Safe copper levels for new shark

[Reef By Steele]

So I am replacing a marbles cat shark that we lost do to my stupidity (forgot to turn the pumps back in while having the fish in a hospital tank) yeah duhhh! In my defense it was really late and I shut it down to feed and set a 10 minute timer that I fell asleep and didn’t hear.

So new one arrives today and I am still trying to figure out where to put it. I have a 75 gallon QT, but have treated with copper and after a water change and one round of cuprisorb I am reading .19 on Hanna Copper HR tester. My other QT option is three 32 gallon tanks plumbed together that is copper free, but shark is supposed to be 12-14” so think that might be a little small? Last choice is to go straight to the DT which is a 210 gallon tank with no fish (original tank that had ich and has been fallow for over 13 weeks with occasional ghost feedings, but I am concerned about being able to observe whether or not it is eating in that tank. Any guidance or advice would greatly be appreciated. I know @lion king and @vetteguy53081 have both posted about the dangers of copper so maybe you guys can direct me on whether the .19 is too high or safe.

Thanks in advance
Kent

 

[Jay Hemdal]

So I am replacing a marbles cat shark that we lost do to my stupidity (forgot to turn the pumps back in while having the fish in a hospital tank) yeah duhhh! In my defense it was really late and I shut it down to feed and set a 10 minute timer that I fell asleep and didn’t hear.

So new one arrives today and I am still trying to figure out where to put it. I have a 75 gallon QT, but have treated with copper and after a water change and one round of cuprisorb I am reading .19 on Hanna Copper HR tester. My other QT option is three 32 gallon tanks plumbed together that is copper free, but shark is supposed to be 12-14” so think that might be a little small? Last choice is to go straight to the DT which is a 210 gallon tank with no fish (original tank that had ich and has been fallow for over 13 weeks with occasional ghost feedings, but I am concerned about being able to observe whether or not it is eating in that tank. Any guidance or advice would greatly be appreciated. I know @lion king and @vetteguy53081 have both posted about the dangers of copper so maybe you guys can direct me on whether the .19 is too high or safe.

Thanks in advance
Kent

What type of copper medication is it? If ionic, like Cupramine, that is still too high for sharks. If it is amine-based, like Coppersafe or Copper Power, then that is less than a 10% dose and would be o.k. for the shark, but you could look at an additional water change to get it below 0.10 ppm.

Jay

 

[Reef By Steele]

What type of copper medication is it? If ionic, like Cupramine, that is still too high for sharks. If it is amine-based, like Coppersafe or Copper Power, then that is less than a 10% dose and would be o.k. for the shark, but you could look at an additional water change to get it below 0.10 ppm.

Jay

Thanks. It is copper power following your recommendation previously. I will do a water change and add anothe cuprisorb. Thanks

 

[vetteguy53081]

I would not use copper but rather general cure with them as their skin is sensitive to reactions

 

[Reef By Steele]

I would not use copper but rather general cure with them as their skin is sensitive to reactions

Yes. The copper is remnants of a different treating round. Couldn’t get enough cuprisorb as only have a Petsmart in town and they carry one packet at a time for 60 gallons. Just didn’t want to harm him but really think this is the best QT for his needs.
Just did a 49 gallon water change and added another cuprisorb I picked up this morning.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[lion king]

Whats in the tank thats leaching out copper, can you remove/replace that; rocks etc. Otherwise water changes should bring down to zero fast.

 

[KrisReef]

If you are doing another water change, don't forget to set the timer!

I flooded my garage last week with RODI, sorry about the 1st shark and positively impressed with this copper question posted to the experts on here.

You have one lucky shark! Hope it lives long in the new setup!

 

[Reef By Steele]

Whats in the tank thats leaching out copper, can you remove/replace that; rocks etc. Otherwise water changes should bring down to zero fast.

Possibly the biomaterial in the HOB, F/X 6 and a loose bag in the bottom. Have other media available. When I get home from the doctor (believe I either have palytoxin poisoning or just a rapid bad infection from cleaning the 3XL900 yesterday) I will test and if still showing similar after the 40 gallon water change, I have others in sumps.

 

[Reef By Steele]

If you are doing another water change, don't forget to set the timer!

I flooded my garage last week with RODI, sorry about the 1st shark and positively impressed with this copper question posted to the experts on here.

You have one lucky shark! Hope it lives long in the new setup!

Thanks. Yep I added an air pump that runs 24/7 in case I screw up they won’t be oxygen deprived.

 

[KrisReef]

Possibly the biomaterial in the HOB, F/X 6 and a loose bag in the bottom. Have other media available. When I get home from the doctor (believe I either have palytoxin poisoning or just a rapid bad infection from cleaning the 3XL900 yesterday) I will test and if still showing similar after the 40 gallon water change, I have others in sumps.

Hope you feel better soon. Please take care of yourself. Your shark and corals all need you.

 

[Reef By Steele]

Hope you feel better soon. Please take care of yourself. Your shark and corals all need you.

Me too. Started as just a sore finger, but now I have red streaks running up my arm, swelling spread to the back of my hand while at the Dr office. They gave me a shot in the butt and drugs. Said if it gets any worse at all go straight to the ER.

 

[KrisReef]

Me too. Started as just a sore finger, but now I have red streaks running up my arm, swelling spread to the back of my hand while at the Dr office. They gave me a shot in the butt and drugs. Said if it gets any worse at all go straight to the ER.

I lost a good friend (and my Doctor) this year. I went to his office and he seemed off and later I got a call that he had died.

When I thought about it afterwards I made a note to myself that if I ever come across another person who is showing symptoms of concern, just not acting right, then I will make certain they get to the ER to get checked out for mild symptoms that could be the breeze before the hurricane.

Stay vigilant and don't hesitate because symptoms are mild if they get worse.
Thanks for reading.

 

[Reef By Steele]

I lost a good friend (and my Doctor) this year. I went to his office and he seemed off and later I got a call that he had died.

When I thought about it afterwards I made a note to myself that if I ever come across another person who is showing symptoms of concern, just not acting right, then I will make certain they get to the ER to get checked out for mild symptoms that could be the breeze before the hurricane.

Stay vigilant and don't hesitate because symptoms are mild if they get worse.
Thanks for reading.

Yes @Ocean_Queenie will be checking up on me. I am generally the last to go to a doctor, have a huge threshold for pain, but knowing that this can end rather poorly, I won’t take any chances. I have a family to provide for and don’t want to miss a thing.

 

[jda]

Aragonite will bind it if you have some sand or crushed coral laying around - put some in a reactor and let it work like GAC.

 

[Reef By Steele]

Probably going to have to do something. Just tested and after the water change
It is higher than what it was before .28

 

[Reef By Steele]

@Jay Hemdal @lion king @vetteguy53081
Copper now .28 after water change, guessing I stirred it up as my RODI is clean. Is this high enough I need to move him? I think I’m dealing with paly toxin from the tank cleaning yesterday and no way I can mix and do another water change right now.

Thanks.

 

[vetteguy53081]

@Jay Hemdal @lion king @vetteguy53081
Copper now .28 after water change, guessing I stirred it up as my RODI is clean. Is this high enough I need to move him? I think I’m dealing with paly toxin from the tank cleaning yesterday and no way I can mix and do another water change right now.

Thanks.

Is this coppersafe or cupramine?

Me too. Started as just a sore finger, but now I have red streaks running up my arm, swelling spread to the back of my hand while at the Dr office. They gave me a shot in the butt and drugs. Said if it gets any worse at all go straight to the ER.

Red streaks are from infection/reaction called lymphangitis and you will want to have it checked out as you may need anti-biotics.

 

[Reef By Steele]

Copper power. Sorry basically passed out.
Yes shot in the butt and an oral antibiotic doxycycline twice a day. ER for more butt shots tomorrow and Sunday

 

[Jay Hemdal]

@Jay Hemdal @lion king @vetteguy53081
Copper now .28 after water change, guessing I stirred it up as my RODI is clean. Is this high enough I need to move him? I think I’m dealing with paly toxin from the tank cleaning yesterday and no way I can mix and do another water change right now.

Thanks.

That is really counterintuitive - that large of a water change should be all rights have dropped the copper. I can't see how it could have raised by a third. There is some variance in the Hanna tester if you aren't careful getting the reagent out of the packet, but I've never seen that much of a difference.

You might say that there is copper sequestered in rocks in the tank, but that doesn't make sense either - any bound copper is released with a drop in pH, and a water change would cause a rise in pH.

Jay

 

[Reef By Steele]

That is really counterintuitive - that large of a water change should be all rights have dropped the copper. I can't see how it could have raised by a third. There is some variance in the Hanna tester if you aren't careful getting the reagent out of the packet, but I've never seen that much of a difference.

You might say that there is copper sequestered in rocks in the tank, but that doesn't make sense either - any bound copper is released with a drop in pH, and a water change would cause a rise in pH.

Jay

So I just test again and now it is over .3. I removed a bag of carbon, and two bags of bio media, replaced the bio with two bags of matrix from one of my reef sumps.

I put a new cuprisorb pouch rated at 60 gallons yesterday yet it is still rising. Going to open the FX 6 and remove any media.

Any other suggestions? And as it was copper power, at what level should I determine this is bad for my shark. I could move him to the DT which doesn’t have any other fish in it, but haven’t fed him yet to know if he is eating.

I do not understand why it is going up as I haven’t changed anything except the water change. The bag of carbon got moved when I put in the new cuprisorb as the older pouch still looked like some was white so I left it in. Does cuprisorb leach the copper back in after a time, should I pull it as well?

Any advice would be appreciated.