Montipora Undata Health

[scrappy34]

Hello, about a month ago I received a Tyree L.E. Montipora Undata frag. The polyps have been out since day 1, however the colors don't look like what I expected. It's improved since I received it, but not by much. I have it at the very top of my tank, but not directly under my Kessil. This is my first SPS.

 

This is what it's supposed to look like:

 

 

 

This is what mine looks like:

 

This should show the location a little better:

 

 

[Gourami Swami]

What are your parameters like? I have a monti which was growing but pale and discolored, when I was using regular IO salt and my alk and calc, mag were all regularly pretty low. I switched to fritz and the coral colored up literally over night, very noticeably.

[scrappy34]

6 minutes ago, Gourami Swami said:

What are your parameters like? I have a monti which was growing but pale and discolored, when I was using regular IO salt and my alk and calc, mag were all regularly pretty low. I switched to fritz and the coral colored up literally over night, very noticeably.

 

after my last water change when I checked (6 days ago), my calc was roughly 400 and my alk was about 8. I started using reef crystals when I added the monti to the tank, so I've only had two 30% water changes (every two weeks) with the new salt. 

[Gourami Swami]

Hmm if your calc is 400 after the WC and alk 8, have you tested before water change, and are you dosing? Also, do you have many stony corals? Perhaps the corals are absorbing a lot of your calc and alk, and it gets low inbetween? Two weeks is quite a while if you are only relying on the salt to raise parameters. Not sure if that's the case

[Clown79]

Have you monitored all between waterchanges bu testing daily? 

 

That will show you fluctuations of alk and what the tank is absorbing.

 

Another issue could be light spectrum, your settings may not bring out all the colours as advertised pics since most stores take pics under heavy blue.

 

It may need more light.

[scrappy34]

1 hour ago, Gourami Swami said:

Hmm if your calc is 400 after the WC and alk 8, have you tested before water change, and are you dosing? Also, do you have many stony corals? Perhaps the corals are absorbing a lot of your calc and alk, and it gets low inbetween? Two weeks is quite a while if you are only relying on the salt to raise parameters. Not sure if that's the case

 

I have not tested before my water change yet, I will make sure I do that more frequently to see how quick everything is used. Also, this is my first and only SPS so I had assumed it was impossible for it to consume that much calc and alk between water changes.

 

 

23 minutes ago, Clown79 said:

Have you monitored all between waterchanges bu testing daily? 

  

That will show you fluctuations of alk and what the tank is absorbing.

  

Another issue could be light spectrum, your settings may not bring out all the colours as advertised pics since most stores take pics under heavy blue.

  

It may need more light.

 

I will do a better job at monitoring my calc and alk, I didn't think this moni would absorb that much but I'm probably wrong about that. I think I will also move it closer to the light now that its fully acclimated 

 

[mcarroll]

Before you go moving anyone....

46 minutes ago, scrappy34 said:

I will do a better job at monitoring my calc and alk, I didn't think this moni would absorb that much but I'm probably wrong about that. I think I will also move it closer to the light now that its fully acclimated 

 

You aren't wrong...a single new frag that seems pale won't be making any huge dents in your alkalinity.  (Still test to be sure....we can't know anything for sure from where we sit.)

 

I didn't see any mention of nutrient levels.

 

Can you test and post your current levels for nitrates and phosphates?  If you've been testing them, please note how current levels compare with the past readings you have.

 

Low nitrates can cause "paling" where the corals lose pigments (probably consumed internally to supply their needs for nutrients) and low phosphates can promote bleaching.

 

IMO yours look like a low-NO3 case and not so much like bleaching....but test results tell-all.  :-)

 

Let us know those values!  

[Tamberav]

You said it looks better NOW than when you recieved it.

 

Was it shipped to you?

 

I have SPS arrive brown from shipping stress and takes them weeks or months to color up depending on each specific coral.