LPS Help

[davehead86]

I've got Acans and Euphellia (sp?)and a rock of Zoas. I've had success with these corals in the past. For the last 2 months they have looked like the following pictures. At first my salinity was at 1.030 so i lowered that to the correct level and for the last month with water at 1.025 they have not recovered. They are still just meh looking. My LFS isn't much help and only suggested that Iodine was low. I've been adding that for a couple weeks and have not been seeing ANY results from it and I do not want to continue adding something I can't test for.Ive done 40 gallons worth of water changes over the last week and the corals have still not responded. My water tests perfect so I dont know what else can be the problem.

(SIDE NOTE) Ive started treating the tank for the algae problem dosing vibrant twice a week according to their instructions. Ive also committed to weekly 10 gallon water changes starting this week.

Questions:
What are people's suggestions for turning around these corals?
How long will they last like this before they start dying off?
What do I need to do?

System:
65 Gallon DT - 40B Sump
Radions - 30% intensity AB+ Program (Just switched to LPS program at same intensity).
Vortechs MP10 x 2 running reef crest at 65%
Ice Cap K2 Skimmer
Refugium growing Chaeto with Kessil H80
Vectra M1 Return Pump at 40%
BRS Reactor with ROX.08 Carbon running

Current Tests:
Salinity 1.025
Temp 78.0
PH 7.9
Alk 400 ppm
Ammonia 0
Nitrates 0 (assume because of algae outbreak)
Nitrites 0 (assume because of algae outbreak)

 

[SCReef'n]

What’s your Alk? 400 has gotta be calcium or a typo. Have you checked for stray current? What fish or cuc do you currently have?

 

[davehead86]

What’s your Alk? 400 has gotta be calcium or a typo. Have you checked for stray current? What fish or cuc do you currently have?

I threw away the paper from the LFS with that number on it. Ive got a hannah checker for alk showing up on thursday.

I dont know how to check for stray current.

I have a CUC of emerald crabs, snails (various), and a sea serpent starfish.

Due to a mistake on my part (over vacuuming and disturbing the sand bed) on my last water change I no longer have any fish. They were a clownfish, hawkfish, and yellow tang. None of them ever bothered the corals (the hawk would perch sometimes but the corals would open right back up.

 

[PTXReef]

I do not suggest adding anything you can not test for (but you may have already fixed that with so many water changes). Are the parameters from your new SW similar to the current water?

Could you test your nitrates/nitrites?

 

[vetteguy53081]

Try a simple step-
They don’t like sediment on them. Give them gentle bursts with a turkey baster and see how they respond.
Peroxide dip may also work.

 

[davehead86]

I do not suggest adding anything you can not test for (but you may have already fixed that with so many water changes). Are the parameters from your new SW similar to the current water?

Could you test your nitrates/nitrites?

Those both test at 0
New SW is the same numbers as old SW.

 

[davehead86]

Try a simple step-
They don’t like sediment on them. Give them gentle bursts with a turkey baster and see how they respond.
Peroxide dip may also work.

I did give them a good ole squirt with the turkey baster yesterday.

How do I do a peroxide dip? And what does it accomplish?

 

[IKD]

Has your nitrates always been zero? I have mostly LPS and keep nitrates around 15-20. Check your phosphates too. I keep mine around 0.06-0.10. Looks like you’ve made several changes in the last month (salinity, iodine, lighting) also, so will help when things stabilize too.

 

[vetteguy53081]

I did give them a good ole squirt with the turkey baster yesterday.

How do I do a peroxide dip? And what does it accomplish?

Everyday hydrogen peroxide will work. The most common variety is 3% peroxide, which you can get at any general store. The strength of the peroxide is powerful but will not harm your aquatic ecosystem. Hydrogen peroxide is a safe alternative to harsher chemicals. Other solutions may damage the surrounding aquatic life in the tank or throw off the water's PH balance. Peroxide is the most effective way to clean and protect your zoas, and it keeps rapidly-growing algae at bay. It even kills potential vermin, such as zoanthid-eating spiders!
Hydrogen peroxide has the same PH as water, so it will not cause a shift in acidity or alkalinity when added to water. For this reason, peroxide is an effective way of killing harmful organisms on the surface of your zoanthids. It breaks apart the cells of algae and vermin while protecting your coral. The coral does not get harmed, because the hydrogen peroxide is diluted enough to attack only the cells on the very surface of your zoas.

Here are the steps:

1. Put on protective gloves to prevent skin irritation.
2. Take 3/4" of saltwater from the aquarium and pour it in a clean container.
3. Turn off the lights in the aquarium to allow the polyps of the zoanthids to close.
4. Carefully remove the zoanthid from the tank. Do not pick it up from the tissue or polyps. Always pick it up from the base of the frag.
5. Place the zoanthid in the saltwater.
6. Slowly add hydrogen peroxide by cap fulls or 5 ml increments until you see it start to fizz.
7. Let it sit for approximately 5-10 minutes.
8. Gently swish the zoanthid to loosen debris.
9. Carefully brush remaining algae or debris off with a soft toothbrush or paintbrush. Make sure to get between the polyps!
10. Remove the zoanthid and either quickly dip in it in clean water or use a turkey baster to wash it off. Try to keep the water temperature close to the temperature of the saltwater in the aquarium, or use the aquarium water itself.
11. Place your zoanthid back into the aquarium, preferably in a moderate to high-flow area of the tank.

 

[ReefPiracy]

Are you sure that you are getting the correct SG? If your doing these monster water changes, i highly doubt any other levels are off. Then I would start to feed the tank. Do you have any fish?
Also 30% on lighting? that seems powerfully low to me. id run double that if not more.

 

[smm52487]

I had a similar issue with my zoas (only coral in the tank at the time). The algae was definitely bothering them. I did the peroxide dip and increased my flow. The increased flow helped seemed to prevent additional algae From growing on the frags, sand bed, etc. Figured I’d mention in case flow is a possible factor in the algae growth.

 

[davehead86]

I will address these questions in one post instead of quoting each of you

Yeah my nitrates and phosphates ALWAYS read zero. Between the algae in the display tank and the refugium i think those numbers are always off because of the algae.

I upped my flow this weekend to help prevent detritus buildup.

My lights at 30% are low because I didnt want to burn the corals. The corals were opened up before this problem with the lights at 30%. I figured the zoas would be opened if there was a lack of light, not closed up tight.

I had fish until last weekend and was feeding until last weekend (fish food) I feed phyto to the corals. They were open when I had fish and closed when i had fish too.


I think the peroxide idea is great for the zoa rock and one of the acans that i have not glued down yet.

 

[MERKEY]

How old is your tank?

If all of your fish died it sounds like you caused a mini cycle while cleaning the sand bed of your tank or your tank is just not mature enough and you stocked it too fast and it cause a spike.

 

[davehead86]

How old is your tank?

If all of your fish died it sounds like you caused a mini cycle while cleaning the sand bed of your tank or your tank is just not mature enough and you stocked it too fast and it cause a spike.

Tank is moving towards being 1 year old. Yeah i messed up really bad when i cleaned the sandbed. I am torn up about it, such a rookie mistake. Ive been keeping fish for 10 years and this saltwater thing for 5 years. I knew better, just wanted to clean to help the algae. ugh

 

[MERKEY]

Tank is moving towards being 1 year old. Yeah i messed up really bad when i cleaned the sandbed. I am torn up about it, such a rookie mistake. Ive been keeping fish for 10 years and this saltwater thing for 5 years. I knew better, just wanted to clean to help the algae. ugh

Ok so this is a cycle thread

Your corals need time....dipping would generally work but in this case you need to stabilize the water. The bad algea is trying to win....

You've been at this for a while and this is just another test in the resiliency we have in this hobby.

If its a year old a large water change should help let the good bacteria in there catch up to the crash. You can add bottled bac but your tank should be old enough for the rocks to hold enough good bac to fight this off.....but a little help never hurt.

I'm really sorry this happened.

Most likely your corals will open when the water gets back to normal, its just frustrating to watch it happen

Dosing peroxide could help with the bad algea but im not sure its affects on bac.

 

[InvaderJim]

If you are dosing vibrant the worst thing you can do is let your nitrates and phosphates hit zero. You are basically starving your corals. You need to bring those levels up.

 

[davehead86]

Ok so this is a cycle thread

Your corals need time....dipping would generally work but in this case you need to stabilize the water. The bad algea is trying to win....

You've been at this for a while and this is just another test in the resiliency we have in this hobby.

If its a year old a large water change should help let the good bacteria in there catch up to the crash. You can add bottled bac but your tank should be old enough for the rocks to hold enough good bac to fight this off.....but a little help never hurt.

I'm really sorry this happened.

Most likely your corals will open when the water gets back to normal, its just frustrating to watch it happen

Dosing peroxide could help with the bad algea but im not sure its affects on bac.

Ive got some Pro Bio S on the way should be here middle of the week. I figure that cant hurt at all to dose some BAC.

 

[davehead86]

If you are dosing vibrant the worst thing you can do is let your nitrates and phosphates hit zero. You are basically starving your corals. You need to bring those levels up.

Ive put in one dose of vibrant. And i was feeding them phyto. And given the algae in the tank I highly doubt ive got low nitrates and phosphates. Ill make sure to continue feeding the corals phyto.

 

[InvaderJim]

Ive put in one dose of vibrant. And i was feeding them phyto. And given the algae in the tank I highly doubt ive got low nitrates and phosphates. Ill make sure to continue feeding the corals phyto.

I would highly recommend dosing a phosphate and nitrates to bring them to a detectible level. The vibrant thread has lots of info on this and corals dying because of being starved.

 

[MERKEY]

Ive put in one dose of vibrant. And i was feeding them phyto. And given the algae in the tank I highly doubt ive got low nitrates and phosphates. Ill make sure to continue feeding the corals phyto.

Phyto isn't really coral "food" ....

There are a lot of ways to feed them...do you have any reef roids, benipets or AB+.