What's a "tank crash", anyways...and what can we learn?

[Tannin Aquatics]

So, a reader asked me to tackle this one...I hope that I don't come across too...I don't know- "high and might" or what not...I hope that we can have a discussion without too much negativity. I can see the hate mails coming my way...

Let's talk about that dreaded, yet apparently real phenomenon of "tank crashes."

A "tank crash!" Yikes.

Ever had that happen?

Nah, me niether...In fact, I don't know too many people that it happened to. Okay, I suppose I can qualify this. I've heard a bunch of people claim things like tanks "crashing" as a result of some sort of technological failure, such as a heater failing join the "on" position and cooking their livestock, or the cleaning lady accidentally spraying household disinfectant over the open-top reef aquarium. (click to read more)

 

[hollyfish2000]

Glad you've never experienced a tank crash. It's a heart-breaking thing to experience. I lost an entire all male peacock colony plus four multipunctatus to an uncontrollable nitrite spike in a long-established tank. I learned a lot of lessons -- I only use aged water, I keep two canisters on all tanks so I can swap them into a tank having a crash, I have sponge filters on all tanks that can be moved into a tank with issues. I usually also have the biological culture in a bottle (although not at the moment) on hand.