What's going on in my tank?

[Surfzone]

The Problem
No matter what all my sps seem to die from the tips down. I have also lost all my LPS it takes about a month and they turn brown in the process. I'm not sure what the problem is I know it's none of my fish I get great polyp extension during the death spiral. I grow sponges like crazy and my clam is growing just fine.

The Tank and Equipment
The tank is a 30 gallon cube lit with a XR 15 gen 4. The light is on for 8 hours (1pm to 9pm)a day and ramps up to 100% for two hours and ramxs down set at the AB+ schedule. my skimmer is a Reef Octopus Regal 150-S and return in a Vectra S1. I also run a Geox Calcium reactor, and run carbon in a mesh bag. I also dose KZ's Sponge Power. The tank is bare bottom.

Live stock
1 male Squampenis anthias
1 flame angel
2 neon gobies
1 6 line wrasse
1 royal gramma
1 lawnmower blenny
1 bangii cardinal
2 pincushion urchins

Water Prameters (as of today)
ALK - 7.9d kh (stays between 8 and 7.5 only fluctuating 0.2 per day at most)
Calcium- 475ppm
Magnesium-1480ppm
Nitrate- 16ppm
Phosphate- 0.05ppm
Salinity- 35ppt
These don't stray too far from this

Currently I have a Hawkins Enchinata that has been holding on and a blue Tenuis that seems the be alright, but my birdsnest seems to be fading from the center. I can grow coraline algae just fine. I tend to keep my hands out of the tank until it's time to do a weekly water change of 10 gallons. Flow is provided by two MP10s set to 30 second pulses on either side of the tank.

 

[ycnibrc]

How old is the tank? Your parameters are good so try to find some other factors

 

[piranhaman00]

Double check everything with different equipment. I want to say bad salinity reading.

 

[Surfzone]

How old is the tank? Your parameters are good so try to find some other factors

The tank was set up back in early December. I can grow coraline like crazy so it's not the new tank thing.

Double check everything with different equipment. I want to say bad salinity reading.

I checked my refractometer with calibration solution so that's spot on.

 

[piranhaman00]

The tank was set up back in early December. I can grow coraline like crazy so it's not the new tank thing.

I checked my refractometer with calibration solution so that's spot on.

Check with different refractometer

 

[Hydrored]

What Par and mounting height? 100% is no joke on a radion, I would get 130 par on the sand with a diffuser at 65%

 

[Surfzone]

What Par and mounting height? 100% is no joke on a radion, I would get 130 par on the sand with a diffuser at 65%

When the lights are at 100% I"m reading a par at the top of the rocks of about 370 and I'm getting about 175 on the bottom. Mounted with the RMS mount so about 9 inches off the water

 

[ycnibrc]

How do u cycle your tank? Do u start with all dry rock? Do u add any real live rock to establish a bacteria culture for the biology of the tank?
If you only cycle the tank with the nitrogen bacteria for the amonia, nitrite and nitrate then your tank only set up for fish not corals.
Most reefer now adays start with all dry rock and think that's the tank will be ok after cycle but the big difference is in the old day we use live rock from the ocean which team with many diverse beneficial bacteria which populate and help the tank biology. If every parameters u can check are good then read this thread and explore different angle

Why cant u keep sps?

Reread this thread and I can self diagnose as an experienced reef keeper that keeps beating their head against the wall with a newer tank. Successful tanks for me in the past had big sandbeds and live rocks that served as nutrient, microbial, and microfauna sinks. My current tank is barebottom...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Surfzone]

How do u cycle your tank? Do u start with all dry rock? Do u add any real live rock to establish a bacteria culture for the biology of the tank?
If you only cycle the tank with the nitrogen bacteria for the amonia, nitrite and nitrate then your tank only set up for fish not corals.
Most reefer now adays start with all dry rock and think that's the tank will be ok after cycle but the big difference is in the old day we use live rock from the ocean which team with many diverse beneficial bacteria which populate and help the tank biology. If every parameters u can check are good then read this thread and explore different angle

Why cant u keep sps?

Reread this thread and I can self diagnose as an experienced reef keeper that keeps beating their head against the wall with a newer tank. Successful tanks for me in the past had big sandbeds and live rocks that served as nutrient, microbial, and microfauna sinks. My current tank is barebottom...

www.reef2reef.com

I have read that thread from when it started. I did start with dry rock, but added a small amount of live rock from an established reef as well as a wild Squamosa clam. They all came in covered in coraline, sponges, and critters that are doing quite well in my tank. for the first few months I also added the KZ zeo bak to boost bacteria and zeo start to feed said bacteria, even then i was having trubble with any coral.

 

[bobby.w.hodges]

Was all the equipment new? I'm thinking maybe a magnet is cracked or other metal contamination. Where do you get your source water from? Is the r/o unit old?

 

[Surfzone]

Was all the equipment new? I'm thinking maybe a magnet is cracked or other metal contamination. Where do you get your source water from? Is the r/o unit old?

I just changed all filters on my RODI unit 3 months ago. That includes membrane all my magnets are good to go nothing cracked not rust or anything like that. That was one of the first things I thought of ruling out

 

[bobby.w.hodges]

I just changed all filters on my RODI unit 3 months ago. That includes membrane all my magnets are good to go nothing cracked not rust or anything like that. That was one of the first things I thought of ruling out

Resin changed along with filters?

 

[Surfzone]

Resin changed along with filters?

Yes

 

[minus9]

Agree, your parameters seem fine, but your lighting schedule seems a little off to me. I don't think you need to run your light at 100% for the peak, but you do need a longer peak period at the proper par levels. Two hours at peak, what is your par for the remaining part of the photo period?

 

[Surfzone]

Agree, your parameters seem fine, but your lighting schedule seems a little off to me. I don't think you need to run your light at 100% for the peak, but you do need a longer peak period at the proper par levels. Two hours at peak, what is your par for the remaining part of the photo period?

Just took a PAR reading and my lights are currently at 100% and I'm getting 380 at the top of the rocks and 224 at the bottom of the tank

 

[minus9]

Just took a PAR reading and my lights are currently at 100% and I'm getting 380 at the top of the rocks and 224 at the bottom of the tank

But only for 2hrs, right? I think you need to extend your peak hours to at least 6hrs minimum, but you'll have to slowly get there over the next couple weeks, maybe longer? Add an hour each week or so and observe your corals. If your corals are brown, it usually means one of two things, either not enough light or too high of nutrients.

 

[Surfzone]

But only for 2hrs, right? I think you need to extend your peak hours to at least 6hrs minimum, but you'll have to slowly get there over the next couple weeks, maybe longer? Add an hour each week or so and observe your corals. If your corals are brown, it usually means one of two things, either not enough light or too high of nutrients.

I will try adding more peak hours to the lighting schedule see if that helps.

 

[jeffchapok]

If your tank is just five or six months old, don't lose hope yet. I could not even grow zoas until my tank was nine or 10 months old. Now they grow like weeds. Nothing has really changed as far as my parameters, lighting, or flow. There's just something about a tank maturing – – one day something won't grow and the next day it will. So give it a while and try again in a few months.

 

[Brian_68]

Do you change 10 gallons all at one time? That may be excessive for a 30 gal tank.