dying super.....kryptonite in the tank?

[latazyo]

so for some reason my superman is just fading away, but its going from the middle out

here is a blurry pic...best I could get with my 5 year old camera, but its very easy to see the giant white stripe in the middle of it

all other corals are just fine, only the "good" one is dying

my lighting has not been replaced and Ive been running used bulbs for about 9 months, so its probably time for new bulbs...would that have anything to do with this?

temps are fine, apartment down here is air conditioned 24/7

any suggestions?

thanks in advance if anyone has a suggestion

 

[JxMetal]

is it bleaching?

 

[latazyo]

some of my other corals are getting kind of white, but I thought that was from high light

my lights were used when I got them in November...they are due for being changed...will old lights bleach?

 

[JxMetal]

i unno


I'd replace the bulbs though if you're keeping SPS.

 

[latazyo]

the coral is about 4" from a giant frogspawn...could that be the problem?

 

[JxMetal]

I may have to get in my Donatello outfit to figure this one out. (he was the smart one, ya know)

Ok, now I'm ready.

It's only a problem if it gets stung.......:lol:

 

[chadfarmer]

how about some info about your system

alk
calcium
magnesium
phosphate

did anything happend to the system in the last month


have you done anything with your light?

 

[latazyo]

alk - dont test
calcium - dont test
magnesium - dont test
phosphate - dont test

did anything happend to the system in the last month - no


have you done anything with your light? - as in buying new ones? not yet, just decided to do it about 45 minutes ago

 

[chadfarmer]

alk - dont test
calcium - dont test
magnesium - dont test
phosphate - dont test


i would test these at least the alk

 

[JxMetal]

Well the results don't lie. If they don't say somethings wrong, then nothings wrong.

 

[sirreal63]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10322301#post10322301 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chadfarmer
alk - dont test
calcium - dont test
magnesium - dont test
phosphate - dont test


i would test these at least the alk

I would agree with testing...and I doubt it is the lights, new bulbs would cause a problem but the old ones won't. If you don't test and keep the requirements for these corals correct you cannot expect them to do well. Phosphates and nitrates would be a concern too. Yes something has happened to the system in the past month...it was neglected as far as keeping the stonies healthy.

All may not be lost though...once you test and know what is out of whack and is corrected they may recover just fine. Time to invest in some test kits.

 

[latazyo]

I actually have an alk test, I'll do it tomorrow morning and post the results

 

[Nanook]

Not testing and keeping stonies long term will not work for long

 

[Chelsey]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10322043#post10322043 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by latazyo
the coral is about 4" from a giant frogspawn...could that be the problem?

Sweepers could also be the problem, but definately test alk. I'm probably the worst person about testing parameters (and water changes for that matter), but I am religious with alk. Once you get things figured out as far as how your alk, calcium, and magnesium are intertwined and get a curve set as to when things change you'll be good to go. Before then you'll need to test daily-ish. It's taken a while but I can usually pinpoint how long it takes my alk to drop and I have gotten levels situated (how much calcium to add per "x" amount of baking soda and how often to add epsom salt). Things have since become much easier but I still test weekly.

 

[latazyo]

alk is 2.5

 

[sirreal63]

dkh?

 

[JxMetal]

2.5........if dkh, that's very low.

 

[latazyo]

Im pretty sure, the test involved adding drops of reagent, then dividing by 2...I added 5 drops to turn from blue to yellow

I have begun filling my tote for a water change, its been a while

I am working on a way to replace these bulbs, I can probably only do it 3 bulbs at a time based on budget....although I dont think that the old bulbs are causing the problem, it is due time to replace them anyways

 

[JxMetal]

are you using the tetratec tests?

they're way out of whack. :lol: I used to have their alk test.

 

[sirreal63]

If the bulbs are only 9 months old they are still fine. The myth about old bulbs being a problem are just that...a myth. Bulbs lose a lot of intensity the first few months and then remain fairly stable. I believe they tested a phoenix and the difference between 1 year and two years was about 7% difference in intensity. New bulbs right now would be a stress on the corals as new bulbs have a higher intensity.

Water chemistry is what is needed now.