Sps Meltdown..again.

[reeferkeeper420]

So i cant figure out whats going on. All my sps is withering away, alot are starting with burnt tips. What else beside high alk would this indicate. My alks only 8.5. Zoas lps and softies all look fine, sps are looking worse everyday. Im trying to eradicate bryopsis but theres even pieces that arents being touched by it that are going to shit. Need some guidance before i lose them all.

 

[jroovers]

Sorry to hear this. Alk burn is a possibility if its just the tips. What are your water parameters? Have you made any changes to your tank (water changes, lighting changes, dosed/medicated for something, different routine, etc.) Pics might help as well.

 

[reeferkeeper420]

Alk-8.5 Ca 420 Mg 1500 N03 7 P04 needs to be tested again SG 1.026 TDS 0. The only real change was bulbs over a month ago. Water changes i do 20gs at a time.

 

[heath]

are you medicating the tank for anything, you went away last week for a few days could something have happened...just thinking out loud, you have had such a run of bad luck lately...

 

[reeferkeeper420]

No i just started dosing tech m for bryopsis, but this was happening before then. And no was also happening before i went away.

 

[heath]

ok, wow.. we are going to change your name to Sherlock holmes, this is really strange...not a who dunit but what dunit..

 

[reeferkeeper420]

Yeah its really frustrating. Not being able to do anything and just watch them all die

 

[heath]

It got be heartbreaking not knowing what it is and what to do...

 

[jroovers]

You ruled out nitrates I believe, right? Jerry was just over too (I think you mentioned this in your thread about nitrates) - if so, maybe he has some additional insights. How do you add your alk? Did you reduce your photoperiod on your lighting when changing over? Burnt tips definitely can be caused by a change in lighting intensity.

 

[reeferkeeper420]

Yeah N03 was ruled out.i cant remember now if i reduced photo period..i dont think i did i think i just added the bulbs slowly. 1 a week, until i got half way and then added 2 a week. I add alk through a doser. Yeah jerry thinks its the bryopsis, i dont know tho...even my rainbow montis on the bottom of my tank with no algae near them look horrible.

 

[reeferkeeper420]

And before the bulbs were changed all the sps were sitting on the bottom of the tank because they were being treated. And i never acclimated them.back to the intensity. The montis have stayed in the same place tho..

 

[heath]

could it be the lights, do you have a par meter, I never understood how that works..

 

[reeferkeeper420]

Its a possibility...but id think it would start slowing down as the lights are around 2 months old...

 

[Kman]

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[Kman]

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[CanadaCorals.com]

You say your magnesium is 1500ppm. What test kit are you using? With Salifert, its maxed out @ 1500ppm so maybe you are much higher.

How quickly did you increase the magnesium per day?

 

[Kman]

Are you dosing bio pellets? I used to get burnt tips using them so I took them off line. If I am not running ULNS I run my ALK at 10. I find I have less issues with burning or PH fluctuations at this level in SPS. As a bonus at higher ALK you get better calcification rates. Is the burning only at the tips? How long do you run your lights? MH right? How close to the water is the light? Are all your tips burning or just the ones right below the lights? How are you dosing for ALK? What do you use for Calcium additions? How do you mix your salt? Did it start when you started this batch of salt? Do you pre mix your salt at let it sit 24 hr?

 

[jroovers]

You say your magnesium is 1500ppm. What test kit are you using? With Salifert, its maxed out @ 1500ppm so maybe you are much higher.

Good point to make sure that is accurate, as with your nitrate measurements. To measure above 1500 ppm do exactly as described in the instructions, but continue adding titrant with a second syringe full until you reach the endpoint/colour change. Then add the values for the two syringes together to get your reading. I.e. 1500 ppm + 250 = 1750 ppm.

 

[Kman]

If your mag is that high I would stop dosing till it naturally drops. To high a Meg will burn the corals as well for sure.

 

[reeferkeeper420]

I need the mag in the 1600-1800 range to battle bryopsis. This was happening long before i started dosing the mag. And it turned blue with the last 2 drops, and yes its salifert