Palyathoa not doing well

[JohnRougeux]

Your nitrite is showing at 0 as well. Not sure what your phosphate levels are at, but it doesn't look right. Do you have any bacteria in a bottle you could add to your sump or filtration? Microbacter7 from brightwell is good stuff... Need to get the cycling going cause your parameters seem off...

I do not have anything to add. It's an AIO with the filtration on the back.

Do I follow this?

 

[MightyMO]

Also, bring a water sample into your fish store and compare readings... I am just not trusting what you are showing me for that new of a tank...

 

[MightyMO]

That chart is correct for a baseline... May need to pick some up... Just telling you what I would do... I have been a reefer for 25 years...

 

[JohnRougeux]

That chart is correct for a baseline... May need to pick some up... Just telling you what I would do... I have been a reefer for 25 years...

I appreciate it. I'm currently working from home, so I can't leave until 430 today. 25 years? hmmm....so you are fairly new at this? just kidding.

 

[JohnRougeux]

Ok, making a trip to LFS today to get some stuff to add to the tank. Here are my current readings:

salinity: 1.025

 

[gabrieltackitt]

How do I increase Nitrates?

Easiest way to increase nitrate is to feed more, as the food gets broken down by fish and bacteria it will become nitrate in your tank.

 

[Pistondog]

So I got a Palyathoa frag from my local fish guy to test things out before going further with coral. The first day it opened up and looked great! It is a nice green. the 2nd day it wasn't so wide open, but I could see the green and it was just curled up a little around the edges. It kept curling inward day after day until about 4 days it was closed up. Perhaps flow was an issue, so I moved it to another rock and it was lower in the tank some. Nothing. I have now moved it down to the sand level to see, but it just looks limp and dead.

I have the A1 Prime 16HD light (or whatever it's called), clowns are doing great, crabs are doing great. Ammonia, Nitrate, Nitrite, and pH all are looking good. Salinity is 1.025. I have the A1 16HD prime light.

Any idea? Should I be testing for something else?

Do you have a bubbler or skimmer running for oxygenation?

 

[Pistondog]

is the ph below 8, not bad necessarily, but might indicate high CO2.

 

[92Miata]

The tank has been up for a month and he has nitrates. Cycling isn't the issue and buying bacteria isn't going to help.

Is there algae in the tank?

What's your alkalinity?

 

[JohnRougeux]

Just had water tested at lfs and they were the same as mine, except for salinity. He got 1.038! Yikes. I will check the calibration of mine and test it again.
I have brown algae growing

 

[JohnRougeux]

Do you have a bubbler or skimmer running for oxygenation?

I have a small powerhead aimed towards the top. Is that not good enough?

 

[JohnRougeux]

Checked my refractor with RO and got 1.000 (calibrated, right?)
Checked my water and it’s 1.025

 

[Pistondog]

I have a small powerhead aimed towards the top. Is that not good enough?

I wouldn't think so, but I could be wrong. I've always thought a bubbler or skimmer is best. Perhaps with a sump, the water falling creates enough air water interface. Maybe someone can help.
However, I wouldn't think this would bother your palys more than other livestock.

 

[gabrieltackitt]

Checked my refractor with RO and got 1.000 (calibrated, right?)
Checked my water and it’s 1.025

You should get some refractometer calibration solution, which will calibrate to 1.0264 or 35ppt. You want to calibrate as close as possible to what you’re expected result is, as this lowers the error percentage.

Personally I calibrate with TLF Accurasea and then check it with RO to confirm that my solution isn’t off. I also calibrate every time I use my refractometer, which is every 3 days or so. Only takes a few seconds and then I don’t worry about it getting off.

 

[JohnRougeux]

I wouldn't think so, but I could be wrong. I've always thought a bubbler or skimmer is best. Perhaps with a sump, the water falling creates enough air water interface. Maybe someone can help.
However, I wouldn't think this would bother your palys more than other livestock.

I'll check out a skimmer, thanks!

 

[JohnRougeux]

You should get some refractometer calibration solution, which will calibrate to 1.0264 or 35ppt. You want to calibrate as close as possible to what you’re expected result is, as this lowers the error percentage.

Personally I calibrate with TLF Accurasea and then check it with RO to confirm that my solution isn’t off. I also calibrate every time I use my refractometer, which is every 3 days or so. Only takes a few seconds and then I don’t worry about it getting off.

So checking with RO and getting 1.000 is not going to give me accurate results?

 

[Pistondog]

So checking with RO and getting 1.000 is not going to give me accurate results?

Calibrating around your target salinity provides more confidence.
Checking with ro at 1.000 is sort of like checking your speedometer at 5mph and assuming it works at 55.

 

[gabrieltackitt]

So checking with RO and getting 1.000 is not going to give me accurate results?

Theoretically it would given all other variables were perfect. But in practice our refractometers are hobby grade and there is a percentage of error in them that is much easier to compensate for small amounts with calibration at/near 35ppt but RO at 0 is 35 parts away from what we are wanting in our tanks and being 2-4 ppt off can be a very large difference in a reef tank.

 

[JohnRougeux]

Well, took some water to a really lfs (the other one was 30 miles away) with my refractor and his read it high too...while mine read it normal. So now I know the probable cause of the coral...salinity was way too high. I have already did one water exchange and bought a digital tester. I'll return this bad one and get another one too as backup.

 

[Pistondog]

Well, took some water to a really lfs (the other one was 30 miles away) with my refractor and his read it high too...while mine read it normal. So now I know the probable cause of the coral...salinity was way too high. I have already did one water exchange and bought a digital tester. I'll return this bad one and get another one too as backup.

Good to know, but move it slow. Amazing the palys are still alive.
Maybe 0.001 per hour or longer, like acclimation. Maybe max 0.004 per day, no experience with this big a move.