How bad is this?

I have been having some issues lately with my tank and have been doing everything I can to get them right. bumped up water changes, cut back on feedings, and lessened the photoperiod for temp issues.

I keep my mixing barrels in my garage which is also where I like to hang out with friends to smoke, play pool / playstation / darts, watch sports / movies, or just party in general. The mixing barrels are clearly marked on the barrel and lid that they are not trash and 1 is fresh RO water and the other is salt mix.

Today I was making water for my RO storage barrel because it was really low. At the bottom or the barrel was 2 saturated cigarette butts . Any idea what kind of impact this would have? My last water change made my skimmer go insane and overflowed 4-5 days of nasty skimmate into my tank and now i'm left dealing with the repercussions.

~Will.

 

I would personally dump all that water, wash out the barrel very well before using it again. The stuff in those cigarette butts are highly toxic to humans, nevermind fish and sea-life.

 

I have no idea what kind of effects it would have on a reef. I would imagine anything in them would get so diluted it probably wouldn't cause a huge amount of trouble but who knows.

I mostly posted to say I would put a lock or something on those barrels though. People do stupid stuff all the time, even when you tell them not to, even if they're your friends. Some people just don't really understand the potential consequences of their actions especially when it comes to reef tanks.

 

i would imagine it would depend on how much water there was to dilute the tobacco. it may not be too bad in regards to your fish. but i agree that give the barrels a good cleaning and find a way to make them friend proof. and as a side note . hope you dont have to put the patch on your fish to help them kick the habit , although nicorette gum might work better. god luck will

 

Possible carsogenic chemicals:
ammonia
arsenic (rat poison)
Cyanide
formaldehide
just to name a few...

 

I agree with the above , probably good to wash it out.
better to be safe then sorry.

 

There is a plus side... Since arsenic chemically resembles phosphorus it will be absorbed by hair algae and bubble algae and kill them. I still wouldn't be happy about the situation. Lol

 

Trust me, I was FUMING when I saw those floating in my clearly marked RO barrel. Think I should use a dilluted bleach solution on the barrel, or will multiple rinses with the hose followed by a good towel drying be sufficient? So far, I have lost my favorite cleaner shrimp and I think a chromis is missing. My large Fiji yellow leather was looking horrible so I brought it to my LFS to recover for a while. All the other leathers are starting to open again as is everything else.

I'm going to try to figure out what brand the butts are from then ask around and find out who smokes them. I have a batchelor party coming up in a few weeks and if its the person i'm thinking did it, I will get some sweet revenge.

~Will.