What would cause this bleaching

[Jl330]

Lights are off but woke up this morning to this. My other sps is fine.

 

[Waters]

Is it bleaching or STN/RTN? I can't tell if there is any tissue left on the white parts.

 

[markalot]

That's tissue loss, not bleaching. The tissue has died and fallen off the coral, those areas are dead. What caused it is the tough part.

You say other SPS are fine, other acros? How large are the colonies and how long have they been in the tank?

Is your Alk stable? Has it been stable since this acro was added to the tank?

 

[Jl330]

I have one other and they were both added 2 weeks ago.

Alk should be stable, I did do a water change yesterday.

 

[markalot]

I have one other and they were both added 2 weeks ago.

Alk should be stable, I did do a water change yesterday.

Unfortunately with Acros should be isn't good enough, these are one of the most difficult corals to keep alive, yet can also be quite easy if you have your chemistry down and stable Alk. What trips up most people is that while other corals can easily survive Alk changes and even thrive as long as the changes aren't extreme, these same changes will flat out kill most Acros. There's a lot of good information in this forum for how to properly care for them.

 

[Jl330]

If these guys don't make it I may just stick with euphilia and trachs. I'm just frustrated. I really want this to work.

 

[erky]

not just alk needs to be stable, is there enough nitrate/po4 in your system for this acro to feed?

doing water changes to keep your alk stable is probably not keeping it stable, FYI

 

[Jl330]

not just alk needs to be stable, is there enough nitrate/po4 in your system for this acro to feed?

doing water changes to keep your alk stable is probably not keeping it stable, FYI

You're probably right. I have no idea what I'm doing.

I don't know how to dose properly to keep it where it needs to be.

 

[erky]

You're probably right. I have no idea what I'm doing.

I don't know how to dose properly to keep it where it needs to be.

there are many threads on how to test and dose for alk/ca. I would most likely say that frag is a goner as once RTN starts on a frag that small it is difficult to stop. Please do not hesitate to post questions, maybe start with some montipora Digitata or other easier SPS so you can get used to dialing in your alk, and then get some acros.

Expect to lose some coral, everyone has; it is part of the hobby.