my spiny urchin

[Gatilidie]

hey my urchin is moving like every ten hours or so and when he moves some of his needles are left behind whats wrong, my chocolate star is now on top of it and seems not wanting to moving but the lil suction cups are moving (i stopped my powerhead) help is he dieing

 

[315hottuna61]

check ur PH -Might b out of whack - urchins are pretty hardy but like anything don't like a really high PH ( as well as other parameters out of norm) . Believe me , I have had that problem.

 

[Bifferwine]

Also check nitrates, they are especially sensitive to that.

 

[Trigger Happy]

Can he be isolated so he isn't being picked on?

 

[Gatilidie]

trigger you guessed it i dont know y my giant hairy hermit was messing with him and my choc. star kept piggy back on him i took him out but i think his not bouncing back i dont know what to do

 

[Gatilidie]

hello now my brown brittle star is out in the open an has laid limp for over ten hours and moved only once an that was when he flipped over for a full hour is this something i should be worried bout:frustrat:

 

[Bifferwine]

What are your water parameters testing at? If you don't have test kits, you should buy some, or bring a sample of your water to your LFS and have them test it for you.

 

[Gatilidie]

nitrate showsm dull sun yellow, phosphate between .25 am .50, carb 71.6, cal.420

 

[Gatilidie]

i think he is dieing now he has a split between his bottom two limbs and moves so very slow like he is waving goodbye i mean he hasnt moved from that spot now twenty four hours just waves his limbs around i turned of the power heads to make sure it wasnt fellow causing the wave my numbers are still good he still has his color only its some strings hanging from on top of his back

 

[AmberSunrise]

Do you have a standard test kit?

One that measures

Nitrite
Nitrate
PH
Ammonia

That is what you need to test for right now. Something is obviously wrong

 

[Samhain]

Also, it sounds like you're using test strips which are notoriously inaccurate. Try getting the liquid API tests and seeing what they say.

 

[Gatilidie]

sorry i have a very hectic life wit my dogs kids and jobs so i am just getting back to answer questions i have the REEF MASTER TEST KIT marine
he didnt make it i have recently replaced him wit a horseshoe crab an he be everywhere i mean his running around like his on fire. i used a iodide boost and now my crabs are ok thanks

 

[little_fish]

Horseshoe crabs are probably one the worst choices of inverts you could put in your tank. And having too much iodine is actually very damaging to your iverts, you should never add something to your tank without testing for it first and making sure you actually need it.

The horseshoe crabs require huge sandbeds and will move around your rocks. They get to be over a food large, but in your tank its going to starve to death long before that. Return it and next time, do your research first before buying something.

 

[Northstar24]

So let me get this straight, first you lose several inverts in a short amount of time and come here asking for help. You provide a very vague description of the problem, and when asked for water test values you respond with the color of the tests and not the values? Then you lose said inverts, and replace them with additional inverts that are really unsuitable to our tanks without figuring out what the issue was?

Any time you lose multiple tank inhabitants you need to ask yourself what changed. It simply isn't normal for several tank inhabitants to die at the same time, and losing several inverts (the most sensitive things in our tank) needs to set off alarms

The answer of going out and just purchasing more isn't the right answer. Its not fair to the critters you're bringing home, and its not easy on the wallet.

With all that said, we want to help you, we really do, but we cant when you dont give us any information.

Go to this thread and look at the questions and reply here with the answers to them and we'll try to sort things out

https://www.livingreefs.com/sticky-oh-noez-mah-fish-sick-threads-t34819.html

Also as Hannah said, you should NEVER EVER EVER does your tank with something you aren't testing for, or don't understand the need for

 

[Bifferwine]

That horseshoe crab will likely die within a couple weeks to a couple months. It will starve to death. They need a huge tank to survive.

 

[SarahSmile]

It does get frustrating Northstar. Sigh.
Gatildie, time to go crab catching! After you bring him back, remember a search on liveaquaria or here will tell you pretty quickly whether something can live happily in your tank or not. It'll save you a lot of money and aggravation. Good luck!

 

[Gatilidie]

Thanks everyone I have returned the horseshoe an I'm gonna do my cycling over I drained my water, thanks again

 

[little_fish]

It will be a good fresh start! And then you can end up with the sustainable tank of your dreams!