Never encountered this problem before...(its been a while)

[Formula462]

this WAS a big long uni-bodied paragraph about how my tank was awesome for 2 years and then crashed due to faulty heater (im assuming thats what crashed it) and now i'm having problems starting it over. i used a few of the same rocks in the new setup (after cleaning them) but now i think i should have scrapped them altogether. it currently tests great and i know its not faulty tests because the LFS verified that they were pretty much ideal for reef ( i know they were perfect but wanted second opinion). i also used a buddies test and his say the same. i'm not a noob by any means, just someone that got real upset after their baby crashed and just ran a tank with rocks and water for 4 months before deciding to build it back up. now im having some kind of issue. im gonna post a pic of the tank later, see if it helps at all. i really dont want to strip it down to barebones and buy new sand again, but i will if i have to. i want this halide to have something pretty to light up.

[Formula462]

wrong forum maybe? can i get some help here?

[ednangel]

I can’t even finish reading you post, maybe using sentences and paragraphs would help. Most of us here will just look and look away.

[Dizzle21]

I can even finish reading you post maybe using sentences and paragraphs would help. most of us here will just look and lookaway.

 

+1

 

whenever i see a long novel i wont read it. best to keep it as short as possible and we'll ask questions on the missing parts

[Professor]

I can even finish reading you post maybe using sentences and paragraphs would help. most of us here will just look and lookaway.

 

^ Jack@SS! Very helpful. Maybe correct spelling, punctuation and capitalization would make you easier to understand.

 

 

Are you using tap water or RO? You could have high phosphates which a lot of corals are sensitive to. It seems odd to me that you do not have pods or other cryptic life in the the tank after having it set up for that period of time. The fact you are getting diatoms indicates to me that you may still be having some type of cycle even though your tests are reading ok. Also, you mentioned that you used some of the water from the tank from when it crashed as well as some of the rocks which could also be causing problems with water quality. All in all it sounds like your water quality is not stable which is stressing the corals out, despite what your tests re saying. What are you testing for and how old are your test sets?

[Formula462]

cool a reply of some kind. i wont lie, i had some beers in me at the time of the post. i even knew myself that it looked like garbage but i halfway did not care. basically, the tank test pretty much perfect in all my tests. i even used a friends tests to verify. it is a restarted bc14 that crashed due to the heater failing last october. i used all new sand, mostly new rocks and 80 percent new water. im having problems with zoas not opening and i suspect shrooms would the same but i dont have a single polyp to check with.

 

just wondering if me not feeding the tank for the 3 months after my clown died caused my CUC and pods to die off and this somehow let pest algae grow. ive been doing about 30% water changes every 10 days. the leather seemed fine but i've noticed him pinching or creasing a little lately like the last one did before it developed some gooey black wads of tissue rot causing holes. im also wondering if it is lacking in iodine and other elements because i've been using the same old red sea sand ( switching to tropic marin )

 

 

Salinity 1.026

Nitrite 0

Nitrate 0

Ammonia 0

Ph 8.1

Calcium 450

Dkh 11

Phosphate 0

LFS said magnesium checked out as well ( dont have a test for that)

 

my tests are about a year and a half old and stay cool, dry, and out of light. API master reef and marine kits.

[Formula462]

^ Jack@SS! Very helpful. Maybe correct spelling, punctuation and capitalization would make you easier to understand.

 

 

Are you using tap water or RO? You could have high phosphates which a lot of corals are sensitive to. It seems odd to me that you do not have pods or other cryptic life in the the tank after having it set up for that period of time. The fact you are getting diatoms indicates to me that you may still be having some type of cycle even though your tests are reading ok. Also, you mentioned that you used some of the water from the tank from when it crashed as well as some of the rocks which could also be causing problems with water quality. All in all it sounds like your water quality is not stable which is stressing the corals out, despite what your tests re saying. What are you testing for and how old are your test sets?

 

i'm using RO but i am going to change stores i get it from because i am not so sure they ever service the filters. i have noticed some of their tanks having similar diatom and pest algae problems in tanks that are ATO'ed by the same water. my phos level is 0 according to two separate tests and all other levels are perfect. temp hangs at around 80 to 82 and i am working on dropping that a tad, but it was never a problem for the whole 2 years my tank looked great. i keep salinity at 1.026 nitrites and trates are 0. ammonia 0 . i have been using red sea salt (####ty i know) and i am switching to tropic marin.

 

should i take out the remnants of the old rock altogether and replace it with new rock completely? also, should i feed the tank brine bits and treat it like it still cycling ? i'll admit the 30% percent changes are usually unintentional due to underestimating the syphon force.

[Formula462]

believe it or not i am not a reef noob. i just got really depressed about it after it crashed because i could have paid more attention to my temperature and skimming issue. i've had it running for a while now with just rocks and sand and this leather was added back recently and was doing fine, but just tonight i've noticed him creasing in an area similar to how my last leather did during and after the tank crashed a while back.

[ednangel]

^ Jack@SS! Very helpful. Maybe correct spelling, punctuation and capitalization would make you easier to understand.

 

 

Are you using tap water or RO? You could have high phosphates which a lot of corals are sensitive to. It seems odd to me that you do not have pods or other cryptic life in the the tank after having it set up for that period of time. The fact you are getting diatoms indicates to me that you may still be having some type of cycle even though your tests are reading ok. Also, you mentioned that you used some of the water from the tank from when it crashed as well as some of the rocks which could also be causing problems with water quality. All in all it sounds like your water quality is not stable which is stressing the corals out, despite what your tests re saying. What are you testing for and how old are your test sets?

 

is this better Profe?

 

I can't even finish reading you post, maybe using sentences and paragraphs would help. Most of us here will just look and look away.

 

FU

[Formula462]

is this better Profe?

 

I can't even finish reading you post, maybe using sentences and paragraphs would help. Most of us here will just look and look away.

 

FU

were you dropped as a baby? i am looking for serious help here. besides, i already said i was drinking at a friends house when i originally posted.

[ednangel]

Don't know, thou I was doing some constructive criticism. I did critique your posting but gave you a piece of advice to make it more reader friendly so others would read it and pitch in. So my last post was to the Professor not you.

 

good luck!

[Formula462]

facepalm

[jeff@zina.com]

were you dropped as a baby? i am looking for serious help here. besides, i already said i was drinking at a friends house when i originally posted.

 

Don't drink and post. I skipped the thread originally because I couldn't read enough of it to understand what you were asking. After reading the follow up posts, I sat and tried to read through your original post and I still can't make my way through it.

 

From what I do understand, your tank conditions test perfect but your livestock shows the conditions likely aren't anywhere near ideal. Tests have expiration dates, check them. Double check all your tests with another kit or the LFS. I have no idea why you're feeding a clown that died three months ago (best I got out of the original post, sorry if it's wrong...) but it seems obvious to me that you should stop that practice.

 

Do some serious water changes, 20% at a time, every three days or so. Make sure your gravel and rock are free of detritus and other debris. You mentioned your CUC may be dead, I would think this would be easy to determine. If you don't see any snails or crabs, they're dead. Get new ones.

 

There are a million reasons why your corals could be doing poorly. Check lighting. Try setting up a QT tank and putting the corals in there, with strong light and no feeding. Do not use anything from the existing tank to set this up.

 

Whatever you do, make sure your husbandry is perfect. Oh, and for the record, this wouldn't be close to the right forum for this question.

 

Jeff

[Formula462]

no i HAVENT fed the tank anything at all since the fish died. the lfs tests are the same as mine. its america, and for the time being, i still possess the right to drink and post lol.

 

my husbandry as of late has been spot on. but i have been slightly inconsistent with water changes so heres the new plan. take out the two other older rocks that had algae and minor coral remnants on them and replace them. blast off all the remaining detritus on the rocks and sand while syphoning. my lights and ballast are about 3 years old now and that was an issue i considered but its not the cause of the problem. i still have a viper 70W halide in the mail for my b-day which is why i want to turn my tank around. its getting to the point that i'm worried about a contaminant or something. i figured at the time that it would explain perfect water tests but a dead clown fish and corals that were all totally healthy and great looking for 2 years.

 

 

the "lights" get replaced 3 times yearly, the ballasts are old tho. and sometimes the daylight wont come on and i have to unplug and replug the ballast. but my new zoa frag was opening in its bag under my lights, but once in the tank, puckered right up. salinity and temp are close to the same it came from too.

[mbonus]

my lights and ballast are about 3 years old now and that was an issue i considered but its not the cause of the problem.

 

 

Maybe this is the issue? I'm really a reef newb, so you probably know better than me, but don't lights start emitting the wrong spectrums as they break down over time? I't is possible that the corals are not getting the proper wavelength in order to thrive. I have read wrong wavelength (read old lights) could lead to algea propogation as well. Maybe things will turn around when you get the new light and then you'll have your answer.

 

I like you idea about taking out the old rock you have such a low bioload right now, it shouldn't hurt anything. I also wonder if you could get some pods to seed the tank. Maybe they will start reproducing and that would be a good indication that things are looking up.

 

 

 

Sorry for the long reply, I'm sure it is unreadable.

[Formula462]

Maybe this is the issue? I'm really a reef newb, so you probably know better than me, but don't lights start emitting the wrong spectrums as they break down over time? I't is possible that the corals are not getting the proper wavelength in order to thrive. I have read wrong wavelength (read old lights) could lead to algea propogation as well. Maybe things will turn around when you get the new light and then you'll have your answer.

 

I like you idea about taking out the old rock you have such a low bioload right now, it shouldn't hurt anything. I also wonder if you could get some pods to seed the tank. Maybe they will start reproducing and that would be a good indication that things are looking up.

 

 

 

Sorry for the long reply, I'm sure it is unreadable.

 

thanks man, my OP was very hard to read, but not as hard as some of these wads are making it sound. i just really hate to leave out details but i was drinking at the time and really did not care as much for proper structure. the funny thing is that i am an english major and have some minor publications lol. you would never know it from the way i forum post tho.

 

i'm gonna pull the rock after work and add some new pre-cured. the ballast being old is something i considered, and it would explain the allowance of algaes and diatoms without phosphates or nitrates tho. hopefully its the root of the problem because i have a badass solution on the way to my house.

[mbonus]

Maybe the ballast would cause issues, but I was more talking about old bulbs.

 

Good luck and keep us posted!

[Formula462]

i also wanted to make note that the algae is not the traditional GHA thats long and stringy and hard to remove. it's slimier and clears right away with heavy jetting or some light brushing. it seems to come and go on just a few certain areas, and the one astrea snail i have left does not eat it. the tank also emits a slightly organic smell when i do water changes, its possible i have a bunch of nasty decay on the underside of one of the old rocks and its fowling the water up. strange how its not making the water test bad though. for safety sake im pulling the rocks and checking the sand for anything rotting. watch me find like an old penny at the bottom of a chamber or something.