Mysterious death: Gold spot rabbitfish

[Jan]

So last week I had my Kole Tang bit it, and prior to that my Blue Throat died. Couldn't figure it out until someone told me to check and see if I had any stray voltage in the tank. I sure did and now everything is great in the tank. Just a thought, but that's what was causing my mysterious fish deaths. By the way, the voltage leaks were from a heater and a maxijet. Hope you find your culprit!

Wow--that's amazing to have stay voltage coming from two different devices at once! Did you just use your hand to see if you could feel stray voltage? Or, what method did you use?

 

[Sherman]

Use a multimeter to read AC voltage. Put one side inside the ground of a power receptacle (It's the round hole in the bottom middle, not either of the top slots), or to any metal pipe going into the ground. Put the other in the water. It shouldn't matter, but just for kicks, test in the tank and the sump, both.

I take it you're not using a grounding probe?

 

[Jan]

I have one but I'm not using it. I've heard mixed things about using them. I can't remember exactly what the "cons" were but I'm sure I remember hearing some negatives. Sherman, are there any drawbacks or commonly heald beliefs along those lines?

 

[Sherman]

I guess there could be some concerns that the multimeter could become the "conductor to ground" that gives the stray voltage a path home. Basically, if you were to hang on a power line, even super high voltage, but only touched one wire, you wouldn't get shocked. That's why birds hang out up there all day long. Technically, this is the same for your tank. If you have a "hot" leg in the water, but no path to ground, it shouldn't be able to do anything. Therefore, the multimeter (or ground probe, as I guess you were actually referring to) could completea this circuit and "electrify" the water.

I tend to be of the "I'd rather give a direct path because electricity follows the path of least resistance" crowd who uses a probe in both the tank and the sump, separately.

 

[NC2WA]

Jan,

Do you have a multimeter? If so, I would like to borrow it if possible. I have no reason to believe that I have voltage problem in my tank, but want to rule out all possibilities before I start spending some serious money on large angelfish.

thank
kirk

 

[Jan]

Kirk, sorry, I don't have one of those. It's the ground probe that I have but am not using. I really should, though. And yes, Sherman, that is the thinking that I've heard. On the plus side, they can save your life if there's electricity in the tank.

 

[NC2WA]

So if you if have a heater in the sump and do not use a grounding probe, is the circuit "electrified" (or complete)? OR does the grounding probe prevent the water to become "electrified"?