Golden colored rocks?

FLReef32043 · Apr 25, 2020

Tank is about 2 weeks since start. Started with Dr. Tims. Currently have some snails, hermits, a pistol shrimp, serpent star and two emerald crabs in the DT. I am using the DT acting as my CUC quarantine tank while the fish are in their own QT.

Parameters yesterday (using API test kit so all values subject +/- to my color interpretation - I try to err high as opposed to low):
Alk 9
Ammonia: 0
Calcium: 600 (literally 30 drops to get the color change but the chart stops at 26?)
Nitrates: 10
Nitrite: 1
pH: 8
Phosphate: 0.25
salinity 1.025

The nitrites/nitrates are more than likely due to a bit of direct feeding of the star and crabs using frozen mysis.

BUT my question is related to the coloration of my rocks. I have what will be a frag tank that has diatoms while it is doing its things, brown on the rocks that can be blown off and was verified as diatoms under a scope. In my DT I am not seeing diatoms, what I'm seeing is a golden color on my rocks. Bright golden color. I verified today during my pre-maintenance that it will NOT blow off the rocks. Nor is it sludgey. Its as if the rock itself was simply turning colors. I tried to search for gold color rocks in reef tank but didn't come up with anything.

Wondering what this may be?

KrisReef · Apr 25, 2020

It looks like normal aging of new dead rock.
What's the source of the high Phosphates? Are you using RODI to mix salt and top off evaporation?

Paulie069 · Apr 25, 2020

FLReef32043 said:
Tank is about 2 weeks since start. Started with Dr. Tims. Currently have some snails, hermits, a pistol shrimp, serpent star and two emerald crabs in the DT. I am using the DT acting as my CUC quarantine tank while the fish are in their own QT.

Parameters yesterday (using API test kit so all values subject +/- to my color interpretation - I try to err high as opposed to low):
Alk 9
Ammonia: 0
Calcium: 600 (literally 30 drops to get the color change but the chart stops at 26?)
Nitrates: 10
Nitrite: 1
pH: 8
Phosphate: 0.25
salinity 1.025

The nitrites/nitrates are more than likely due to a bit of direct feeding of the star and crabs using frozen mysis.

BUT my question is related to the coloration of my rocks. I have what will be a frag tank that has diatoms while it is doing its things, brown on the rocks that can be blown off and was verified as diatoms under a scope. In my DT I am not seeing diatoms, what I'm seeing is a golden color on my rocks. Bright golden color. I verified today during my pre-maintenance that it will NOT blow off the rocks. Nor is it sludgey. Its as if the rock itself was simply turning colors. I tried to search for gold color rocks in reef tank but didn't come up with anything.

Wondering what this may be?

I don’t have an answer for you but my rocks did the same thing once and I honestly thought it looked pretty cool then couple weeks later they went back to brown color and have been that way ever since. My tank is only 4 months old and it’s a 55 with lots of things in it

FLReef32043 · Apr 25, 2020

KrisReef said:
It looks like normal aging of new dead rock.
What's the source of the high Phosphates? Are you using RODI to mix salt and top off evaporation?

Honestly I don't know. I am assuming they are coming from the rocks. These were rocks that I had from a tank back in 2010 that were kept "in the yard" then cured in bleach to kill any life and grass and what not.

Other than that I don't know.

I have an RODI to mix my salt and the ATO water as well.

Figured it was "normal" but I have never seen any references to the golden color. It is pretty and would be sort of cool to keep it

FLReef32043 · Apr 25, 2020

FLReef32043 said:
Honestly I don't know. I am assuming they are coming from the rocks. These were rocks that I had from a tank back in 2010 that were kept "in the yard" then cured in bleach to kill any life and grass and what not.

Other than that I don't know.

I have an RODI to mix my salt and the ATO water as well.

Figured it was "normal" but I have never seen any references to the golden color. It is pretty and would be sort of cool to keep it

Correction, there is some new dead rock in there as well with my "older stuff." But I just took a peek and the old and new stuff has that color in varying amounts.