LPS Coral dying

[tanksman]

All my water parameters are nominal and I'm not sure why I'm losing some LPS any ideas

 

[tj w]

Can u please post all water parameters you test for? That will help us trying to figure it out. Also, have u made any adjustments to the tank lately?

 

[tanksman]

Sure first thing is that I haven't made any adjustments in the tank other than adding a few new fish
Ammonia zero
Nitrate 0
Nitrite .25
Phosphate .25

 

[sil40sx]

Nitrite and Phospate are very high. Actually, anything other than zero for nitrite is bad,.

 

[tanksman]

Yes I understand that and I do regular water changes I also have a pretty good filtration system in a protein skimmer but with those parameters kill Coral

 

[Brew12]

Yes I understand that and I do regular water changes I also have a pretty good filtration system in a protein skimmer but with those parameters kill Coral

Posting your calcium and alk would be useful for the #reefsquad to help you, also.

 

[tanksman]

Okay I'll check all of those parameters when I get home from work those are a little bit more difficult than the other water test and I really don't like doing them maybe they're way off and I just don't know it

 

[sil40sx]

Yes I understand that and I do regular water changes I also have a pretty good filtration system in a protein skimmer but with those parameters kill Coral

Yes, Nitrite is toxic and can kill fish and corals in very high levels.

Edit: Oh, you mean your levels. Well, those are considered high in a reef tank, but I'm not 100% if its enough to kill corals. I'll let the #reefsquad chime in on that. Although, be prepared to tell more about your tank, your husbandry, livestock, salt mix, all water parameter (normal range isnt acceptable, need actual numbers), temp, new additions, filtration, dosing, etc. In short, the whole 9 yards. The more information you give, the easier to pinpoint your problem.

 

[Griff]

Did you accidentally post your nitrate # in the nitrite spot?

If the figures you provided are correct it could have been from an ammonia spike. Possibly ammonia has had time to convert to nitrite but not to the nitrate.

Sure first thing is that I haven't made any adjustments in the tank other than adding a few new fish
Ammonia zero
Nitrate 0
Nitrite .25
Phosphate .25

 

[tanksman]

I might have I'll go back and double-check everything

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Was this a sudden event or slow decline?
by eye Id say slow decline.

if no and po are both .25 it shouldn't cause this.
estimating your cal and alk by coralline its not that far off.

how is the flow in those spots,

do you run socks or polishing cloths before the return pump?

do you spot feed?

is that a gonipora in the picture, have you had that as long as the damaged LPS?

 

[sil40sx]

if no and po are both .25 it shouldn't cause this.

Question, if there is some NO2 in his system, doesn't that mean either he had an ammonia spike (as previous poster mentioned), or tank isn't completely cycled? - thanks

I agree though, those wouldnt cause his problems unless in very high levels. Most likely the Alk, Ca, and Mg are out of range. Or maybe Alk swings,..

 

[saltyfilmfolks]

Question, if there is some NO2 in his system, doesn't that mean either he had an ammonia spike (as previous poster mentioned), or tank isn't completely cycled? - thanks

I agree though, those wouldnt cause his problems unless in very high levels. Most likely the Alk, Ca, and Mg are out of range. Or maybe Alk swings,..

well at this point it could be anything, im looking more at food and flow. many folks put lps in very low flow. they cant eat food or absorb cal and alk that way. thus my q about the goni. it also may be suffering low alk or flow to access the alk and dissolved organics.(closed up)

yes if there's nitrites its a bigger issue, waiting for his results. judging by the rest of the corals , fish and tank i see im not sure thats a worry. the solution to that would be bacteria treatment and looking for the cause of the spike. that would be dead or damaged bio filter.

a nitrate an ammoina spike should have been a little more apparent as an "event", an poss fish distress, I believe. A big dead snail might do it, but a big dead turbo has more bad stuff in it than rotting food.
A quick word to the wise, if you see a dead snail take it out, once you get it out you'll know immediately why.

and a not completely cycled tank IMO would be hard to do, a stunted cycle due to bad water is possible but usually there's tell tale signs, like weird algae and usually no corraline. Tap water w chlorine or chloramine will stunt a cycle and result in Am an Nit fluctuations probably. but with so much life in there Im having a tough time believing that's the case here, but I could be easily wrong.

 

[redfishbluefish]

I've got to believe that you flipped the nitrite and nitrate numbers. Nitrite is of no concern in saltwater, short of watching a tank cycle from ammonia ->nitrite->nitrate. Unlike freshwater, nitrite never approaches levels that would cause damage.

What are you doing to supplement alkalinity and calcium. With no mention of this, that's my guess.

 

[sil40sx]

well at this point it could be anything, im looking more at food and flow. many folks put lps in very low flow. they cant eat food or absorb cal and alk that way. thus my q about the goni. it also may be suffering low alk or flow to access the alk and dissolved organics.(closed up)

yes if there's nitrites its a bigger issue, waiting for his results. judging by the rest of the corals , fish and tank i see im not sure thats a worry. the solution to that would be bacteria treatment and looking for the cause of the spike. that would be dead or damaged bio filter.

a nitrate an ammoina spike should have been a little more apparent as an "event", an poss fish distress, I believe. A big dead snail might do it, but a big dead turbo has more bad stuff in it than rotting food.
A quick word to the wise, if you see a dead snail take it out, once you get it out you'll know immediately why.

and a not completely cycled tank IMO would be hard to do, a stunted cycle due to bad water is possible but usually there's tell tale signs, like weird algae and usually no corraline. Tap water w chlorine or chloramine will stunt a cycle and result in Am an Nit fluctuations probably. but with so much life in there Im having a tough time believing that's the case here, but I could be easily wrong.

Oh I see, that makes sense.

Let's see his other parameters when he gets home tonight.

 

[mik]

What are you running for light and how is your calcium level

 

[Shaun Sweeney]

I think you should look at your lighting. What kind of lights? How long have they been in use? Keep in mind, T5's and halogen lights have very definite life spans. They are going to start to fail after about 1 year of use.

 

[john.m.cole3]

I'm gonna go out on a limb here... API test kits? How often do you change water and how much vs. tank size? This looks like my tank when I was sick once. I didn't change water for 3 weeks. It took about 2 moths of normal husbandry to get it to bounce back. I've seen members reporting zero nitrates with API, then using a Salifert kit to find out their NO3 is off the charts. Just a thought...