SPS DEAD? RTN?

[Joedubyk]

Sometimes SPS will just do that. I put in a frag the other day, it RTN-ed inside of 24 hours. The other frag that it came with, is flourishing. SPS can be very tricky. You could've gotten a fresh cut, it would've been super stressed when you bought it, etc... Your salinity is low, BUT, it really could've been something out of your control as well.

 

[DivingTheWorld]

IMO, 6 months is too early for sps, far too early when starting with dry rock. You’re hardware/filtration/lighting sounds good. I’d say just consider these a loss. Take your time to get your parameters in line and stable, then about the 1-1.5 year mark you can retry some easier sps like montis or Birdsnest.

 

[Jeff Jarry reef]

What about raising the salt level. Should I do it all at once today, or more slowly over the next few days. Say by turning the ATO off and then manually stopping it off with the right levels as it evaporates?

That will work. And the main is stability and it doesn't take 6 months to year to grow SPS as long as your parameters are stable and your nutrients are good. I started SPS in my tank when it was 2 months old. But it does take staying on top of everything til it settles out and now my tank is one year and four months old doing great.