Soap in my system

[pi-eyed]

I had a catastrophe the week end of the lansing swap. I got home from the swap and my 75g reef, which has been up and running for about a year looked like a glass of milk. I opened up my stand to see the sump and there were suds from the top of the sump all the way to the bottom of the tank. The skimmer was going absolutely crazy

I always wash my filter socks in the washing machine, 2x rinse,no soap. I let them air dry and install them. I recently bought a new washer and I think one of the kids may have overloaded it and it didn't rinse all of the soap out of the previous load. I lost 2 fish and four corals before I could start to get this problem corrected.

To fix the problem I changed 50+ gallons over the last week added fresh carbon every three days. I got the skimmer running and it's skimming again(no soap suds). I had to move a lot of my live rock to get the dead fish out of the system. I haven't lost anything else but nothing is happy in my system right now. My haddoni carpet decided to go on the move and he hasn't budged since I put him in there. He seems ok just tucked up in a different rock. My cleaner shrimp made it--I don't know how but he is ok.

Has anyone had this problem before? I'm doing all I know to do for this. Is there anything else I should be doing?

---Chris

[Sir Patrick]

You have done exactly what I would have done

[dlhirst]

I probably would have cried a little, too. But other than that - massive water changes is the first thing. Some kind of phosphate remover (Phosguard? Phosban? Others?) should probably be given a shot, too. I have no experience with any of them, but I am sure others could recommend one that really works.

Good luck!

[jimsflies]

I agree with running gfo. Also run a ton of carbon.

[binford4000]

Your not the first to have this happen. I know one reefer who lost all his huge SPSs colony's this way . I would keep the water changes up tell the Po4 is under control. Also would recommend using Phosguard over GFO . Cost much less and IMO is a better product. You usually can get a gallon bucket for 50 bucks and it is color changing. GFO is really only efficient for a short time due to it breaks down quickly. If you can afford it Wal Mart.com sells a small washer for a few hundred dollars that works great for filter socks

[jimsflies]

GFO works faster than Phosguard. Normally that might not be as desirable when the goal is to bring down nutrient levels, but given the goal is to remove a pollutant I would think faster is better. But either one would be better than nothing.

[pi-eyed]

I've been using fluval lab series phosphate remover(ferric oxide). I don't have a reactor so I bag it up and put it in the return chamber of the sump/fuge along with media bags of carbon.

before:
http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r789/pi-eyed/soap/0217041348_zps0b7e1b99.jpg (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/pi-eyed/media/soap/0217041348_zps0b7e1b99.jpg.html)

After 1 week:
http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r789/pi-eyed/soap/0225041315a_zpsda46f1d1.jpg (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/pi-eyed/media/soap/0225041315a_zpsda46f1d1.jpg.html)

Sorry for the crap pics..taken with a cell phone.

---Chris

[dlhirst]

Regarding filter "socks", I have been buying knee-high stockings from Target, whatever is on sale. They have a stretchy band at the top that I cut off, though I don't know that it is "toxic". I give them a good rinse, and just use them as is. On sale, they are usually about $1 a piece... You have to plan your attack, so you aren't seen lingering over the pantyhose display if you are at all self-conscious - like me! But, you can throw them away when they get too groady. I do re-use them once or twice.
--Cheap Don

[binford4000]

GFO works faster than Phosguard. Normally that might not be as desirable when the goal is to bring down nutrient levels, but given the goal is to remove a pollutant I would think faster is better. But either one would be better than nothing.

I would agree that GFO will show a faster drop it will also go bad much faster and absorb much less Po4 ,also in this case phos guards ability to absorb would be more benifical IMHO. Since he also has no reactor to keep the GFO fluidized it would also work better. Just my .02 and yes I have become anti GFO. Cost to benifit ratio of GFO is just not there ! Still say constant water changes would still be best plan of attack.

[Mazzy]

I haven't had a lot of experience with phosphate media as I just started using it for the first time with my current tank, but I can say, if you need to drop phosphates fast, fast, fast in an emergency situation, as this would be, I used Rowa-Phos and my phosphates absolutely plummeted in only two days (possibly one day but I didn't check until day 2).

I purchased some dry rock that seemed like within hours (though obviously it must have been a couple days lol) was completely covered in cyano. I thought 'no big deal, it'll pass' at first, but then the sides of the tank were covered a day or two later, then the powerheads, etc, etc... even the snail and hermit shells became coated!! I checked my params and freaked when I saw phosphates were measuring just shy of 6.0 (!!) on the Hanna checker, figured it had to be leaching from the rock, and bought a little jar of Rowa-Phos (it's expensive, but it was what was available to me right then). I put it in a sock and passively ran it in a media rack, checked phosphates again two days later with the checker - 0.12!! That was with two little teaspoons of Rowa-Phos (in a 29 cube). Phosphates continued to drop into the 0.0X range as we like them to be, and even with absorbing all that (which was over a month ago now), my phosphates are still in check with that same little bag of Rowa-Phos. I'm starting to wonder just how long this stuff lasts before replacement! lol Anyway, that's my experience with this particular product and I am extremely pleased with the results.

[Mazzy]

Well, I posted a whole reply but wasn't logged in so it accidentally erased. Just wanted to say, although I don't have any previous experience with different phosphate media, I did have to use one a little over a month ago for the first time and bought Rowa-Phos because that was available to me right then. It's expensive, but after that one use I'm probably a lifelong customer. I had a situation in which my phosphates spiked to almost 6.0 on the Hanna Checker and I freaked (as you do!). I put Rowa-Phos in a sock, passively running on a media rack, and two days later the Hanna read 0.12!! In two days! Now it's good in the 0.0X range that we like, and I still haven't changed out that same little bag. I have a BioCube29 so I only needed two teaspoons. I'm wondering just how long this stuff will last at this point (considering how much it soaked up with the initial situation). But anyway, that was my experience with this particular product and I couldn't be more pleased with how well it worked.

[binford4000]

WOW !!!!!! Never had that kinda results before.

[Mazzy]

Crazy, right! Now, I have no idea how phosphate medias normally do - this is my first and only experience with them - so maybe they all work like that?? I honestly wouldn't know at all. But that's what the Hanna Checker gave me. I cna't remember the exact number for how high it was. It was actually 5.some-some'in, but I certainly remember the recheck - point-one-two!! - because I couldn't believe how awesome phosphate media must work and was thnking that I wished all media worked that well. lol

[pi-eyed]

I'll have to pick some of that up..Thanks for the tip Mazzy.

---Chris

[jmowbray]

Fwiw detergent doesn't contain phosphate. So if it's high then it's from the actual tank. Possible dead or dying matter

[jimsflies]

@jmowbray (http://www.captivereefs.com/forum/members/jmowbray/) Great point!

[jmowbray]

Sorry. Lol my real job is actually to formulate new detergents for P&G.

[pi-eyed]

The detergent caused the die off. Then you all know how it goes.. My parameters were swinging like a monkey in a tree. After 2 weeks everything is in check and the corals are opening, as well as the carpet nem.

Reef keeping is like life: It doesn't matter what happens, it's how you deal with it that is important.

---Chris