Unresolved PH? Nitrates

Ive had my 55 gal tank up for about 2 months...tank never seemed to cycle very hard or have much algae growth. Well about a wk ago that all changed...I took a water sample to my LFS(I did not have a test kit at the time) he told me my nitrates were a little high and to do a 15 gal water change, so I did. 2-3 days later rust colored algae started growing on my sand and rocks. 2-3 days after that the reactor, test kit, and chemi pure I had ordered had arrived.
I added the chemi pure in the reactor and hooked it up to my tank replacing my HOB filter. The next morning my blue hippo was looking near death. I quickly went to the pet shop got pre mixed salt water and did a 20 gal water change. To my surprise he made it I was extremely happy. That night I tested my water again thinking it would be fine...I was wrong my PH was really low 7. something and my Nitrates were really high once again in the 20-40 range I would say def in the darker orange...
I told myself the next day I would do yet another water change. The next day I went and got my water and some PH raiser. When I came back to do my water change I found my hippo dead . I did my water change (20 gal) and added my PH raiser thinking maybe this time it will help things out. Waited a few hours and did a water test everything was pretty close to where it was supposed to be. The next day I do a water test and the PH is low in the 7’s yet again and the nitrates are high!
So last night I do yet another 20 gal water change and add my PH raiser. This morning yet another fish is dead! I Tested the water this morning and high nitrates and low ph...As you can tell I am a noob going through a rough time sry for the long read I just didn't want to leave anything out that could help put your figure on my problem..
I have two T5's 54 W that I run about 9hrs a day...I forgot to add that my protein skimmer stopped working around the same time all of this happened...it was a sea clone but it was working at the time ( I'm waiting on a aqua c remora that should be here soon) I am now feeding once every other day...I have a RO/DI unit on the way that will be here within the next few days..let me know if there is any more info I could give to help come up with a solution to my problem. THANKS

 

Bump and it was the chemi pure elite I added to the reactor ...

 

I have to ask what are all your paramaters exactly (Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite, pH, Mag, Cal, Alk, Phos and Salanity)? How did you cycle the tank? What type of flow do you have in the tank? What type of filter system? How long has the fish been in the tank? Are you using Tap water to top off with? How much LR is in the tank? Sorry to ask so many questions but I need some more information before I can really offer advice.

 

PH is 7.4, Nitrates are 25-30, I cycled my tank with live rock, I have a maxi jet 1200 and smaller power head (new power heads are coming with the protein skimmer), I have the reactor with the chemi pure elite as a filter, I have about 60lbs of live rock, I’ve been using RO from my local pet store to top off, the fish that are left 1 clown and a yellow tang have both been in the tank around 3-4 wks, and my salt levels are 1.025. I'm away from home rite now and thats all the paramaters I know for now.

 

I added the PH raiser before I left the house today so I hope its still not that low...

 

Your Nitrates are high but should not be the cause of your fish dying. Your ph is low and I would guess that the fish may be dying from the low pH, Ammonia poisioning, or low o2. Do the fish look like they are gasping for air? From what I can guess by reading how your tank is set up is you do not have enough turn over in your tank. Try aiming a power head towards the top of the tank to get some surface aeration. This will help in raising ph and help with gas exchange. IMPO you need about 10x turn over through a filter system such as a canister filter or a sump Not counting in-tank turnover. Did you use LR when you set up the tank or Base Rock? How did you cycle? How many fish did you add at one time? How many fish total before they started dying (guessing 4)? Remember in this hobby nothing good happens fast. Go Slow.


Here is something I found that may help.

Ammonia poisoning happens for two reasons:

1. Tank not cycled correctly- introducing a large number of fish into the new tank will cause the Ammonia concentration to increase . This will cause the fish will be producing waste and the beneficial bacteria is absent and hence cant be converted and the ammonia will increase until the fish start to die off or if the population of fish is too high for the aquarium size the fish produce too much waste for the beneficial bacteria to handle and it will lead to raise in concreation of ammonia.
2. Filter failure, lack of maintenance, over-feeding and use of medications- Sometimes over-enthusiastic beginners will also clean the biological filter media, thus killing the beneficial bacterial colony. When filters are being cleaned, it is important to keep the bacterial colony intact. After cleaning, the good bacteria will need time to recover and cope with the aquarium demands.

 

I will admit I probably was over feeding up until a wk ago...yes It was a total of 4 fish and I added them all within 4 wks of each other. The rock I used at the start was from a old aquarium that had been torn down. I added 3 nice size pieces of LR about 3 wks ago. Looks like I'm learning the hard way :/ ..do I still need to use my HOB filter even though I'm running the chemi pure elite? Is there much I can do besides keep doing water changes and adding the PH raiser? I will also aim one of the power heads up when I get home. I'm sure adding the skimmer will help things out as well.

 

You need to test for ammonia and nitrite. If either one is present, your tank is cycling or re-cycling due to the added bioload. There are some red flags that lead me to believe your tank has not cycled or you have caused it to go through another cycle. First, the algae you describe, that is completely normal and is indicative of a cycle. The number and types of fish you have. The two tangs are a big addition to the bioload. The hippo should not be in that size tank. With the yellow, you can get by with a smaller fish, but it will eventually outgrow that tank. You also added these fish very early on and relatively quickly. You added them in the first month or so which is a huge red flag that your tank is still cycling. The feeding and large bioload and possibly the RO water from the lfs are what are probably contributing to the higher nitrates, although at that level they should be a problem for healthy fish.

If I was in your position, I would take back the YT and all the other fish. The clown may be able to make it through the cycle, but he may not too. Essentially you need to start over again. Doing water changes will temporarily fix the problem, but you are only delaying the inevitable. You need to give the bacteria time to colonize the rock properly, then only add fish very slowly. 1 every two to three weeks to ensure the bacteria have time to catch up to the added bioload.

 

Thanks will do....I feel really bad about rushing into things. I thought at the time I wasent... guess I had to lern the hard way. Ill try to see if I can return the yellow tang. After buying the two tangs I started to read many threads about how not to mix tangs and people getting busted by the tang police lol....guilty as charged. Ill do my research, and take my time. Thanks for the help

 

you say you added 3 nice sized pieces of live rock? 3 weeks ago. are you sure they were cured? i have heard of tank crashes from adding live rock to fast that wasnt fully cured to a tank. your problem sounds like its from dieing things on the rock to me. that would lower ph and create high nitrates. if your worried about your fish. add some live bacteria. the fish store will have it. there are so many brands. it will help. if they have start smart by tlc grab it i know it works. TLC®TenderLivingCare