Grown out torch slowly losing heads

Christopher Poore · Apr 20, 2023

No idea what’s happening here. There have been no changes in parameters, lighting, or flow but I’ve slowly been losing torch heads over the last month. It doesn’t appear to be brown jelly.

How should I go about treating this? I have CoralRX which I’ll begin a dipping regimen today. Does anyone have any pro tips?
My fear is that this spreads to my Holy Grail

Christopher Poore · Apr 20, 2023

Matt Bravo · Apr 20, 2023

How are your parms? How old is the tank? What light do you have and what % intensity? How long have they been in the aquarium?

Christopher Poore · Apr 20, 2023

Luckydinamite said:
How are your parms? How old is the tank? What light do you have and what % intensity? How long have they been in the aquarium?

Alk 8.8
Ph 8.36
No3 6.6
Po4 .00
Calc 410
Mg (Red Sea says 1400ish consistently; icp is closer to 1250)

Parameters haven’t bounced around much for a long time; I religiously test. Don’t believe phosphate is totally accurate but phosphates are low. All my sps have decent color.

icp didn’t show any issues two weeks ago.

I have 4 t5 and 1 radion xr30 blue @65%. Torch has been getting around 250 par for months.

Tank is almost 3 years and the torch has
been in it for almost 2 years, started as a single head.

I noticed one head starting to die as it was splitting about 2 weeks ago or so. Thought it was just having a problem splitting.

Christopher Poore · Apr 21, 2023

Lavey29 · Apr 21, 2023

Euphyllia can get bacterial infections or pest bugs eating them. Perhaps an iodine dip and coral rx dip.

Matt Bravo · Apr 21, 2023

I am pretty sure that all corals need some level of po4, I’ve never experienced my phosphates being 0 but I did experience my nitrates being 0. After they bottomed out my hammer was definitely upset. Just a small recommendation maybe get them a bit higher. I think people like having them about .01-.05.

Christopher Poore · Apr 21, 2023

Luckydinamite said:
I am pretty sure that all corals need some level of po4, I’ve never experienced my phosphates being 0 but I did experience my nitrates being 0. After they bottomed out my hammer was definitely upset. Just a small recommendation maybe get them a bit higher. I think people like having them about .01-.05.

It's very unlikely my Po4 is actually at zero. My recent ICP showed about .05.. There are fluctuations in the tank

Dburr1014 · Apr 21, 2023

How's the flow? Is it getting to the middle as it grows out?

Christopher Poore · Apr 21, 2023

Dburr1014 said:
How's the flow? Is it getting to the middle as it grows out?

Flow hasnt changed as the heads began dying off. It is possible that due to it's location that it isnt getting enough back and forth flow, but that would be surprising.

Lost in the Sauce · Apr 21, 2023

On the third picture you posted there looks like there's a big old flat worm in the crotch between two heads.

I normally don't advise people to move torches as they are very temperamental but I would pull this guy out and dip it.

Christopher Poore · Apr 21, 2023

Lost in the Sauce said:
On the third picture you posted there looks like there's a big old flat worm in the crotch between two heads.

I normally don't advise people to move torches as they are very temperamental but I would pull this guy out and dip it.

I pulled it out yesterday and fragged off one of the dying heads and split the colony into two, each still has a dying head.

I also dipped it in coral RX and nothing came off of it.