Bleaching hammer

[die4lulu]

Hello
I have a hammer coral that is getting white. Not sure why. My aquarium is 3 months old. I have an Australian Duncan than is thriving and getting huge and pretty along with a small bi-color frogspawn. With some zoas and Xenia and star polyps.
Currently I have only two breeding shrimp and an arrow crab. No fish.
It's a 30 gal with K-2viper MH 150 watt 20,000K. I recently bought a hydor slim skim protein skimmer and it totally sucks! I can't get it to work properly. It occasionally gets half a cup full of crap. Whatever, I do water changes.
Nitrate is 40
nitrite 0,
Ammonia 0
pH 8.3
Salinity 1.023-4
Temperature kinda fluctuates depending on my room temp, 78-82.
The high nitrates are because I had a massacre of like 6 large turbo snails 2 months down the line. Also kinda weird.. I have an insane amount of copepods and isopods and amphioods... I'm hoping that's an indicator that I'm doing something right? Oh and about 2 weeks ago, it was realeasing what looked like brown jelly. I thought for sure it was dying, but it was completely ok the next day and is still alive 2 weeks later. But not it's getting white. I'm guessing it's realeasing it's photosynthesising cells?

 

[die4lulu]

Oh and it's in the middle of the aquarium with a low flow rate. Not sure if it needs more flow.

 

[wkscott]

Sorry for this issue as brown jelly disease is not real easy to get rid of. Take a look at this thread and see if you can get some useful information.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/is-there-a-way-to-eliminate-brown-jelly-disease.213055/

 

[bigjoker208]

It could also have been pooping if the brown stuff was coming from one of the mouths. Its turning white probably because its loosing zooxanthellae, which could be because of the temperature fluctuations, too much or not enough light, or anything else that might stress the coral

 

[LetItReef]

I would lower the placement of the Hammer, MH could be the issue.

 

[die4lulu]

I hope it was just pooping. The stuff was coming out of the middle i think. But my shrimps won't let me feed anything To my coral. I'll put it on the sand and see if anything changes.

 

[tutmatt3]

Keep us updated!

 

[die4lulu]

Yeah! So after placing it on the sand for like a few days it seemed to open up a bit more than usual. It's getting better flow. But the base is still bleached I hope it starts getting better.

 

[die4lulu]

I'm pretty sure it doesn't have the brown jelly disease now because it should have died by now.

 

[tutmatt3]

That's good!
I've just reduced my lights today, so hoping color will begin to return to these bad boys!

 

[die4lulu]

What kind of lights are you running?

 

[jason_mazzy]

I think it's most likely lighting intensity and color. Let's work on that first (Also high nitrates can cause problems). Then we feed, feed, feed and the color will come back when we get on point.

 

[die4lulu]

I'm using a single 20,000K MH bulb with 150watts.

 

[ahiggins]

I would lower the placement of the Hammer, MH could be the issue.

that was my thought as well. I have mine not directly under leds at the bottom of a tank getting about 80 par. its beyond thriving.
ps. Im betting it was poo (zooanthelle) that it was releasing. Its definitely better than BJD but not good for him to do it often.
pss. 40 is wayyyy to high of nitrates for coral :/ even half that is too high. lps/softies thrive (in my tank) around 5ish

 

[die4lulu]

Ohhhh I see. My protein skimmer sucks :/ it's not skimming properly. I have to buy a new one I guess. I put some cheato in my sump to help reduce the nitrate. And I do water changes once a month about 25%. I haven't had any fish for 6 weeks due to ick issues. I hope it decreases :/

 

[ahiggins]

Ohhhh I see. My protein skimmer sucks :/ it's not skimming properly. I have to buy a new one I guess. I put some cheato in my sump to help reduce the nitrate. And I do water changes once a month about 25%. I haven't had any fish for 6 weeks due to ick issues. I hope it decreases :/

It won't just disappear. At 40 ppm, a 25% water change will only decrease your nitrates by 10 ppm. And you would need a TON of chaeto to lower those. You gotta get you a better skimmer. Till then do more frequent water changes. 10% every day or every other day till they're at 10 ppm.
You could safely do 50% if you match your current parameters before pouring the new water in.

 

[die4lulu]

oh I'd be scared to do 50%

 

[ahiggins]

oh I'd be scared to do 50%

lol it's ok. You can do a 10-25% every other day until you're under 10 ppm
It's safer to do small ones. But so much easier to do a 50%

 

[die4lulu]

My corals won't be affected by that?

 

[ahiggins]

Not if you match the current temp dkh calcium and magnesium parameters.
If they're way different- that can possibly bleach corals if you do a big water change.
Usually new tanks need weekly water changes, even if it's just 5%. I've only keep up to a 40 gal though so I'm not sure about the bigger systems.