Seb8316 Posted February 24 Share Posted February 24 After my peppermint shrimp stopped harassing my duncan, one of the heads has been turning white. Any help would be appreciated. The frag was introduced on Tuesday. Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted February 25 Share Posted February 25 Seems like there is skeleton visible too? If so that's not a good sign. How old is this tank and what are your water test numbers like currently? Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 9 Author Share Posted March 9 Sorry for the late response. It’s been getting worse now. Tank is 3 months old. I tested last tuesday. Parameters Phosphate .15 (a bit high but a decrease from last week .25) Magnesium 1360 Alk 9.3 Calcium 435 Ammonia 0 Nittrite 0 Nitrate 10 PH 8.15 Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 9 Author Share Posted March 9 My other gsp was partly decaying and my zoa not showing full colors and not fully opening Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 pH 8.1 is on the high side of "normal" for a home reef tank....7.8'ish is more normal. Could be nothing/unrelated (neither number is "bad" per se), but any idea what might explain this? Corals seem to do a little better at slightly lower pH (implying higher dissolved CO2/bicarbonate levels). Could be that the coral was damaged before you got it, but we could also use some more info about your tank... What lights do you have? Lux or PAR readings would also help. (Color settings too if that's relevant....color should be something like 20,000K.). Flow pumps? Does flow seem moderate or strong or weak? Is there a refugium? What kind of filters, if any? Maybe a full tank picture too? Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 According to other sources, ph is fine 7.8-8.4. It is stable though, so I don’t think it would be a problem. The coral seems to be getting between low and medium flow. No refugium since this is only a ten gal. For my filters i have an hob rated for 5-10 gal and a sponge filter rated for 10 gal. I don’t know anything about the light, all I know is that it grew coral from my old friend that gave it to me. 1 Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 33 minutes ago, Seb8316 said: According to other sources, ph is fine 7.8-8.4. It is stable though, so I don’t think it would be a problem. Home reef tanks trend toward the lower part of that range – your tank's pH is anchored by alkalinity and the CO2 level in the room(or house) where the tank is. So that leaves a question as to why your pH is breaking with the trend and sitting at the "ideal" saltwater pH of 8.1? As I said the number isn't "bad" but because your number is not "normal" it might be a clue that something "different" is going on with your tank, or where the tank is located, etc. So, I'm hoping you have some idea why it's testing at 8.15 pH and not a bit closer to 7.8. 🙂 I obviously know less about your tank than you, but my only guess (from the last pic) would be the strong aeration you have in the tank. But then lots of folks have strong aeration and still have pH < 8.0. Does the room the tank is in get a lot of fresh air? Any chance you've tested pH in the morning before lights-on and at night just after lights-out to see what the tank's natural pH range is? 44 minutes ago, Seb8316 said: The coral seems to be getting between low and medium flow. If there's a way to up the flow, I would do so. 👍 45 minutes ago, Seb8316 said: For my filters i have an hob rated for 5-10 gal[...] Any media, or just using it for flow? (I'd just it just for flow most of the time.) Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 At night its 8.0 and lights on 8.15 1 Quote Link to comment
empresto Posted March 10 Share Posted March 10 8.15 ph is perfectly acceptable and not something to worry about. Also not a strange number for a home reef. Mine is always bang on 8.2 ph unless alk dips below 7dkh, which has only happened twice in 6 yrs when the dosing system encountered a fault. DON'T worry about this number. I'd be more interested to know if you had any alk fluctuations lately. Lps don't tolerate alk fluctuations very well. Could also be flow related? I don't see a powerhead in your tank. The HOB and air stone may not provide adequate circulation, but you'll know better what's happening with that than I can see from the pictures. Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 10 Author Share Posted March 10 My alk stays at 9.3, I’ve never seen a change. I also do have a powerhead, the one on the left. It pumps 138 gph. Quote Link to comment
empresto Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 Gotcha, I wasn't sure what that box was. Quote Link to comment
coryscritch Posted March 11 Share Posted March 11 What kind of light do you have? Your tank seems pretty tall 1 Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 12 Author Share Posted March 12 Like I said, I don’t know the type of light all i know is that its purple and grew coral. No branding. Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 54 minutes ago, Seb8316 said: Like I said, I don’t know the type of light all i know is that its purple and grew coral. No branding. Could be a plant light, which might grow coral, but I don't think it would be very ideal. It's very unlikely that the coral having problems was adapted to that kind of light before your tank. Still speculating.... Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 12 Author Share Posted March 12 It does have a setting for plants, but i dont use it. My friend had sps in that exact light and it did good. Quote Link to comment
fenderchamp Posted March 12 Share Posted March 12 17 hours ago, Seb8316 said: It does have a setting for plants, but i dont use it. My friend had sps in that exact light and it did good. What are the dimensions of your tank? The picture makes it seem extremely tall and narrow, but maybe it's simply the photo. Try to build up the rock a little bit and glue the duncan to it, you could put it very close to the surface and it will be better off for it, glue it to the rock so it doesn't get bumped around. I'd add more rock to that tank. It doesn't look like there is much algae growing yet. Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 Uh oh, my phosphates are now .5! Dimensions are 12x12x18 inch. I know it dosen’t look like much but thats 10 pounds of live rock in there. And yeah theres diatoms on the right side of the tank. Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 Yea i’ll maybe try to move him and some of my other coral Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 5 minutes ago, Seb8316 said: IMO he looks better here than in the first photo. True in person? Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 Yeah because that first picture was at night. The white skeleton is more visible now, spreading to the brown head. 1 Quote Link to comment
mcarroll Posted March 13 Share Posted March 13 37 minutes ago, Seb8316 said: Tissue appears to be receding from the "missing" head on the right. But the head on the left doesn't look too bad in the photo at least. Is that correct or is there some damage not in the photo? If the photos is showing everything, then IMO the tissue recession might just be from when the coral was fragged. Stronger flow might help the coral heal better/faster. Since your lights seem to be an enigma, some lux measurements (via free lux meter app on your smartphone) might be helpful....try measuring right at the water level in various places to see what range of readings you get. Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 Ok. Im downloading the app rn. Quote Link to comment
Seb8316 Posted March 13 Author Share Posted March 13 The app keeps on telling me for a diffuser. I don’t have one on hand, and the one i tried to make with paper didn’t work. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.