My 55g Disaster

[Kribensis27]

Everything in my 55g is dead. Everything. The entire school of tiger barbs, my angelfish, all of the kribs, the snails, even the plants. Yesterday, they were all fine. They were perfectly normal. Today, I went down to the basement to feed the fish and check on everyone, but I didn’t see any movement. I figured they were just still sleeping, as I hadn’t turned the light on yet. When I did, the it was awful. Bodies all over the bottom and piles of brown plants. Not a single ramshorn snail sticking to the glass. My kribs weren’t there to say hello to me like they do every morning. The barbs weren’t begging for food like they always are. They were all pale and dead on the bottom. I checked all levels, and they were normal, but as soon as I checked the temperature, it was ice cold. I read the thermometer, and it said 45F. I don’t know what to do. I’m utterly devastated. I have snails in other tanks, but what about the kribs? I had one solitary angel in there as well, his name was Fettuccine. I loved him so much, he was my little baby. I can’t tell my younger siblings right now, they loved him and the kribs too. I feel like it was my fault for not checking on them earlier. I might’ve been able to save them. I raised those kribs from babies, and I loved them the most of any African cichlid I’ve ever kept. I don’t know what to do. I just hate seeing it empty. I want to wait a while, and I don’t want to feel like I’m replacing them, but at the same time, I can’t bear to see it so lifeless. I’m not going to let the cycle crash, and I’m going to do a full rescape. I don’t know what the stocking will be, but I’ll definitely have kribs. I hate myself right now. I could’ve saved them so easily.

 

[StarGirl]

How devastating.... Im so sorry. That must have been terrible seeing that.

 

[Luckyscale2003]

sounds like heater went out on a bad day
I'm sorry that really sucks
I say to keep cycle going throw a few nano fish in there for the time being

 

[veggieshark]

I am sorry for your loss. Things like this occasionally happen if you stay long enough in this hobby. Your basement must be really cold.

I wish you lived closer. I could give you as many kribs and snails as you wanted.

 

[Josie12012]

So sorry! I too am battling with losing several fish, 3 in the last couple days. My fish are my babies and it’s heart breaking. Sorry you lost all your babies at once, I can’t imagine. Fettuccine is such a cute name... sounds like all your fish were well loved. I hope you’ll start again when it feels right. Hang in there!

 

[APColorado]

I'm sorry to hear of your loss...that is a tough experience to get through

 

[Mustangjenni]

My heart hurts for you! I almost had the same thing happen to my 55g full of my molly babies. Went in one morning last week and the heater had shut off. The tank was dropping in temp, down to 69 degrees. All the babies were like in frozen animation- just hanging in the water. I’m still so grateful I found them in time. I really feel your loss! But don’t let it sit too long like an empty grave.

 

[CTYankee79]

I’m really sorry to hear that, that’s a terrible thing to happen. It sounds like you cared for the fish immensely, and you couldn’t have ever predicted that was going to happen

 

[Kribensis27]

How devastating.... Im so sorry. That must have been terrible seeing that.

Thank you, it was horrible.

sounds like heater went out on a bad day
I'm sorry that really sucks
I say to keep cycle going throw a few nano fish in there for the time being

Thank you. I’m probably just going to put in some danios for now to keep the bb alive.

I am sorry for your loss. Things like this occasionally happen if you stay long enough in this hobby. Your basement must be really cold.

I wish you lived closer. I could give you as many kribs and snails as you wanted.

This is the worst part about the hobby. Yeah, my basement is around 50 usually, but has a door connecting to the garage, which wasn’t closed properly. That’s super kind of you, I wish I was closer too.

So sorry! I too am battling with losing several fish, 3 in the last couple days. My fish are my babies and it’s heart breaking. Sorry you lost all your babies at once, I can’t imagine. Fettuccine is such a cute name... sounds like all your fish were well loved. I hope you’ll start again when it feels right. Hang in there!

Thank you. I’m sorry about your losses as well. He was a great little fish. I loved them all so much.

I'm sorry to hear of your loss...that is a tough experience to get through

Thank you.

My heart hurts for you! I almost had the same thing happen to my 55g full of my molly babies. Went in one morning last week and the heater had shut off. The tank was dropping in temp, down to 69 degrees. All the babies were like in frozen animation- just hanging in the water. I’m still so grateful I found them in time. I really feel your loss! But don’t let it sit too long like an empty grave.

Thank you. I’m glad your babies were ok! I hope not to let it stay empty for very long. I’ll put a school of danios in for now to keep the cycle going, and figure out a new stocking plan once I’ve finished rescaping.

I’m really sorry to hear that, that’s a terrible thing to happen. It sounds like you cared for the fish immensely, and you couldn’t have ever predicted that was going to happen

Thank you. I loved them all a ton. I know I couldn’t have predicted it, but I still feel like it’s my fault.

 

[BigManAquatics]

Wow, what a horrible start to the day. The only good thing here is at least you know what caused it. Keep that chin up though and try not to beat yourself up over it too much. You got this!

 

[StarGirl]

Thank you, it was horrible.

Thank you. I’m probably just going to put in some danios for now to keep the bb alive.

This is the worst part about the hobby. Yeah, my basement is around 50 usually, but has a door connecting to the garage, which wasn’t closed properly. That’s super kind of you, I wish I was closer too.

Thank you. I’m sorry about your losses as well. He was a great little fish. I loved them all so much.

Thank you.

Thank you. I’m glad your babies were ok! I hope not to let it stay empty for very long. I’ll put a school of danios in for now to keep the cycle going, and figure out a new stocking plan once I’ve finished rescaping.

Thank you. I loved them all a ton. I know I couldn’t have predicted it, but I still feel like it’s my fault.

Its not your fault at all. Heaters fail all the time. Mine overheated a few months back. It really is hard.

 

[Basil]

Oh no! I’m so so sorry. Hugs to you.

 

[Cherryshrimp420]

Wow what brand and where did you buy the heater? I will make sure to stay far away

I had a cheap amazon heater fail on me and temperature dropped within a day. Thankfully nothing died in my tank.

In your case it seems like the heater might have actually electrocuted your fish

 

[tom855]

Very sorry to hear that. I lost a 55G full to a CO2 tank dump years ago. It was very sad. And obviously you were very much attached to them. Hopefully you can get things back up and running before too long.

 

[Kribensis27]

Wow, what a horrible start to the day. The only good thing here is at least you know what caused it. Keep that chin up though and try not to beat yourself up over it too much. You got this!

Thank you. I’m glad I don’t have to wonder what caused it at least.

Its not your fault at all. Heaters fail all the time. Mine overheated a few months back. It really is hard.

Thank you, I’m really sorry.

Oh no! I’m so so sorry. Hugs to you.

Thank you so much.

Wow what brand and where did you buy the heater? I will make sure to stay far away

I had a cheap amazon heater fail on me and temperature dropped within a day. Thankfully nothing died in my tank.

In your case it seems like the heater might have actually electrocuted your fish

I don’t remember the wattage or model, but I know it was an Aqueon heater. I only had it in there temporarily while trying to get a better quality one, but clearly, it did plenty of damage.

Very sorry to hear that. I lost a 55G full to a CO2 tank dump years ago. It was very sad. And obviously you were very much attached to them. Hopefully you can get things back up and running before too long.

Thank you, I’m sorry for your losses. I hope I can too.

 

[Dechi]

That is so sad. I am very sorry for your loss. Don’t blame yourself, equipment malfunction happens and we aren’t always able to see it right away.

If you want piece of mind, I recommend buying an Inkbird temperature controller. It will sound an alarm if the temperature goes too high or too low. It will control your heater too and it is more precise. Make sure to get the one for aquariums. They have it on Amazon.

Again, I’m so sorry.

 

[shrimpyay]

I'm so sorry, that's terrible. Just my thought here, but this definitely seems like an equipment failure, and nothing you did wrong by any means. Again, I'm so sorry for your loss, and hope things start feeling better for you soon.

 

[Kribensis27]

That is so sad. I am very sorry for your loss. Don’t blame yourself, equipment malfunction happens and we aren’t always able to see it right away.

If you want piece of mind, I recommend buying an Inkbird temperature controller. It will sound an alarm if the temperature goes too high or too low. It will control your heater too and it is more precise. Make sure to get the one for aquariums. They have it on Amazon.

Again, I’m so sorry.

Thank you so much - I’m definitely going to get one when I’m ready to restock.

I'm so sorry, that's terrible. Just my thought here, but this definitely seems like an equipment failure, and nothing you did wrong by any means. Again, I'm so sorry for your loss, and hope things start feeling better for you soon.

Thank you. I know it wasn’t my fault, but it just seemed so preventable. I’ve had heater fails before, but they’ve never wiped out a whole tank like this. Again, thank you.

 

[taj13]

That is so sad. I am very sorry for your loss. Don’t blame yourself, equipment malfunction happens and we aren’t always able to see it right away.

If you want piece of mind, I recommend buying an Inkbird temperature controller. It will sound an alarm if the temperature goes too high or too low. It will control your heater too and it is more precise. Make sure to get the one for aquariums. They have it on Amazon.

Again, I’m so sorry.

I've never heard of the Inkbird temperature controller. That sounds like a great idea; I'm going to have to check into it.

Everything in my 55g is dead. Everything. The entire school of tiger barbs, my angelfish, all of the kribs, the snails, even the plants. Yesterday, they were all fine. They were perfectly normal. Today, I went down to the basement to feed the fish and check on everyone, but I didn’t see any movement. I figured they were just still sleeping, as I hadn’t turned the light on yet. When I did, the it was awful. Bodies all over the bottom and piles of brown plants. Not a single ramshorn snail sticking to the glass. My kribs weren’t there to say hello to me like they do every morning. The barbs weren’t begging for food like they always are. They were all pale and dead on the bottom. I checked all levels, and they were normal, but as soon as I checked the temperature, it was ice cold. I read the thermometer, and it said 45F. I don’t know what to do. I’m utterly devastated. I have snails in other tanks, but what about the kribs? I had one solitary angel in there as well, his name was Fettuccine. I loved him so much, he was my little baby. I can’t tell my younger siblings right now, they loved him and the kribs too. I feel like it was my fault for not checking on them earlier. I might’ve been able to save them. I raised those kribs from babies, and I loved them the most of any African cichlid I’ve ever kept. I don’t know what to do. I just hate seeing it empty. I want to wait a while, and I don’t want to feel like I’m replacing them, but at the same time, I can’t bear to see it so lifeless. I’m not going to let the cycle crash, and I’m going to do a full rescape. I don’t know what the stocking will be, but I’ll definitely have kribs. I hate myself right now. I could’ve saved them so easily.

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's obvious you really cared for your fish. There's nothing you could have done.

 

[Kribensis27]

I've never heard of the Inkbird temperature controller. That sounds like a great idea; I'm going to have to check into it.

I'm so sorry for your loss. It's obvious you really cared for your fish. There's nothing you could have done.

Thank you, I just wish I could’ve saved them.

 

[Phormist]

Everything in my 55g is dead. Everything. The entire school of tiger barbs, my angelfish, all of the kribs, the snails, even the plants. Yesterday, they were all fine. They were perfectly normal. Today, I went down to the basement to feed the fish and check on everyone, but I didn’t see any movement. I figured they were just still sleeping, as I hadn’t turned the light on yet. When I did, the it was awful. Bodies all over the bottom and piles of brown plants. Not a single ramshorn snail sticking to the glass. My kribs weren’t there to say hello to me like they do every morning. The barbs weren’t begging for food like they always are. They were all pale and dead on the bottom. I checked all levels, and they were normal, but as soon as I checked the temperature, it was ice cold. I read the thermometer, and it said 45F. I don’t know what to do. I’m utterly devastated. I have snails in other tanks, but what about the kribs? I had one solitary angel in there as well, his name was Fettuccine. I loved him so much, he was my little baby. I can’t tell my younger siblings right now, they loved him and the kribs too. I feel like it was my fault for not checking on them earlier. I might’ve been able to save them. I raised those kribs from babies, and I loved them the most of any African cichlid I’ve ever kept. I don’t know what to do. I just hate seeing it empty. I want to wait a while, and I don’t want to feel like I’m replacing them, but at the same time, I can’t bear to see it so lifeless. I’m not going to let the cycle crash, and I’m going to do a full rescape. I don’t know what the stocking will be, but I’ll definitely have kribs. I hate myself right now. I could’ve saved them so easily.

Oh no! I so much feel your pain as I lost my oldest Angelfish this way and he was my pride, his name was Yoshi. I have 2 angel's now, Gabe and Princess. If anything happened to them, even my other fish, I would be devastated. I am so sorry this happened but just whatever you do try not to get too discouraged by this.
I think we all get major setbacks in this hobby as much as any other like keeping a dog or cat. Take some time to mourn and regroup your tank and give another beautiful Angelfish and Kribs a caring-loving home <3

 

[86 ssinit]

So sorry to read this. Tough day but it’s good to see it’s not going to stop you. Yes ink-bird!! I have them on my tanks. Alarm if it goes to low shut off if it goes to high. You set the high temp. Also will work if you use 2 heaters. Good luck with your new set up.

 

[coralbandit]

If the tank was 45 degrees then you need at least a 300-500 watt heater .
I would be looking at a titanium heater personally .
Good chance if your heater was under 300 watts it just worked itself to death trying to heat the tank 30 degrees warmer then room temp ..
With a demand like that I would be going for 500 watts [and the inkbird maybe ] ..

 

[Aprilbeingbasic]

Oh im so sorry that is heartbreaking

 

[Lucy]

How awful. I'm so sorry that happened.
.

 

[MorphicShadow]

Everything in my 55g is dead. Everything. The entire school of tiger barbs, my angelfish, all of the kribs, the snails, even the plants. Yesterday, they were all fine. They were perfectly normal. Today, I went down to the basement to feed the fish and check on everyone, but I didn’t see any movement. I figured they were just still sleeping, as I hadn’t turned the light on yet. When I did, the it was awful. Bodies all over the bottom and piles of brown plants. Not a single ramshorn snail sticking to the glass. My kribs weren’t there to say hello to me like they do every morning. The barbs weren’t begging for food like they always are. They were all pale and dead on the bottom. I checked all levels, and they were normal, but as soon as I checked the temperature, it was ice cold. I read the thermometer, and it said 45F. I don’t know what to do. I’m utterly devastated. I have snails in other tanks, but what about the kribs? I had one solitary angel in there as well, his name was Fettuccine. I loved him so much, he was my little baby. I can’t tell my younger siblings right now, they loved him and the kribs too. I feel like it was my fault for not checking on them earlier. I might’ve been able to save them. I raised those kribs from babies, and I loved them the most of any African cichlid I’ve ever kept. I don’t know what to do. I just hate seeing it empty. I want to wait a while, and I don’t want to feel like I’m replacing them, but at the same time, I can’t bear to see it so lifeless. I’m not going to let the cycle crash, and I’m going to do a full rescape. I don’t know what the stocking will be, but I’ll definitely have kribs. I hate myself right now. I could’ve saved them so easily.

Holy cow, I am so sorry. I lost my GBRs once when my filter crashed. Ever since, I always keep an extra filter cycled and running somewhere just in case. It's something that only happens once. I cried so hard for my little GBRs. They were just so special to me. I really felt responsible for this happening, and in the end it was my fault for not having a spare ready. BUT I think it's necessary to forgive yourself, it is NOT something I/you did on purpose. It's heartbreaking... no gentle way around that. Nothing to do but better next time.

What happened to your heater? Did it break or have any buildup on it? If there was a warranty on it, you may be able to reach out to the manufacturers and get some help with the financial burden of replacing everything (at least the heater). You could also check with the store you bought it from.

 

[Kribensis27]

Oh no! I so much feel your pain as I lost my oldest Angelfish this way and he was my pride, his name was Yoshi. I have 2 angel's now, Gabe and Princess. If anything happened to them, even my other fish, I would be devastated. I am so sorry this happened but just whatever you do try not to get too discouraged by this.
I think we all get major setbacks in this hobby as much as any other like keeping a dog or cat. Take some time to mourn and regroup your tank and give another beautiful Angelfish and Kribs a caring-loving home <3

Thank you, I’m really sorry about Yoshi.

So sorry to read this. Tough day but it’s good to see it’s not going to stop you. Yes ink-bird!! I have them on my tanks. Alarm if it goes to low shut off if it goes to high. You set the high temp. Also will work if you use 2 heaters. Good luck with your new set up.

I’ll definitely be using an Inkbird, thank you.

If the tank was 45 degrees then you need at least a 300-500 watt heater .
I would be looking at a titanium heater personally .
Good chance if your heater was under 300 watts it just worked itself to death trying to heat the tank 30 degrees warmer then room temp ..
With a demand like that I would be going for 500 watts [and the inkbird maybe ] ..

Thanks for the advice.

Oh im so sorry that is heartbreaking

Thank you, yes, it’s awful.

How awful. I'm so sorry that happened.
.

Thank you.

Holy cow, I am so sorry. I lost my GBRs once when my filter crashed. Ever since, I always keep an extra filter cycled and running somewhere just in case. It's something that only happens once. I cried so hard for my little GBRs. They were just so special to me. I really felt responsible for this happening, and in the end it was my fault for not having a spare ready. BUT I think it's necessary to forgive yourself, it is NOT something I/you did on purpose. It's heartbreaking... no gentle way around that. Nothing to do but better next time.

What happened to your heater? Did it break or have any buildup on it? If there was a warranty on it, you may be able to reach out to the manufacturers and get some help with the financial burden of replacing everything (at least the heater). You could also check with the store you bought it from.

Thank you so much, I’m really sorry about your GBRs. It’s just so terrible when this sort of thing happens. I don’t really know what happened with the heater. It just stopped. No buildup or anything. It may have been overworked. I’ll check for warranties.

 

[MorphicShadow]

Thank you, I’m really sorry about Yoshi.

I’ll definitely be using an Inkbird, thank you.

Thanks for the advice.

Thank you, yes, it’s awful.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, I’m really sorry about your GBRs. It’s just so terrible when this sort of thing happens. I don’t really know what happened with the heater. It just stopped. No buildup or anything. It may have been overworked. I’ll check for warranties.

It is odd that your fishtank got to 47 deg F in the first place. That is incredibly frigid. I do not know where you are located, but just a thought: it may be a wise idea to move the fishtank to somewhere that does not get that cold, now that it is not inhabited. If my heaters blow, they will generally drop to 72 deg F if all my doors/windows are shut, or 64 deg F if the doors/windows are open (i know weird, I live in the mountains and it's cold but during the daytime it actually can be quite warm).

 

[StarGirl]

It is odd that your fishtank got to 47 deg F in the first place. That is incredibly frigid. I do not know where you are located, but just a thought: it may be a wise idea to move the fishtank to somewhere that does not get that cold, now that it is not inhabited. If my heaters blow, they will generally drop to 72 deg F if all my doors/windows are shut, or 64 deg F if the doors/windows are open (i know weird, I live in the mountains and it's cold but during the daytime it actually can be quite warm).

Minnesota is cold all day.....I live next door in Michigan. My basement is cold too.

 

[MorphicShadow]

Ah, I used to live in Ohio so I know the struggle during winter is much colder there. Perhaps a small heater to heat the basement? I have also used two different heaters before routed to two different outlets. That way if something happens to one, there is still one heater present.

 

[JustAFishServant]

I am so sorry, my friend. Over the years, I've lost many due to freezing temperatures. It's absolutely heartbreaking. You see, I keep Betta splendens. The seal had been broken on my massive window for years (our house is the oldest in our newer neighborhood). I once walked in, horrified to see that my room had dropped all the way down to 45°F! If you want, I'd suggest you take my advice...Ditch the aquarium heaters and use a space heater! My room is always kept at 75-80°F (depending on how warm/cold it is outside) using nothing but a small space heater with a thermostat I keep on a wall shelf. It works very well, keeping the room nice and warm! I understand not all are willing to do this, but trust me, it works! And it would prevent more heartbreaks.

My heart goes out to you, friend. I hope you can recover...

 

[Sputnik]

I can’t imagine what that felt like, but the fact that you are so devastated tells me that you are a caring and responsible fishkeeper. Your basement must get very cold, so maybe moving the tank or using two lower wattage heaters instead of one higher wattage would help- that way even if one heater goes out the tank won’t get so cold so fast. You can also get thermometers with audible temperature alarms. I hope you get the tank going again soon- we need caring fishkeepers actively in the hobby!

 

[JustAFishServant]

I can’t imagine what that felt like, but the fact that you are so devastated tells me that you are a caring and responsible fishkeeper. Your basement must get very cold, so maybe moving the tank or using two lower wattage heaters instead of one higher wattage would help- that way even if one heater goes out the tank won’t get so cold so fast. You can also get thermometers with audible temperature alarms. I hope you get the tank going again soon- we need caring fishkeepers actively in the hobby!

Hey, what a great idea! Maybe I'll try that for one of the "outside of my room" tanks!

 

[Kribensis27]

It is odd that your fishtank got to 47 deg F in the first place. That is incredibly frigid. I do not know where you are located, but just a thought: it may be a wise idea to move the fishtank to somewhere that does not get that cold, now that it is not inhabited. If my heaters blow, they will generally drop to 72 deg F if all my doors/windows are shut, or 64 deg F if the doors/windows are open (i know weird, I live in the mountains and it's cold but during the daytime it actually can be quite warm).

Yeah, Minnesota, as StarGirl said. I desperately want to move them, but my dad won’t let me keep them anywhere else. The basement is about 55-60 usually, but we’re currently remodeling down there. They took out a good chunk of insulation, so now it’s around 40-45.

I am so sorry, my friend. Over the years, I've lost many due to freezing temperatures. It's absolutely heartbreaking. You see, I keep Betta splendens. The seal had been broken on my massive window for years (our house is the oldest in our newer neighborhood). I once walked in, horrified to see that my room had dropped all the way down to 45°F! If you want, I'd suggest you take my advice...Ditch the aquarium heaters and use a space heater! My room is always kept at 75-80°F (depending on how warm/cold it is outside) using nothing but a small space heater with a thermostat I keep on a wall shelf. It works very well, keeping the room nice and warm! I understand not all are willing to do this, but trust me, it works! And it would prevent more heartbreaks.

My heart goes out to you, friend. I hope you can recover...

Thank you, that’s a great idea. That must’ve been terrible! I think my dad would be willing to go with a space heater until we can figure out something else.

I can’t imagine what that felt like, but the fact that you are so devastated tells me that you are a caring and responsible fishkeeper. Your basement must get very cold, so maybe moving the tank or using two lower wattage heaters instead of one higher wattage would help- that way even if one heater goes out the tank won’t get so cold so fast. You can also get thermometers with audible temperature alarms. I hope you get the tank going again soon- we need caring fishkeepers actively in the hobby!

Thank you so much, that’s really kind of you to say. Two heaters is a great idea, I think I’ll do that along with an Inkbird. Again, thank you.

 

[faydout]

Good chance if your heater was under 300 watts it just worked itself to death trying to heat the tank 30 degrees warmer then room temp

Thankfully my basement is finished, so it gets warm air from the furnace but it's cooler down here than the upstairs. Agree on the Inkbird suggestion further upthread. I prefer external heater controllers on all my tanks. Besides that, and because this is the basement, I keep a space heater down here turned on and set to 68 degrees (low enough so that it doesn't run all the time, but high enough that even if my heater failed, my fish would have a chance) just in case it gets too cold at night, just so the heater doesn't work itself to death. That's about the only thing I have to add with everyone else's suggestions.

 

[AcornTheBetta]

Everything in my 55g is dead. Everything. The entire school of tiger barbs, my angelfish, all of the kribs, the snails, even the plants. Yesterday, they were all fine. They were perfectly normal. Today, I went down to the basement to feed the fish and check on everyone, but I didn’t see any movement. I figured they were just still sleeping, as I hadn’t turned the light on yet. When I did, the it was awful. Bodies all over the bottom and piles of brown plants. Not a single ramshorn snail sticking to the glass. My kribs weren’t there to say hello to me like they do every morning. The barbs weren’t begging for food like they always are. They were all pale and dead on the bottom. I checked all levels, and they were normal, but as soon as I checked the temperature, it was ice cold. I read the thermometer, and it said 45F. I don’t know what to do. I’m utterly devastated. I have snails in other tanks, but what about the kribs? I had one solitary angel in there as well, his name was Fettuccine. I loved him so much, he was my little baby. I can’t tell my younger siblings right now, they loved him and the kribs too. I feel like it was my fault for not checking on them earlier. I might’ve been able to save them. I raised those kribs from babies, and I loved them the most of any African cichlid I’ve ever kept. I don’t know what to do. I just hate seeing it empty. I want to wait a while, and I don’t want to feel like I’m replacing them, but at the same time, I can’t bear to see it so lifeless. I’m not going to let the cycle crash, and I’m going to do a full rescape. I don’t know what the stocking will be, but I’ll definitely have kribs. I hate myself right now. I could’ve saved them so easily.

I'm literally about to cry reading this. I'm so sorry!

 

[jmaldo]

What a shame.
I had a failure a few months ago, luckily no losses
Hang in there!
Come Springtime, if interested I could send you some EBA.

Good Luck!

 

[Kribensis27]

Thankfully my basement is finished, so it gets warm air from the furnace but it's cooler down here than the upstairs. Agree on the Inkbird suggestion further upthread. I prefer external heater controllers on all my tanks. Besides that, and because this is the basement, I keep a space heater down here turned on and set to 68 degrees (low enough so that it doesn't run all the time, but high enough that even if my heater failed, my fish would have a chance) just in case it gets too cold at night, just so the heater doesn't work itself to death. That's about the only thing I have to add with everyone else's suggestions.

Thanks for the suggestion.

I'm literally about to cry reading this. I'm so sorry!

Thank you. It’s been awful. I’ve mostly disassembled the scape now, and I’ll start the new scape within the next few days. I’m going to do a huge WC and get my pearl danio school in there to keep the cycle going. I hoped this would never happen, but now it has.

What a shame.
I had a failure a few months ago, luckily no losses
Hang in there!
Come Springtime, if interested I could send you some EBA.

Good Luck!

Thank you, I’m glad your failure didn’t end so badly. That’s a very kind offer, that would be great! Again, thank you.

 

[Fisch]

Fishkeepers worst nightmare....I am so sorry and fully understand how devastated you must be. Don't beat yourself up, there is nothing you could have done different.

 

[tom855]

I never even considered something like an Inkbird. But after reading this, it's certainly going to be something I am going to look into.