Copper Poisoning?

celticveil

Medium Fish
Oct 8, 2005
54
0
0
#1
OK, so I ran my tank for about a week. Added some live rock for kicks and giggles, then tested the water...everything tested fine. I forgot to test for copper, but never have had copper from my tap water before.
OK, so I added 3 little red leg hermit crabs, and the next day, my whole apartment smell like someone was cooking a caserole in my over...it was quite alarming. I turned on the light, and to my horror the three crabs I added to help start the cycle weren't just dead, they were out of their respective shells and halfway on the other side of the tank from their shells. Wha...?

SO I tested everything again, all good. Decide to test for copper...BOOM! Trace ammounts. So I added pura pads to the back of the filter compartment after removing anything that could.

BTW, I've also added bio spira earlier.

ANy suggestions on how to kill out the copper problem without doing a 100% water change again and again and again...? I'm switching to R/O water form work, no more tap.
 

wayne

Elite Fish
Oct 22, 2002
4,077
3
0
#2
Well as this is a nano I would just swap 100% of the water. Polyfiltering it will be more bother/cost than a water change.

How trace is trace? If it didn't kill 'em outright, but rather the whole tank is stinking, I'd check the temp and salinity, and smell eachpieve of LR individually. I think you something other than a copper problem, rather a cycling problem