I don't know what to do.
During the storm two nights ago, the GFCI protector evidently tripped, effectively shutting down everything in the tank: filters, lights, skimmer....and heater.
I didn't know it until just now -- my husband normally feeds the puffer, and last night was a no-food night. He didn't realize that the lights were off earlier than they should have been.
The tank is cold. Not cool, but actually cold -- I am guessing the tank temp is in the mid 60s, and we try to keep it at 78.
The puffer is lying on its side, barely alive. We are bailing back and forth with heated saltwater to slowly get the tank temperature up. But we don't know if the puff is going to make it.
Is there anything else we can do?
...After this, if he makes it, I am putting 2 heaters in the tank: one on each power strip, with the power strips going to two different outlets.
Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
Forum rules
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
Read this before posting!!
Since this board has been up, we have found there are several questions that routinely get asked in order to help diagnose problems. If you can have that information to begin with in your post, we'll be able to help right away (if we can!) without having to wait for you to post the info we need.
1) Your water parameters - pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates and salinity (if appropriate). This is by far the most important information you can provide! Do not answer this with "Fine" "Perfect" "ok", that tells us nothing. We need hard numbers.
2) Tank size and a list of ALL inhabitants. Include algae eaters, plecos, everything. We need to know what you have and how big the tank is.
3) Feeding, water change schedule and a list of all products you are using or have added to the tank (examples: Cycle, Amquel, salt, etc)
4) What changes you've made in the tank in the last week or so. Sometimes its the little things that make all the difference.
5) How long the aquarium has been set up, and how did you cycle it? If you don't know what cycling is read this: Fishless Cycling Article and familiarize yourself with all the information. Yes. All of it.
We want to help, and providing this information will go a LONG way to getting a diagnosis and hopeful cure that much faster.
While you wait for assistance:
One of the easiest and best ways to help your fish feel better is clean water! If you are already on a regular water change schedule (50% weekly is recommended) a good step to making your fish more comfortable while waiting for diagnosis/suggestions is to do a large water change immediately. Feel free to repeat daily or as often as you can, clean water is always a good thing! Use of Amquel or Prime as a dechlor may help with any ammonia or nitrite issues, and is highly recommended.
Note - if you do not normally do large water changes, doing a sudden, large water change could shock your fish by suddenly changing their established water chemistry. Clean water is still your first goal, so in this case, do several smaller (10%) water changes over the next day or two before starting any large ones.
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goby1kenobi
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 109
- Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 10:48 pm
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: one GSP: Random
- Location (country): Chicagoland
Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
tank: saltwater 55g, one 5" GSP named Random (mka Puff)
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Lil' Swimz$
- Mbu Puffer
- Posts: 1686
- Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2009 6:26 pm
- Gender: Male
- My Puffers: Lorteti - Peaches
- Location (country): USA
- Location: Wisconsin
- Contact:
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
How about boiling water and pouring it into a sandwich bag and floating that in the tank? That way the heat will slowly disperse.
Poor guy, hope he makes it.
Poor guy, hope he makes it.
Ha ha, he he! DAncE whEn yoU're HAPpppy! He he he! DAnce, danCE, DANCe!
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goby1kenobi
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 109
- Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 10:48 pm
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: one GSP: Random
- Location (country): Chicagoland
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
Thanks, I'll try that.
We now have 3 heaters in the tank. Temp just hit 70. His dorsal fin is moving. Husband is staying with him & talking to him, which is visibly helping.
We now have 3 heaters in the tank. Temp just hit 70. His dorsal fin is moving. Husband is staying with him & talking to him, which is visibly helping.
tank: saltwater 55g, one 5" GSP named Random (mka Puff)
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32975
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Contact:
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
He's not dead--his metabolism is just very slowed, including his breathing. Don't raise the temp too fast. Let the heater do it normally.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
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goby1kenobi
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 109
- Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 10:48 pm
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: one GSP: Random
- Location (country): Chicagoland
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
<turns off teapot>
My husband is admitting that it's still really difficult to tell if the fish movement he's seeing is just from water movement of the fish's body, or if the fish is actually moving....
UPDATE, 10:25:
Husband says the puffer yawned! :woot:
We'll keep checking on him....
My husband is admitting that it's still really difficult to tell if the fish movement he's seeing is just from water movement of the fish's body, or if the fish is actually moving....
UPDATE, 10:25:
Husband says the puffer yawned! :woot:
We'll keep checking on him....
tank: saltwater 55g, one 5" GSP named Random (mka Puff)
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goby1kenobi
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 109
- Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 10:48 pm
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: one GSP: Random
- Location (country): Chicagoland
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
He's still on his side. I think I saw his side move like he was breathing, but I'm just not sure.
tank: saltwater 55g, one 5" GSP named Random (mka Puff)
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32975
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Contact:
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
Add an airstone.
You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
-
goby1kenobi
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 109
- Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 10:48 pm
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: one GSP: Random
- Location (country): Chicagoland
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
He didn't make it.
tank: saltwater 55g, one 5" GSP named Random (mka Puff)
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Pufferpunk
- Queen Admin
- Posts: 32975
- Joined: Tue May 31, 2005 11:06 am
- Gender: Female
- My Puffers: Puffers I have kept:
T lineatus
T miurus
A modestus
T biocellatus
C valentini
C coranata
C papuan
C lorteti
DPs
suvattii
burrfish
T niphobles - Location (country): USA, Greenville, SC
- Location: Greenville, SC
- Contact:
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
My guess is lack of oxygen, not the cold.You are getting sleepy... you only hear the sound of my voice... you must do water changes... water changes... water changes... water changes...
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
"The solution to pollution is dilution!"
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
sorry to hear of your loss
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Purifire
- Figure 8 Puffer
- Posts: 188
- Joined: Fri May 13, 2011 3:13 am
- Gender: Male
- My Puffers: 2 Dwarf Puffers (C. Travancoricus) , 1 male 1 female.
Saddled Toby (C. Vallintini)
Have kept GSPs - Location (country): United States, Lompoc CA
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
That sucks. I lost my two Gsps recently I feel your loss as well.
29 Gallon Marine tank, with refugium, skimmer. Base rock, coral skeletons. Stock: Baby Ocellaurus Clown, young Saddled Toby, 3 Hermit crabs,one 2 inch Bristle Worm, hitch hiking starfish.
10g Biotope. 3 C. Travancoricus (Dwarf Puffer) Some Ghost shrimp, gravel/sand substrate, heavily planted with Swords and Java Moss.
10g LR Culture Tank. 10+ pounds fiji LR / base rock. Assorted hitch hiking inverts
Some FW tanks.
In My Experience, Fishkeeping is like Cooking. Five or ten basics will keep anyone from getting sick. But to be truly magnificent... You have to know the right Recipies.
10g Biotope. 3 C. Travancoricus (Dwarf Puffer) Some Ghost shrimp, gravel/sand substrate, heavily planted with Swords and Java Moss.
10g LR Culture Tank. 10+ pounds fiji LR / base rock. Assorted hitch hiking inverts
Some FW tanks.
In My Experience, Fishkeeping is like Cooking. Five or ten basics will keep anyone from getting sick. But to be truly magnificent... You have to know the right Recipies.
-
eieio
- Mbu Puffer
- Posts: 1033
- Joined: Sat Jun 13, 2009 11:34 am
- My Puffers: *
The Congo Puffer:
"olivia"
and.......
The DP:
"cream puff"
RIP cream puff :-( - Location (country): U.S.A.
- Location: Prescott, Arizona
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
goby1kenobi wrote:He didn't make it.
"I plan ahead. That way, I don't have to do anything right now!"
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katfemme89
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 25
- Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2011 2:09 am
- Location (country): Kentucky, USA
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
Oh my, I'm so sorry. that makes me really sad. U know what I was thinking about investing in? One of those little DieHard batteries for jumpstarting cars. they come with DC and AC outlets I believe. It says they will power electronics for like 50 HOURS! THat way you can plug in your powerstrip into that and it'll power the basic needs of your tank until the power comes back on.
that makes me really sad. U know what I was thinking about investing in? One of those little DieHard batteries for jumpstarting cars. they come with DC and AC outlets I believe. It says they will power electronics for like 50 HOURS! THat way you can plug in your powerstrip into that and it'll power the basic needs of your tank until the power comes back on.
Last edited by katfemme89 on Mon Jul 04, 2011 2:55 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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katfemme89
- Puffer Fry
- Posts: 25
- Joined: Fri Jun 10, 2011 2:09 am
- Location (country): Kentucky, USA
Re: Tank lost heat, puffer nearly dead
here's the link to this nifty little thing http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_02871988000P
I dunno about you guys but that definitely sounds a lot better than a generator or dead aquariums lol!
I dunno about you guys but that definitely sounds a lot better than a generator or dead aquariums lol!