Please help, GSP all closed up

[stanleo]

Something is going on with my green star polyps. Two days ago about 1/4 of the colony was closed up, yesterday about 1/2 was closed up, today all of the colony is closed up. I have had it for about 5 months and in that time it has almost doubled in size. Up till now it looked very healthy. The other corals (hammer, birdsnest, toadstool leather, xenia) look fine. Inverts are all fine too. Emerald crabs, hermits, conchs, astrea, a black longspine sea urchin. Fish seem to be healthy. Clown, yellow tang, azure damsel, pajama cardinals, glass cardinal. Light is 2 Red Sea ReefLED 90s. Light is on from 8am to 7pm with an hour ramp up and down for sunrise and sunset. Coral is about 16 inches from the light and tank has a glass lid. Tank is 120 gallons with a sump, protein skimmer and fuge. I have never needed to dose anything as the tests always came back consistently. Everything was always high. I test every two weeks right before my 20% water change and I never miss one. The last one was last Tuesday so it has been a week. The only thing that has been different is the timer for the fuge light went bad and two days in a row it was left on for about 16 hours. Fix that this morning. The lights for main tank were added about four weeks ago (I acclimated the corals to the new light slowly over 6 days). And I added the fuge about three weeks ago as well.

Temp is 78F. Salinity 35ppt.
Ran tests and pH is 8(API),
Nitrate is 2ppm(Salifert),
Phosphate is .03ppm(Salifert),
dKH is 7.4(Red Sea), Yesterday it was 8.4 and a few days ago it was 10
Calcium is 500ppm(Red Sea),
Magnesium is 1440ppm(Red Sea). A few days ago this was 1680ppm

Here is a link to my build thread if you need more info.

Build Thread - Stanleo's 120 gl mixed reef

Well better late than never. I started this build January 15, 2019 and I am just now starting this journal so I will try to give a time line with pics as best I can. Tank is a 120 gallon standard that we got used from the LFS with the stand. 48"x24"x24". Heater is an Eheim. Sorry I don't...

www.reef2reef.com

This is a pic from last Wednesday

This is a pic from yesterday

This is a pic today

If anyone has any ideas, please tell me.

 

[ZoWhat]

Hmmmm. I wouldn't become too concerned as within a few days it may return to normal.

Doesn't appear to be a water parameters issue.

Any inverts picking at it?
Any new fish picking at it?

Get out a super powerful flashlight and with the tank lights off in a dark room inspect the GSP for any signs of anything growing on it, even a film on it.

If so, you may have to pull it and dip it....

That's all I got....

 

[jordan10]

Only thing I see is ur alk looks like you could start dosing that to keep it stable. Gsp is Hardy it will more then like come back

 

[stanleo]

Hmmmm. I wouldn't become too concerned as within a few days it may return to normal.

Doesn't appear to be a water parameters issue.

Any inverts picking at it?
Any new fish picking at it?

Get out a super powerful flashlight and with the tank lights off in a dark room inspect the GSP for any signs of anything growing on it, even a film on it.

If so, you may have to pull it and dip it....

That's all I got....

Thanks, that makes me feel better

 

[stanleo]

Only thing I see is ur alk looks like you could start dosing that to keep it stable. Gsp is Hardy it will more then like come back

What's the best way to do that? I have this stuff I bought when I first set up the tank from Seachem called Reef Fusion 1 and 2. Its a two part that is for alk and calcium. My Calcium is good so I worry that if I start doing this that that will get out of whack. Could I just dose the part 2 without the part 1 as that is for alkalinity?

 

[jordan10]

Ummmm I am probably not the best to ask just because I just started dosing 2 part myself. But I know I started out just dosing alk for same reason my Cal was fine then my Cal start to drop a little bit so I do the 2 part now. So yes you can dose just for alk

 

[jordan10]

But I not saying that's why ur gsp not opening.

 

[C. Eymann]

Sometimes gorgonians both branching and encrusting (GSP) will kinda go through a shedding period, temporarialy throw more flow it's way and wait/observe, that's my suggestion.

 

[EMeyer]

GSP is funny. I have a thriving colony I've been growing and fragging for years. Sometimes it stays closed 2 or 3 days at a time. But is generally unkillable.

Shipping it has become kind of a pain as a result, because everything thinks its DOA.

 

[LesPoissons]

I wouldnt worry about it. I have 3 colonies of gsp that opens 1-2x a month. No idea why, all other corals are fine, all parameters normal and stable. It came in beautifully and now it lives closed 99% of the time. Something may be trying to eat it and that might be the new issue. Ex. yellow tang.