I've had a tank now for about 10 years. It's been stable for about the last two or so w/eight years taken to really learning how to do it. I guess it's been stable for so long, I became tended to relax my vigilance and, well, things went bad.
At some point I began to notice a couple of my lps corals and a rbta were looking not so good. I eliminated most possibilities and concluded it was either light or temperature -- but this took time and my corals continued to deteriorate. In fact, the rbta, which I've had for years, shrank up to nothing and just disappeared!
I recalled that I had raised the LED's from a max of 50 to 60 at some point so I dropped it back. Over the next couple of weeks there was no improvement and I lost a really nice brain I'd also had for many years.
So, having not seriously considered temp. when I first checked it because it was around 84, it slowly dawned on me that 84 is very possibly too hot. I'd added a second heater a few months ago and never really monitored its impact on temp. So the tank was running hot for over four or five months.
I was just so dumb. It's yet another reminder that even after 10 years, things can go wrong - badly wrong. I saved most corals, and will not soon forget to check the basics on a more regular basis.
I learned something else as well: soft corals, LPS, anemones cannot take temps as high as 84 for any length of time. The SPS seemed to handle it a lot better, but they have been growing slowly most likely because of the heat.
If it isn't already happening, widespread coral bleaching events will be an early and tragic indicator of the impact of global warming.
At some point I began to notice a couple of my lps corals and a rbta were looking not so good. I eliminated most possibilities and concluded it was either light or temperature -- but this took time and my corals continued to deteriorate. In fact, the rbta, which I've had for years, shrank up to nothing and just disappeared!
I recalled that I had raised the LED's from a max of 50 to 60 at some point so I dropped it back. Over the next couple of weeks there was no improvement and I lost a really nice brain I'd also had for many years.
So, having not seriously considered temp. when I first checked it because it was around 84, it slowly dawned on me that 84 is very possibly too hot. I'd added a second heater a few months ago and never really monitored its impact on temp. So the tank was running hot for over four or five months.
I was just so dumb. It's yet another reminder that even after 10 years, things can go wrong - badly wrong. I saved most corals, and will not soon forget to check the basics on a more regular basis.
I learned something else as well: soft corals, LPS, anemones cannot take temps as high as 84 for any length of time. The SPS seemed to handle it a lot better, but they have been growing slowly most likely because of the heat.
If it isn't already happening, widespread coral bleaching events will be an early and tragic indicator of the impact of global warming.
