Buying Pods in a bottle

[db366]

This might be a stupid question but when you buy pods in a bottle from stores and such do you just dump it in your sump/fuge?

 

[gnashty]

I do

 

[db366]

Well, I bought a bottle, dumped it in and it has almost destroyed my tank.. I did a 40% water change the 2 days ago nitrates are still at 20, meaning that bottle must have been nothing but dead stuff..

 

[gnashty]

did you see them moving in the bottle? I only buy pods from a reputable source or get them from other members in chaeto.

do you run a UV?

 

[db366]

Well I thought I saw stuff moving around although there was a lot on the bottom caked up. The store said that was normal. It was just in a 20 oz coke bottle. And no I do not run a UV.

 

[crew]

db366;652136 wrote: It was just in a 20 oz coke bottle

That would be a red flag for me

 

[lifestudent]

Sorry to hear that your nitrates spiked.

Although some adult pods may be living in the junk in the bottom of such a container, unless you have a strainer (e.g., 93 microns), I wouldn't pour that into my system.

In the future, you should be able to see pods swimming in the water column and/or on the surface of the container crawling around. By looking at a bright light through the side of the container, you should be able see them.

 

[ruadh]

I strain mine through a coffee filter before putting them into my system

 

[markl]

Crew;652171 wrote: That would be a red flag for me

Why?

 

[db366]

about 35 gallons with the sump.

 

[db366]

The sump is a 10 gallon filled about 3/4 so I figure with baffles and such it is about 5-7 gallons.

 

[db366]

I did the water changes after noticing my nitrates were high. I normally do a 10 Gallon water change once a week. It could have been snails or something but I can count the number of crabs/snails that I have in my tank and from what I have seen none are missing. I have been trying to connect the dots to figure out what started all my issues and this is the only thing I could really think of. You might be right, I don't really know and there is really no way to be 100% sure. At this point I was just making sure I did the right thing by dumping the bottle in the tank, like maybe I should have added a little at a time over the coarse of a week or something.

 

[crewdawg1981]

While I probably would have added a little at a time, I'm with the others in that dumping 15-20oz is not likely to blame for throwing your tank completely off.

Have your params improved since your last thread?

 

[db366]

Things are looking better, I haven't tested yet but corals that weren't opening up the other day are opened back up. I plan on doing around another 10 gallon water change today and then testing again. Calcium and Alk are at 400 and 10 dkh after starting to dose with the Kent 2 part.

 

[db366]

I blame the pods because nothing else has been added that has died. I still think the pods are to blame for the rise in nitrates. I am glad things are looking up but I think if I would have not done the water changes things would have only gotten worse.

 

[jbadd99]

Since mine were in the refrigerator when I picked them up, I let them raise to room temperature for a few hours, then temp acclimated them before I just dumped 'em in.... The bottle said they were at .023 SG and I was at .024 that day... I don't figure they all died since I still see quite a few after the lights go out.