My Filter and Heater shut off over night. What do I do?

[FishFinatic77]

Hi everyone,
So, I woke this morning to the filter and heater in my 10 gallon aquarium not working. It turns out, someone accidentally turned off the surge protector that the filter and heater are plugged into. The problem is, this likely happened last night at around 11:30, and I discovered it at about 8:30 this morning.
The temperature in the tank is 70 degrees, so it is about 10 degrees below what it normally is. The fish all seem distressed and wouldn't eat.
My biggest concern though, is if the bacteria in the filter survived, or if my cycle is now undone. (My filter is a hang on back filter. Don't know if that's important but I thought I'd mention it.)
Any replies are very much appreciated. I don't want to lose these fish, and if the cycle is undone, I would like to know how to keep the fish alive through the re-cycling process.
Thanks!

 

[Lunar Jetman]

I presume you've turned it back on now though? What size is your tank?

I would suspect its all fine.Turn it all back on and let the temperature get back up to where you had it, although 80 sounds too warm to me unless you have a particular species that needs it that warm.

The bacteria in the filter may have started to die off but some should still be ok. It will depend on the size of the filter/tank how much is left but I would think you're ok, as long as you put it all back on.

 

[FishFinatic77]

My tank is 10 gallons and the filter is an aqueon quiet flow 10. Yes, I did turn the filter back on. Would the dead bacteria pose a risk to the fish?

 

[Essjay]

Check the ammonia and nitrite levels in your tank and do a water change is either are above zero. Check the levels every day for a few days till you are sure they are staying at zero.

Are there live plants in the tank? They use ammonia so they could be all you'd need. i forgot to turn my filter back on last year and it was 24 hours later before I realised. There was no ammonia or nitrite so the plants and bacteria elsewhere in the tank took care of everything.

 

[FishFinatic77]

There are some live plants in the tank, mostly anacharis. I also have some pothos growing from the filer, but I don't know if that will absorb ammonia.
The temperature in the tank is rising and the fish seem happier now. I will test the water though. Thanks!

 

[Essjay]

I forgot to mention - don't feed the fish today, and if you already have, don't feed them tomorrow. less food = less ammonia.

 

[FishFinatic77]

Okay, I won't feed them. They wouldn't eat this morning anyway, so I didn't put much food in there.

 

[Waterstrider]

I wouldn’t expect small amounts of beneficial bacteria to be particularly dangerous. This probably happens naturally in small amounts from time to time and we never know.
I also suspect that one night is unlikely to kill a whole tank load of bacteria .

 

[FishFinatic77]

Ok, good. I'll just keep an eye on the water parameters for a few days to make sure. Thank you everyone!

 

[Waterstrider]

I keep some mini battery powered water movers , kinda cheap. It’s handy to have for weird events though.

 

[FishFinatic77]

What brand do you use? I've been meaning to buy some, but all of the ones I looked at seem to be really cheaply made for quite a bit of money.

 

[FishGuest5123]

If your filter media was still wet then you should be fine.

 

[FishFinatic77]

It wasn't wet, except for maybe at the very bottom of the filter. That's why I'm worried that my tank may have lost it's cycle. I tested my water though, and there is no ammonia or nitrite in the water, so maybe enough bacteria survived.

 

[Byron]

I agree with others that there is not likely an issue re the filter/cycling.

You didn't answer Lunar Jetman's issue of the temp though, and this is important going forward. What fish do you have that need 80F? This is very warm for many species which can cause issues.

 

[Guppy10]

Hi, In your best interests don't feed for a few days, do partial water changes everyday. All should be well from then on. My fish seem to love water changes and makes them active and bright.