help with birds nests

[Lowstorm]

Hi! So I'm on my third try with a birds nest. This is the third time that it has bleached in my tank. I have 3 branches this time. 2 are on the sand bed and one is mid tank.

Stats;
Tank: 125 gallon, year old Feb 1
Lights: SBreef 32" timers set at 40 white 45 Blues. On for a total of 11 hours, 9 with all and 2 just Blues mocking sun up and down.
Temp 79
Amm and trite 0
Trates hover between 5-10
PO is always less than .05
Need to test my calcium and alk. Mag test is broke.
SG is 1.026

I have other corals doing great. Even other frags that I got at the same time from the same tank (purple Monti cap, spongodes, green hammer)
Purple bta happy as heck
Green slimmer going crazy, encrusting the rock I attached it to.

Only other coral I have doing bad is a goni. But it hasn't looked good since I accidentally electrocuted my tank a few months ago.

My first birds nest died during a horrific bacteria outbreak that more or less milked my tank.
The second one's bleached. I thought it was my lights, so wanted to try again.
This time all three frags are bleaching. Same rate different spots. I'm going to try to shade one of the branches out and see if it is really my lights, but these were cut from directly under his fancy lights... Less than 6 inches from the leds

 

[Broadfield]

Are you sure it's bleaching and not RTN/STN? What is your flow like?

 

[Lowstorm]

Forgot to add. Filtration is a skimmer and filter socks when I remember. My chaeto is in the sump but isn't growing very well at all.

 

[Lowstorm]

Yup. They keep their polyps quite well, and I can see flesh until the very end. Right now these ones have very visible polyps. The Green flesh is still green, the pink has bleached to very very pale. It's still there, just looks like, well.. You know.

Flow is via 2 rw 4s by jebao. Where they are now I have them medium and low. Medium is in the highest light, 1/3rs of the way is the water column

 

[Elementalj]

Well something's awry, birdsnest usually do well no matter what. Have you taken them out and looked for parasites?

 

[domination2580]

I have the same light...I don't even have my edits turned up that high ever...it never goes part the click for when you turn the channel on...amd I only

 

[Lowstorm]

Yes, something is obviously off.

Unless it's a microscopic thing going after them, no parasites.

I plan on having a ton of Sps, and most of the pretty sticks I like are high light lovers. For reference I have a green open brain up on my rocks, and a huge acan colony on the sandbed, opposite side of the tank so lower light corals are doing good. Even thriving.

 

[Elementalj]

Might be the light? If parameters are in check and there aren't any visible parasites or infection I'd say they're getting too much light all at once.

 

[Lowstorm]

Yup. Just got done turning them down. Gonna see if anyone in the local club has a PAR. Or Maybe I can download one on my phone.
@saltyfilmfolks I have seen you recommend that, any suggestions?

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Yup. Just got done turning them down. Gonna see if anyone in the local club has a PAR. Or Maybe I can download one on my phone.
@saltyfilmfolks I have seen you recommend that, any suggestions?

I prefer a handheld lux meter($14) if a par meter is not available. Apps can be HIGHLY unreliable. But on Iphone Galactica seems ok. Harder to use than a handheld.
how high is the light over the tank.

Well something's awry, birdsnest usually do well no matter what. Have you taken them out and looked for parasites?

Yea thats odd.

 

[rich nyc]

what type of birds nest. I think depending on the type they grow in various light conditions. I seem not to be able to kill my birdnest even in my nano tank. It was one of the first coral that I got. gl

 

[tvu]

Birdsnest is sensitive to Alk from my experience. Are you having any swings in alk?

 

[Lowstorm]

No Alk meter, so I don't have a reliable way of testing it throughout the day.

Light is about 16 inches above the water. Turned down now to whites 20 ish, blues 25ish.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

No Alk meter, so I don't have a reliable way of testing it throughout the day.

Light is about 16 inches above the water. Turned down now to whites 20 ish, blues 25ish.

IMO that's actually pretty low light.
Id look at PH swings before ALK. But you should test it. If your ALk/cal is running low. and its winter(furnace) its very possible PH is changing overnight.

 

[Lowstorm]

Ohh good point. I'll test it all this afternoon and could test before lights on in the am. I bet I have a Ph swing.

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Ohh good point. I'll test it all this afternoon and could test before lights on in the am. I bet I have a Ph swing.

we all do. the trick is minimizing it.

 

[guarda]

Have any pics of the damage? And don't feel bad about the goniopora. Those are difficult!

 

[jenreefer]

Birdsnest also likes strontium, if you rule out alk and ph swings. You should use a quality test kit like salifert to test alk daily. How are you dosing alk? and ca? That would be the first area to determine. As far as lighting goes, they like high light and high flow IMO. How old is your tank?

following to see what those alk, ca and PH numbers are looking like. I have to run a Co2 absorber on my skimmer to keep my PH stable.

 

[Donovan Joannes]

Make sure there is nothing nearby that can sting. Some LPS does have long feeding tentacles with powerful stinger. The moment it touches my birdnest, the whole frag will RTN and die. Keep it away from anything.

 

[Lowstorm]

Welllllll I think I figured it out. High Alk low PO4.

6pm
Ph 8.0
Alk 11.3 dKH!!!!!!
Cal 470
PO4 0.....
NO3 7ish

My dosing is only kalkwasser, easy to discontinue for now. I'll be retesting in the morning.