Monti bleaching

[Bleigh]

Aren’t you supposed to use Red Sea salt 15min after mixing? I had this problem with aqua forest, who knew you’re supposed to use it right away after mixing and totally wiped out my tank. Now I use tropic marin pro and things are great and IO purple box in the frag tank, easy to dose elements with lower parameters.

I don’t know. I normally don’t mix it until I need it. I was definitely not adding enough salt though. My refractometer needed to be recalibrated.

 

[Bleigh]

@Dana Riddle I asked one of the Charlotte reef keeping clubs about renting a par meter, and they suggested I rent one from brs. I may need to figure out how to get the one r2r has.

 

[rolyguy7]

I like to maintain a temperature between 72 and 75 since this gives a buffer of about 5 degrees before I have to worry. Goes back to my coral farming days in the late 90s at Aquatic Wildlife. We had thousands of corals under culture when the AC failed... massive number of coral losses. Lesson learned.

Interesting. I thought I’ve read most reefs have temperatures in the 78F range in nature. I would think 72F would be too cold for corals to live. You’re saying all corals species can thrive and live at these lower temperatures?

 

[Dana Riddle]

Interesting. I thought I’ve read most reefs have temperatures in the 78F range in nature. I would think 72F would be too cold for corals to live. You’re saying all corals species can thrive and live at these lower temperatures?

Here's an article I wrote about 10 years ago. Water temp in Hawaii during winter can be as low as ~73 F.

Feature Article: Environmental Stability: A Comparison of a Natural Reef and an Aquarium

In this article, we'll compare some physical parameters of various types of reef biotopes to those observed in a small aquarium. How does the stability of this 140 gallon system stack up to various natural environments? What are the long term effects of the varying conditions seen in an aquarium?

www.advancedaquarist.com

 

[Charlie’s Frags]

Wow!!!
10 pages in 2 days
That’s got to be a record

 

[Sarah24!]

Hello,

First sorry about your monti (see message sent), but yes your alk was way to low to start. One thing I haven’t seen mentioned is that corals can handle pretty much any parameters IF those are kept consistent. It’s also not ideal to have those parameters exact daily because it can or will weaken the immunity of your corals. Any tiny change and they stress and perish.

I have this same problem in my 240, 95% corals doing great then once in a while one goes up a banana tree and nothing I can do. I have learned to not make quick changes because then I lose a lot more corals. I have the same problem with acans some on the same rock just thrive and others are struggling. So maybe it’s @Dana Riddle time to move them. What ever your corals are use to parameter wise stick with that. Chasing number is bad and I’m guilty of it. Also running a mixed reef is much harder than a sps dominant tank etc and i found this the hard way. I would slowly raise your alk, add some carbon to get rid of anything in the water that something may have released and add maybe phosguard to bring phosphates down.

What I mention next I’ll be honest, in my perfect reef world I’d avoid it, but it saved mine. I did 60 gallons a week on my 240, and nitrates and phosphates would not even move at all. My fish consume all food within seconds and my skimmer is over rated for my 240.
I finally used Redsea nopox because it was save my tank or try this. This has worked and for the better and I have had some set backs also. One is it’s addictive to corals you can’t ever stop (Listed on Page 6) it acts similar to an opioid, or prednisone or better a benzodiazepines. Corals go into with drawls. Now I don’t suggest you run out and start this, you need to research it in depth.
It has really saved my sps, and colored them up
And my Monties and frogspawn, but eventually killed my scolys, afterburner, and my blue green hammer doesn’t like it. Some of my acans are going crazy and doing great others I can’t keep alive. Only do this as a very very last resort. I regret it but hey it was that or lose my tank. Which I love my tank dearly so I had to make that choice, but again every tank is different and responds different.

Reefing is a chess game and right now your in the mid game. Usually in chess when one thinks x amount of moves ahead they have a better end game. Anticipating what your corals move will be, should determine if knight to b4 check is a wise move. All my chalices and monties do great and I run alk at 8 calcium at 440 mag 1390, which I may increase. Normally nitrates are 2-5 some how they are ten and (I can’t find why, and ) phosphates are under .25ppm salt is 1.025. I do doze trace elements daily but prior I avoided water changes, now I’m back to 30 gallons once a week and lol still no change in parameters.

It could be a million things that caused this, it also coild
Be it just didn’t like your tank. It happens to me I hate it and but that’s the hobby. I am always here if you need something.

Sarah

 

[Hemmdog]

Nopox isn’t addictive like opioids. Lasse has explained this in depth before. I stopped using Nopox last week ‘cold turkey’, everything is alive and doing great actually. It works wonders to lower nitrates, that’s for sure.

 

[homer1475]

When I had my biocube, I removed the back "door", and front "doors". Replaced them with eggcrate, and zip tied 2 computer fans to the back "door" blowing over the water surface and out the front "door". It cooled my tank by 10 degrees, even when my house was in the 90's(before central AC), I could keep the tank at around 79.

Reading back, the stock biocube lighting is plenty for monti's, some lower light SPS's, and all kinds of LPS. All my coral including several plating monti's grew, and colored up quite nicely under stock biocube lights. This was before renting par meters was a thing so I have no idea what the par was, but everything grew just fine.

Thought I had a better picture, but those were back on my old photobucket acc. which I can no longer access, so this is the best I have from way back when.

I could flip that door up or down depending on whether I needed to access the back chambers, or needed the fans on for cooling. This picture shows them flipped up for access.

 

[Cheche]

Is hard to tell .. but as far as Ik bleaching happens when zooxanthella leave the coral do to tooo much light. What I did on my tank .. but remember not all tanks are the same ok .. I lowered the intensity of the light . And use logos iodine I did 1 drop every Monday and my coral got the color back up .. good luck I hope this help

 

[SeaDweller]

Wow!!!
10 pages in 2 days
That’s got to be a record

Lol and all for a monti.

Good luck OP, I hope you get your tank sorted out.

 

[Bleigh]

Hello,

First sorry about your monti (see message sent), but yes your alk was way to low to start. One thing I haven’t seen mentioned is that corals can handle pretty much any parameters IF those are kept consistent. It’s also not ideal to have those parameters exact daily because it can or will weaken the immunity of your corals. Any tiny change and they stress and perish.

I have this same problem in my 240, 95% corals doing great then once in a while one goes up a banana tree and nothing I can do. I have learned to not make quick changes because then I lose a lot more corals. I have the same problem with acans some on the same rock just thrive and others are struggling. So maybe it’s @Dana Riddle time to move them. What ever your corals are use to parameter wise stick with that. Chasing number is bad and I’m guilty of it. Also running a mixed reef is much harder than a sps dominant tank etc and i found this the hard way. I would slowly raise your alk, add some carbon to get rid of anything in the water that something may have released and add maybe phosguard to bring phosphates down.

What I mention next I’ll be honest, in my perfect reef world I’d avoid it, but it saved mine. I did 60 gallons a week on my 240, and nitrates and phosphates would not even move at all. My fish consume all food within seconds and my skimmer is over rated for my 240.
I finally used Redsea nopox because it was save my tank or try this. This has worked and for the better and I have had some set backs also. One is it’s addictive to corals you can’t ever stop (Listed on Page 6) it acts similar to an opioid, or prednisone or better a benzodiazepines. Corals go into with drawls. Now I don’t suggest you run out and start this, you need to research it in depth.
It has really saved my sps, and colored them up
And my Monties and frogspawn, but eventually killed my scolys, afterburner, and my blue green hammer doesn’t like it. Some of my acans are going crazy and doing great others I can’t keep alive. Only do this as a very very last resort. I regret it but hey it was that or lose my tank. Which I love my tank dearly so I had to make that choice, but again every tank is different and responds different.

Reefing is a chess game and right now your in the mid game. Usually in chess when one thinks x amount of moves ahead they have a better end game. Anticipating what your corals move will be, should determine if knight to b4 check is a wise move. All my chalices and monties do great and I run alk at 8 calcium at 440 mag 1390, which I may increase. Normally nitrates are 2-5 some how they are ten and (I can’t find why, and ) phosphates are under .25ppm salt is 1.025. I do doze trace elements daily but prior I avoided water changes, now I’m back to 30 gallons once a week and lol still no change in parameters.

It could be a million things that caused this, it also coild
Be it just didn’t like your tank. It happens to me I hate it and but that’s the hobby. I am always here if you need something.

Sarah

Thanks for all the valuable insight. Now that I’m bringing my number up to the correct mixed salt ratios, I actually think all My corals are looking a little peppier. (I did decide to do another water change today to help with the alk until I get something to dose it with) i also dosed some magnesium today. Even if I lose the monti, I’m grateful it was showing some issues, because I think it saved the rest of the coral before things got too far off. Still hoping it makes a reunion tour. It’s still got a little color to it. Fingers crossed!

I’m also trying to get my hands on a PAR meter. A local store told me on Facebook they had one, then someone else came and checked it out before I could get there to grab it. The local club has one. I paid the membership fee so I could rent it, but haven’t heard from the person that I was told to ask about borrowing it... lol... so the meter has proven elusive this far in my journey. Hopefully I’ll get my hands on one soon!

 

[Bleigh]

When I had my biocube, I removed the back "door", and front "doors". Replaced them with eggcrate, and zip tied 2 computer fans to the back "door" blowing over the water surface and out the front "door". It cooled my tank by 10 degrees, even when my house was in the 90's(before central AC), I could keep the tank at around 79.

Reading back, the stock biocube lighting is plenty for monti's, some lower light SPS's, and all kinds of LPS. All my coral including several plating monti's grew, and colored up quite nicely under stock biocube lights. This was before renting par meters was a thing so I have no idea what the par was, but everything grew just fine.

Thought I had a better picture, but those were back on my old photobucket acc. which I can no longer access, so this is the best I have from way back when.

I could flip that door up or down depending on whether I needed to access the back chambers, or needed the fans on for cooling. This picture shows them flipped up for access.

I love this idea. Def getting some computer fans!

 

[Bleigh]

Is hard to tell .. but as far as Ik bleaching happens when zooxanthella leave the coral do to tooo much light. What I did on my tank .. but remember not all tanks are the same ok .. I lowered the intensity of the light . And use logos iodine I did 1 drop every Monday and my coral got the color back up .. good luck I hope this help

That might be true. I think I’d be better off moving that one coral though... none of the other really
Looked terrible, I think they were probably heading that direction since I wasn’t mixing the salt strong enough, but im hoping I caught it in time.

Im also trying to get my hands on a PAR meter so I can tell precisely how much light they’re all getting.

 

[Bleigh]

Lol and all for a monti.

Good luck OP, I hope you get your tank sorted out.

Lol. Monti problems that was probably due to water chemistry issues - which took a bit longer to figure out... plus I talk a lot.

Thank you for all the luck! I def need all I can get!

 

[homer1475]

I would recommend silenX. They move a ton of air, are dead silent, and have a super long life.

Mine from my biocube are still in operation on my current 80G cube to remove the salty humid air from the stand. They have been running 24/7/365 for the last 4 years, and quite a few on/off cycles in the biocube some 3 years prior to that.

 

[SeaDweller]

Lol. Monti problems that was probably due to water chemistry issues - which took a bit longer to figure out... plus I talk a lot.

Thank you for all the luck! I def need all I can get!

It’s never fun to lose anything. If there’s one single polyp left on that, it’ll come back. I’ve had it happen multiple times.

 

[Bleigh]

I would recommend silenX. They move a ton of air, are dead silent, and have a super long life.

Mine from my biocube are still in operation on my current 80G cube to remove the salty humid air from the stand. They have been running 24/7/365 for the last 4 years, and quite a few on/off cycles in the biocube some 3 years prior to that.

Wow! Those are quite reasonably priced. Thanks for the recommendation!

 

[Bleigh]

It’s never fun to lose anything. If there’s one single polyp left on that, it’ll come back. I’ve had it happen multiple times.

Yeah. I had a peppermint shrimp that wreaked havoc on some corals that several
People were certain were dead. They’ve all come back. So I’m really being optimistic. But either way, losing one coral just as things were taking a turn is way better than losing them all once the corner had been turned. So I’ll be happy either way.

 

[Bleigh]

So the monti is either getting a brownish tint where it was white or it's turning back red. The parts that were pink are much redder also and the polyps seem more red and extended than they did a few days ago. Are monti's really this sensitive to low alk? Fingers crossed that it keeps showing some improvement.

 

[Sarah24!]

Hello,

In my own experience and others will vary, the sensitivity of your corals and others strongly vary. For
Those who keep tanks exactly consistent on everything and if they have any swing their corals more than likely will die very fast. I have had better success because from the beginning i have allowed small swings like 440 cal to 400 or 380 in a day, or alk from 8 to a 7. Mag never worry about but nitrates and phosphates really affect my corals in the slightest change even small. I went from 2 ppm nitrates to about 7 and lost full ocean grown colonies. Now tank colonies or frags handle this every time with no issues.

So again every tank is literally a different ecosystem it’s similar comparing the Great Barrier Reef to the Belize reef. Neither one of them would handle to change well.
I have even bought nice healthy corals and properly accilmate them in my tank and wow some have died in a week or less. It’s just some corals do not like how your system is. With that said I soooo wish they would give me a little more time to save them or transfer them.