D'uh! dumb mistakes will cost ya!

[jsmith]

So i was doing my pwc over the weekend! Had water mixed up sitting for over 24 hours just doing the norm. Took my digital thermometer out of the water powerhead and heaterout... started to remove water from dt and took out about 20% rather then my normal 10% nitrates were showing 20 anyhow to getthe point i lost my royal gramma due to my digital heater being set for air temp and actuall heat being 86 degrees. By the time i notced i was already half way done took the plunge add cold tap to cool it down but forgot to add more salt... so not only did i lose a fish but salenity is ar 1.022 and iknow my poor corals have to stick it out till i can raise it safely...

 

[nf37]

Ouch, ya those are things to learn from really. I tried to simplify my water changes as much as possible. All my powerheads get shut off by one powerstrip, heater specifically set in my water mixing trash can, and a long enough tube to run from my DT to the sink when removing water, and that same tube is long enough to run from my trash can to my DT. Water changes take 5 min =)

But ya, its the small things that make the biggest impact in this hobby. Just gotta learn from your mistakes!

EDIT: Btw, some future tips:

I hope your not using "cold tap" from the sink. Tap water is horrible for fish, and especially corals. You're setting yourself up for failure by going that route. Use RO/DI!

If you ever run into an emergency where you have to cool down the tank fast, fill a plastic bag with ice and float it on the top of the water, fans also work nicely to cool temp fast.