did i fry the tank?

Question
Have a 125 gal saltwater tank.  Occupants were three clowns, panther grouper, and a clown trigger, & some live rock.  I came into find the entire tank really cloudy, all my fish dead, water temp was at 89.4.  Is is possible that my fish were electrocuted?  I was really careful about the wiring and keeping them free from salt buildup.  All tests done on the water sky rocketed above normal but were back to normal in about 24 hrs.  Any answers???

Answer
Hey Akasha,
Im sorry, thats a horrible loss. If there had been an electrical problem and a shock transferred to the aquarium there would be signs of it. Burns, melting of plastics, either on the aquarium itself or on the source. I would think it is more likely that the temperature was what did your pets in. 89.4 degrees is extremely high, especially if it is a sudden spike(fish need around an hour to gradually adjust to small 1 and 2 degree changes, remember acclimating) in temperature. Normal aquatic temperatures in closed systems should be between 78 and 82 degrees at the highest end. All of the inhabitants you listed thrive at the lower end of that range(around 78 to 80 degrees). Is the aquarium near a window? Ambient temperatures and direct sunlight can have devastating effects on our aquariums temperatures. If not I would check for a heater malfunction.
5 dead pets will cause the sudden rise in the levels, if they have not been in the aquarium decomposing long, removal alone can often bring the levels down quite a bit. Especially in larger systems. The test results you get immediately tend to be skewed by the decomposition, removal is an immediate break from the source of the readings and in 100 gallons and larger, the biological filtration is more than capable of recovering in a 24 hour period. Go through and check all of your electrical connections(lighting included) and the heater thoroughly. Once again, Im sorry.