Goniapora not doing well...

[William Spak]

Hello,

My goni used to be extremely open - about a month and half ago (I think) - and now it is upset. I think this is because I had a fault heater, so my tank was cold. And also my salinity was around a 1.018. I got a new heater and am now maintaining my salinity better, however the coral is still upset and getting worse by the week! I don't know what else I can do, I feed it reef roids/ coral max every other day. When I add salt to my tank it seems that the coral gets extremely upset. I dissolve the salt in a cup and then pour the water in at a medium pace. The center of the coral has been seen no extension since I glued him to the rock a couple of days ago. Is there anything else I can do/am doing wrong!?
My tank stats are normal, except for slightly high nitrates - 20/40 ppm

Thanks everyone...

Will

 

[WV Reefer]

Hello,

My goni used to be extremely open - about a month and half ago (I think) - and now it is upset. I think this is because I had a fault heater, so my tank was cold. And also my salinity was around a 1.018. I got a new heater and am now maintaining my salinity better, however the coral is still upset and getting worse by the week! I don't know what else I can do, I feed it reef roids/ coral max every other day. When I add salt to my tank it seems that the coral gets extremely upset. I dissolve the salt in a cup and then pour the water in at a medium pace. The center of the coral has been seen no extension since I glued him to the rock a couple of days ago. Is there anything else I can do/am doing wrong!?
My tank stats are normal, except for slightly high nitrates - 20/40 ppm

Thanks everyone...

Will

Why would you be adding salt to your tank?

What kind of flow and light is it under?

I have three Goniopora and I never feed them. Some people do but your feeding seems excessive. Do they actually eat the food or just close and slime up?

 

[William Spak]

Why would you be adding salt to your tank?

What kind of flow and light is it under?

I have three Goniopora and I never feed them. Some people do but your feeding seems excessive. Do they actually eat the food or just close and slime up?

I unfortunately have a canister filter for my tank at the moment. I clean it weekly to keep my nitrates in check. However, when I clean it, I remove water from the system, and add new water, so my salinity goes down a bit. I add the salt to keep it at 1.024.

I have an AI prime light, and the goni has about medium flow I would say, but I can't really tell.

How do I know if it is eating the food? It does secrete slime, but I thought all corals that eat typically do that.

Thanks the the reply

Will

 

[WV Reefer]

I unfortunately have a canister filter for my tank at the moment. I clean it weekly to keep my nitrates in check. However, when I clean it, I remove water from the system, and add new water, so my salinity goes down a bit. I add the salt to keep it at 1.024.

I have an AI prime light, and the goni has about medium flow I would say, but I can't really tell.

How do I know if it is eating the food? It does secrete slime, but I thought all corals that eat typically do that.

Thanks the the reply

Will

Goniopora like good flow. The Polyps should be swaying or blowing but not bending. Mine are all in med-high light and flow. A lot of times you will see them around the edges of tanks under or near the powerheads so that they are not being hit directly with flow.

When they eat you will see the mouth open and then the head will contract a bit while it consumes the food. If it closes tightly then it’s probably not actually eating.

 

[WV Reefer]

Here’s a video of my red one.

 

[William Spak]

Here’s a video of my red one.

That looks great, that’s exactly what mine used to look like...

I recently finished my aquascape - I think about a week ago - maybe he’s upset from that?

Is there anything I can do to restore it? Or is there anything you think I’m doing wrong atm?

Thank you.

 

[Butuz]

They also like/need Manganese. Do you do regular water changes? Have you ICP tested your water? Btw, I have never fed my goni and its growing like crazy, great extension. Mine is around 180 PAR. Finally, feeding reef roids every other day is going to increase your phos and nitrates (u less you are feeding super small amounts). I mix reefroids with my pellet and flake food for auto feeder, broadcasting seems to work ok. I haven’t direct fed any of my corals in months and haven’t noticed any difference. Good luck.

 

[William Spak]

They also like/need Manganese. Do you do regular water changes? Have you ICP tested your water? Btw, I have never fed my goni and its growing like crazy, great extension. Mine is around 180 PAR. Finally, feeding reef roids every other day is going to increase your phos and nitrates (u less you are feeding super small amounts). I mix reefroids with my pellet and flake food for auto feeder, broadcasting seems to work ok. I haven’t direct fed any of my corals in months and haven’t noticed any difference. Good luck.

Hey,

How do I get Manganese into the system?

I do not do regular water changes, they kinda just happen here and there... what should my schedule be, biweekly/weekly?

I’ll stop feeding reef rounds and just broadcast some every other day/ every 3 days.

Thanks for the help

 

[WV Reefer]

That looks great, that’s exactly what mine used to look like...

I recently finished my aquascape - I think about a week ago - maybe he’s upset from that?

Is there anything I can do to restore it? Or is there anything you think I’m doing wrong atm?

Thank you.

It’s possible it’s angry from all the changes. I would watch it and if necessary try moving it to another spot and see if it opens again. Mine have been pretty forgiving..... one even hosted my clownfish for awhile.

 

[William Spak]

It’s possible it’s angry from all the changes. I would watch it and if necessary try moving it to another spot and see if it opens again. Mine have been pretty forgiving..... one even hosted my clownfish for awhile.

It's been closed since I screwed up the alk and temp big time, but it has just gotten angrier since I put in the new rocks, so maybe you're right. It's in a 35 hex at the very bottom, so maybe I should move it up more? My ricordea mushroom is also not happy about the changes with the rocks - he's been upset for a couple of days now.

Butuz mentioned they need maganese is important to them, so I'm going to try to add Kent Marine part A and B supplements... maybe this will help?

Thank you for the help

 

[WV Reefer]

It's been closed since I screwed up the alk and temp big time, but it has just gotten angrier since I put in the new rocks, so maybe you're right. It's in a 35 hex at the very bottom, so maybe I should move it up more? My ricordea mushroom is also not happy about the changes with the rocks - he's been upset for a couple of days now.

Butuz mentioned they need maganese is important to them, so I'm going to try to add Kent Marine part A and B supplements... maybe this will help?

Thank you for the help

I wouldn’t start adding things unless you know by testing that is the issue. I doubt it.

Regular water changes will also help replenish your numbers. I do 30% changes every other week on my 12 gallon and once a month or so in my 75 gallon.

 

[William Spak]

I wouldn’t start adding things unless you know by testing that is the issue. I doubt it.

Regular water changes will also help replenish your numbers. I do 30% changes every other week on my 12 gallon and once a month or so in my 75 gallon.

Alrighty, I think I'm going to do weekly 15% changes, in addition to emptying my canister and cleaning it. Does that sound good? Or should I do bi-weekly 30%'s like you?

Thank you

 

[WV Reefer]

Alrighty, I think I'm going to do weekly 15% changes, in addition to emptying my canister and cleaning it. Does that sound good? Or should I do bi-weekly 30%'s like you?

Thank you

That would be a great start. The canister can also house some yucky stuff so it’s important to keep it very clean also. Being consistent is key. Have a maintenance plan and stick to it.

 

[William Spak]

That would be a great start. The canister can also house some yucky stuff so it’s important to keep it very clean also. Being consistent is key. Have a maintenance plan and stick to it.

Yup! I clean that out every Sunday without fail, I should definitely do water changes on top of it.
I'll move the goni higher if nothing improves... although he was fine there for a while...T

Thank you for your time!

Will

 

[ArmyReefer]

Yup! I clean that out every Sunday without fail, I should definitely do water changes on top of it.
I'll move the goni higher if nothing improves... although he was fine there for a while...T

Thank you for your time!

Will

Just out of curiosity, did you add any new rocks when you were finishing your aquascape?

 

[William Spak]

Just out of curiosity, did you add any new rocks when you were finishing your aquascape?

Yes, actually a lot... I put in two big rocks.

 

[ArmyReefer]

What kind of rock was it? If it was live rock or old live rock it could have had some dead organics on it that could cause an ammonia spike. I would check ammonia if you have not and make sure it’s zero

 

[William Spak]

What kind of rock was it? If it was live rock or old live rock it could have had some dead organics on it that could cause an ammonia spike. I would check ammonia if you have not and make sure it’s zero

It’s the CoralLife purple rock, Ammonia was at zero to my knowledge.

I will retest when I get home...

Thanks

 

[ArmyReefer]

It’s the CoralLife purple rock, Ammonia was at zero to my knowledge.

I will retest when I get home...

Thanks

Where did you get the rock from? Was it new dry rock? Or Live rock?

 

[Butuz]

Hey,

How do I get Manganese into the system?

I do not do regular water changes, they kinda just happen here and there... what should my schedule be, biweekly/weekly?

I’ll stop feeding reef rounds and just broadcast some every other day/ every 3 days.

Thanks for the help

10% weekly water changes help replenish trace elements. If you have lots of corals, I recommend dosing either Seachem Trace or Tropic Marin A and K or any other reputable brand for supplemental trace lememts.