Temperature Shock !! Will my fish recover? they are inactive

[Bubble_B0y]

my heater died overnight (some electrical haywire).
My tank went from 75 degrees F ...to.... 60 degrees F overnight.

Luckily I had a spare heater when I woke up the next morning.

My fish are inactive (resting on the bottom of the tank), but they are eating.

how long does it take for fish to recover from a temp shock?
Will they recover ??
its sad not to see them swimming around the tank.

 

[brndfrb]

Most likely they will as long as you get the temp back up to normal. I had a heater crap out on me but instead of it stop working. It heated the tank to 91 degrees. All my fish lived. Lost a few corals.

 

[rich311k]

Raise it nice and slow. They should be ok just keep an eye on them

 

[Bubble_B0y]

thanks - they seem to Perk up when eating.
but they are not back to their full excited personality.

maybe their body is still adjusting to the warm --> cold --> warm fluctuations?? a little stressful ??

 

[Bubble_B0y]

Raise it nice and slow.

how slowly do I raise it ??

2 degrees per day??

 

[rich311k]

1 degree every two hours should do it

 

[Bubble_B0y]

will it help the fish stress if i turn my tank lights OFF ??

 

[rich311k]

I have heard that it will help ease the stress on the fish.

 

[Menagerie]

To further help, add some Melafix. Since stress can bring out disease, the Melafix will help (do not add if you have fish with labrynth organs).

 

[Bubble_B0y]

update:

they are still resting on the bottom - breathing heavily.

but they are still eating

would a water change help?

 

[rich311k]

what is your ammonia level?

 

[Bubble_B0y]

i just checked 5 minutes ago (funny u should ask)


ammonia = zero
nitrite = zero
nitrate = <30

i'm very strict on my water levels

 

[Bubble_B0y]

they perk up after eating.

maybe I should just give them some time.

 

[rich311k]

it sounds like stress to me as well. Your levels are ok, so I would just let them be for another day or so.

 

[Bubble_B0y]

yeah I think its stress.

usually my fish get excited when I turn the lights on every morning - they can sense food.

for the past couple of days - they didn't respond to the lights.


i mean - they are certainly MORE active than yesterday

as they say ... "time heals all wounds"