Not truly an "emergency", but why do things always seem to go wrong late at night?

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Just a whine/moan really, not needing help! Just that urgent things always seem to happen when you were about to hit the hay, but you now have to fix the problem first...

Just discovered one of my canister filter leaking - I must have knocked it, can't see another reason it would spring a leak so suddenly.

Fortunately, hardly any water had leaked, yay! So cleaning the floor is easy. However, the filter was due for it's deep strip down clean this weekend. Usually I rinse the filter media about once a fortnight, then strip it down and clean the hoses, attachments etc, everything, every 2-3 months. It really needs a deep clean, can see the muck in the hoses.

So now I have to do a proper strip down filter clean before I go to bed. Can't just reseal, turn it back on and prime it, or all that muck in the hoses will blow right back into the tank. Yuk! Also means somewhat of a W/C, since I want a good amount of tank water to rinse the media out.

The time I had a heater break was in the middle of the night too. In winter. When I didn't have a spare heater.

Anyone have stories like this they'd care to share? Will make me feel better when I return after the filter clean

 

[FF_Member146894]

i had a smaller tank leak recently and it was just before i went to bed too
also, if your canister filter broke after only hitting it, you have a seriously cheap filter

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

i had a smaller tank leak recently and it was just before i went to bed too
also, if your canister filter broke after only hitting it, you have a seriously cheap filter

Oh yeah, it is a cheap one! It's an All Ponds Solution canister filter. I was new to the hobby and didn't want to spend a bomb, but it's done a really good job over the last two years, so I haven't felt the need to upgrade it.

Especially since it's only a 15g tank that also has a sponge filter on it and heavy planting. But the canister really helps! Just cleaned it out now, and there was so much gunk on the sponges and in the hoses, while there's never muck on the sand or elsewhere in the tank, so the canister is doing the heavy lifting in terms of mechanical filtration. Made a mental note to cut down on feeding too, since a lot of the gak seems to be frozen food like mosquito larvae. But perhaps that's just the stuff that the filter sucks up before the fish and shrimp get a chance to eat it.

It's not broken, and the leak wasn't dramatic thankfully, just small dribbles down the side of the canister where the clips hold the lid on. Not enough to have drained the tank much when I saw it, but enough to make a puddle and enough to drain most of the tank overnight if I hadn't seen it! Have done that before; if you tilt the canister by knocking it, the seal between the lid and the canister stops working somehow. Definitely a fault, but one easy to manage by putting the filter where it's out of the way

Now refilling the tank! Took me a while to get the filter all sparkling clean again, and had to carefully sift through the water I took from the tank and save the baby shrimplets that always get into the gravel vac and the jug. They're so hard to spot when they're tiny!

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

i had a smaller tank leak recently and it was just before i went to bed too
also, if your canister filter broke after only hitting it, you have a seriously cheap filter

What caused your tank leak? Was it the tank itself?

Having the tank itself fail is my worst nightmare. Probably most hobbyists worst nightmare, to be fair.

 

[Fishmanic]

Had a heater fail late in the day.. luckily I had a barely working heater to use till I got a replacement heater via warranty a few days later
Moral of story.. always have a good working heater as a backup
I have a moisture alarm on floor under the hob filter to give ample warning of a tank or filter leak.. saved me once

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Had a heater fail late in the day.. luckily I had a barely working heater to use till I got a replacement heater via warranty a few days later
Moral of story.. always have a good working heater as a backup
I have a moisture alarm on floor under the hob filter to give ample warning of a tank or filter leak.. saved me once

Oh for sure! A lot of us learn to have back up equipment the hard way I remember hearing or reading that it's good to have back up heaters, filters etc before it happened, but I didn't do it because I'd already spent so much just equipping the tanks, and I wanted to get more plants instead!

Now I always have a spare heater, sponge filter and airpump in the fish cupboard. You never know!

What are these magical moisture alarms? Can you link one please? Would be very useful!

 

[Fishmanic]

I bought 3 cheap water leak detectors that ring loudly. But you would need to be home to know there is a water leak. Also good near a washing machine or a hot water heater.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IWTCLHA/?tag=ff0d01-20

You can get wifi enabled ones for more $$ if you want to be alerted on your phone when you're not home. Here is a wifi one that will send alert to your email/app.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07J9HZ5VN/?tag=ff0d01-20

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I bought 3 cheap ones that ring loudly. But you would need to be home to know there is a water leak. You can get wifi enabled ones for more $$ if you want to be alerted on your phone when you're not home.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01IWTCLHA/?tag=ff0d01-20

Here is a wifi one that will send alert to your email/app.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07J9HZ5VN/?tag=ff0d01-20

Thank you kindly! Having those near the filters - especially the canisters- could save my floors! I appreciate it

 

[sgropp311]

Just a whine/moan really, not needing help! Just that urgent things always seem to happen when you were about to hit the hay, but you now have to fix the problem first...

Just discovered one of my canister filter leaking - I must have knocked it, can't see another reason it would spring a leak so suddenly.

Fortunately, hardly any water had leaked, yay! So cleaning the floor is easy. However, the filter was due for it's deep strip down clean this weekend. Usually I rinse the filter media about once a fortnight, then strip it down and clean the hoses, attachments etc, everything, every 2-3 months. It really needs a deep clean, can see the muck in the hoses.

So now I have to do a proper strip down filter clean before I go to bed. Can't just reseal, turn it back on and prime it, or all that muck in the hoses will blow right back into the tank. Yuk! Also means somewhat of a W/C, since I want a good amount of tank water to rinse the media out.

The time I had a heater break was in the middle of the night too. In winter. When I didn't have a spare heater.

Anyone have stories like this they'd care to share? Will make me feel better when I return after the filter clean

Well I noticed about ten minutes ago on a school night, at 11, that my favorite fish has some unidentifiable disease!

These things really only do happen at the most inconvenient times and its not very nice.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Well I noticed about ten minutes ago on a school night, at 11, that my favorite fish has some unidentifiable disease!

I'm sorry If you make a thread for it, give as much info as possible, and include clear photos too if you can. Some people here are good at identifying disease and can advise on treatment!

 

[sgropp311]

I'm sorry If you make a thread for it, give as much info as possible, and include clear photos too if you can. Some people here are good at identifying disease and can advise on treatment!

I did just post a VERY detailed thread. It's just strange how I have no clue what it is and can't find an existing thread on it.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

See this is why I prefer to buy those aquarium kits...with heater, filter & light included.

I always put the heater, filter and light away in the "just incase" cupboard, then install my own choice of those items into the aquarium. I have built up quite a nice collection of unused Aquael Platinum heaters, Ciano CF80 filters and Aquael/Ciano lights over the years.

I also have a supply of spare self adhesive flexi blue aquarium lights too that I use as night lights (security and so I do not walk into anything) in the hallway and kitchen....one flexi blue is under the kitchen wall cabinets, comes on automatically so it shows someone at home and also means if an emergency happens with myself or the fish I can see what I am doing without using the main ceiling lights. Another flexi blue is fitted to the top of a doorframe in the hallway, doesn't bother the fish at night when turned on but means I get to see where I am going.