is impossible...

As for your clowns, they are one of the hardiest fish you'll ever have. Typically the last fish standing. I don't see any signs of disease that would warrant you taking other measures currently.

I threw the remaining chromi into the frag QT where he has no one to bully. I dont want my clowns stressed out. Oh well, live and learn!!

 

[sharis100]

If it was me, I would wait to purchase any new fish at this point until after you get the 125 up and running. The clowns going in to that tank will keep it cycled when it is ready. And the single Chromis can help your feed your corals the waste. Then, figure out what you want and go slowly.

 

[Cook]

Ok, I've been using the Kent buffer all along, it barely seems to affect the pH but I will buy the other one.
I will try to figure out this plumbing when I get home. Idk maybe I'm silly but is a 40g breeder really that small for a QT? I won't be buying any more chromis for sure but at a loss as to what to add. Tangs are out, mixed feelings about a wrasse...I'll have to do some research.

Prime is your friend. I use a 40 gallon for my QT also, it works well for larger fish. I have two pairs of Chromis in two different tanks and they get along, strange.

 

[bigd]

Hate to say it, but when I read the title of your thread I instantly assumed you had multiple chromis in the tank. I had a nice school of chromis in my 180 gal at one point... a month or two later I had one. They will, without a doubt, kill each other off.

You’re doing things right, QT’ing in preparation for your big tank to be ready. I’d say go do a little window shopping at an LFS or two, find some fish that you like, and then come back home and do some research. If they fit the bill after researching then go for it and do as you are now, QT until the time is right.


D

 

[NanCrab]

Hate to say it, but when I read the title of your thread I instantly assumed you had multiple chromis in the tank. I had a nice school of chromis in my 180 gal at one point... a month or two later I had one. They will, without a doubt, kill each other off.

You’re doing things right, QT’ing in preparation for your big tank to be ready. I’d say go do a little window shopping at an LFS or two, find some fish that you like, and then come back home and do some research. If they fit the bill after researching then go for it and do as you are now, QT until the time is right.


D

Thank you D! I would love to.come see your setup someday. I was really impressed with your frag selection on Sunday. I love seeing everyone's setups!

 

[enderg60]

Chromis are NOT good aquarium fish.

I have gotten anywhere from 4 to 40 at a time, multiple times and never ended up with more than 2 after a few months.

Best I got was a group of 40 that was down to 2 after 6 months. They either die within 2 weeks from the ulcer looking thing on the side, or they highlander their way down to a few.

Everyone wants a school of fish in their tank, chromis are not the way to go.

 

[NanCrab]

Chromis are NOT good aquarium fish.

I have gotten anywhere from 4 to 40 at a time, multiple times and never ended up with more than 2 after a few months.

Best I got was a group of 40 that was down to 2 after 6 months. They either die within 2 weeks from the ulcer looking thing on the side, or they highlander their way down to a few.

Everyone wants a school of fish in their tank, chromis are not the way to go.

I wasnt looking for a school.of fish. I have had a couple of clowns in QT for over a month. A couple of weeks ago I started up a 40g breeder for fish QT and moved them into it from the 13g one I started them in. I have the corals in the smaller QT (that I emptied and cleaned with citric acid before restarting it as a coral qt)
Anyway, the little clowns seemed so lost in that 40g that I thought I might add another fish to the QT since I have time to treat if I need to as my DT isn't quite ready yet. The LFS pointed me in the direction of the chromis. It's not their fault, it's our fault. We should not have made an impulse buy like that. We should have researched them first, asked here first. Lesson learned! The lone surviving chromi has been banished to the frag tank where he can't bully my clowns.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us.

 

[snowmansnow]

Chromis aren’t going to be your long living friends... if you keep a swarm of them you generally have to replace them regularly


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NanCrab]

No worries, 2

Chromis aren’t going to be your long living friends... if you keep a swarm of them you generally have to replace them regularly


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Are dead, the surviving one is relegated to the frag QT and seems to be doing well in there. I honestly want a mostly coral tank with only a few, carefully selected fish. The purchase was a judgement error which I will hopefully not repeat!

 

[snowmansnow]

Well chromis aren’t terrible fish or anything. They just don’t live long in our tanks.

For a reef tank it’s hard to beat a malanarus wrasse, a few clowns, a yellow tang (if you have enough room) and a lawnmower blend. Maybe a reef safe angel


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[NanCrab]

Well chromis aren’t terrible fish or anything. They just don’t live long in our tanks.

For a reef tank it’s hard to beat a malanarus wrasse, a few clowns, a yellow tang (if you have enough room) and a lawnmower blend. Maybe a reef safe angel


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I will have to look up lawnmower blend, have no idea what that is lol