what is going on

[drewstaxplaya]

i fragged up some zoas a week ago and yesterday i noticed two arent looking good at all. none of the zoas themselves were actually cut, just the rock underneath them. theyre starting to deteriorate and idk why, or what to do. i dipped them yesterday and did a water change after i noticed the ones in the first pic like this, now i woke up and some on a second frag are looking like this.

params are:
alk - 7.8
cal - lfs didnt have it they ran out
mag - 1320
salt - 1.024
nitrate - 30
phophate - .5

help please.

 

[jboone82590]

i fragged up some zoas a week ago and yesterday i noticed two arent looking good at all. none of the zoas themselves were actually cut, just the rock underneath them. theyre starting to deteriorate and idk why, or what to do. i dipped them yesterday and did a water change after i noticed the ones in the first pic like this, now i woke up and some on a second frag are looking like this.

params are:
alk - 7.8
cal - lfs didnt have it they ran out
mag - 1320
salt - 1.024
nitrate - 30
phophate - .5

help please.

They just look closed up to me.
When i frag sometimes they wont open for a few hours and some times over night or more.

 

[reeferfoxx]

Your phosphates are really high.

Natural sea water is 0.005ppm
Your water is 0.5ppm which is more than 20 times the amount.

Lower PO4 slowly to 0.01-0.03ppm

What brand of salt are you using?

 

[drewstaxplaya]

i just use "salt wated" from a lfs. and jboone the ones in the first pic started yesterday and the second pic were like this today. they were fragged a week ago

 

[drewstaxplaya]

what is the most efficient way to bring them down i dont want anything to die

 

[jboone82590]

i just use "salt wated" from a lfs. and jboone the ones in the first pic started yesterday and the second pic were like this today. they were fragged a week ago

My bad i must have miss read it sorry

 

[reeferfoxx]

You need to invest in a RO/DI unit and purchase your own salt mix. With coral growth you are using up calcium and alkalinity. Not knowing where you started, you may be having major parameter swings. Keeping alkalinity stable is really important.

Since you have nitrates also, I think NoPox would work well for this situation. Dose nopox for a month and see where you are. Otherwise if po4 is still an issue, move on to GFO.

 

[drewstaxplaya]

i go to one store where theyve been doing salifurt water tests for me. i had a huge issue when i got the tank about 5-6 weeks ago as it was very poorly maintained. these were the params from 8/25

alk 9.4
cal 530
mag 1500
salt 1.025
nitrate 75
phosphate .75-1

so as u can see ive been bringing everything down and into range, but this is first time ive seen this white stuff on my zoas.

 

[drewstaxplaya]

also i will get nopox.

 

[drewstaxplaya]

would that cause my polyps to not open up? is there anything elsd i should do to get rid of the po4? also, any idea on the whiteish stuff on the polyps?

 

[reeferfoxx]

Yeah. Your phosphate levels are super high. Most likely causing alkalinity swings to. If your LFS is testing your water, you most likely have had an alk crash. The white stuff is the zoas dying.

Everything that is happening is out of your control because you have no control. You don't have test kits, ro/di, salt mix, or anything?

 

[drewstaxplaya]

no tests right now as ive been bringing my water to be tested svery few days. i voluntarily bring my water to be tested there as they have 2 marine biologists who works there and theyre very helpful.

the tank is a 29 biocube. i did a 5g water change yesterday. should i do a 10g today and get the phosphate remover that u mentioned?

 

[reeferfoxx]

no tests right now as ive been bringing my water to be tested svery few days. i voluntarily bring my water to be tested there as they have 2 marine biologists who works there and theyre very helpful.

the tank is a 29 biocube. i did a 5g water change yesterday. should i do a 10g today and get the phosphate remover that u mentioned?

Since your PO4 is so high and you can't monitor your parameters on the daily, just get the GFO. You will have to measure the GFO out via milliliters or scale. Your alkalinity will drop and should be supplemented with a 2 part alk additive. Are you familiar with dosing?

 

[drewstaxplaya]

yes i dose cal and trace elements, both from kent marine, 2x a week. i do at least two water changes a week, usually 3-5g, so my alkalinity is pretty stable at 7.7-7.8.

 

[reeferfoxx]

yes i dose cal and trace elements, both from kent marine, 2x a week. i do at least two water changes a week, usually 3-5g, so my alkalinity is pretty stable at 7.7-7.8.

Well, on 8/25 your alk was 9.4. Not 7.7. My 20 gallon tank drops 1.0dkh alk a day. I have to supplement 3ml of alk twice a day to maintain 8.5.

FWIW you shouldn't have to dose trace elements if you are doing 2 water changes a week. Water changes will provide enough trace elements.

 

[drewstaxplaya]

yea ur right, but 8/25 i was dealing with problems from the previous owner still. i dont have too many corals yet, maybe 15 small frags so they arent using much alk. many of the frags only have a few polyps on them as well. since the 8/25 test which was 17 days ago, ive probably done 8 or 9 water changes to bringn everything down. i know all my levels are okay now besides for the po4 and nitrate. and the nitrate has came down from 75 all the way to 30 so thats a positive sign for me.

what could cause phosphates?

 

[reeferfoxx]

yea ur right, but 8/25 i was dealing with problems from the previous owner still. i dont have too many corals yet, maybe 15 small frags so they arent using much alk. many of the frags only have a few polyps on them as well. since the 8/25 test which was 17 days ago, ive probably done 8 or 9 water changes to bringn everything down. i know all my levels are okay now besides for the po4 and nitrate. and the nitrate has came down from 75 all the way to 30 so thats a positive sign for me.

what could cause phosphates?

Heavy feedings, rock leeching po4 and build up of detritus in the sand bed.

 

[drewstaxplaya]

strange. i only feed pellets to my fish and only throw in as many as he eats and wait til theyre all gone. i added two new rocks last week, could that be it? and i spot feed my corals 1-2x a week.

 

[reeferfoxx]

strange. i only feed pellets to my fish and only throw in as many as he eats and wait til theyre all gone. i added two new rocks last week, could that be it? and i spot feed my corals 1-2x a week.

Could be the new rocks. Pellet food is very rich in nutrients and it could be that also. I would slow down on coral feeding. You have enough nutrients in the water column to keep your coral alive for months.

 

[drewstaxplaya]

the pellets i make sure he eats them. i have floating ones so i watch him eat them all, so i know its not that. i guess tomorrow ill pick up phosphate remover and stir up the sandbed and do a 10g water change. will my zoas survive until then?