frustrated with leathers!

surfingdude

New member
ok...my leather corals look like crap...I have a toadstool with long polyps and was the first one I ever owned, 2 months old...that has been doing great but now is closed up and shrinking. I think that one may start shedding, at least I hope so. It is shiny on the surface so Iam hoping this one is going to be ok.

I have 2 others that just havent looked good and are about a couple weeks old. One is a finger and the other a toadstool. The finger has only opened a couple times the last couple weeks and did shed a few days ago. After shedding it opened nicely but that only lasted a day. They all just dont look good.

I had one die 3 weeks ago, well it may have been ok and I may have jumped the gun on that one cause it just looked like it was going rotten and gave it over a week, but heaved it cause it kept looking worse and was nervous about polluting my tank.

all other corals look good...zoanthids look great...green birdsnest and elegance coral the same, tho the elegance is only a week old. Have some beautiful lightning strike polyps that are spreading from frag plug onto the rock...look great.

actually, this is the first time seeing my green star polyps slightly retracted, tho they have been spreading like a weed, so Iam not to worried about those.

my water parameters have been stellar, at least what I check...nitrates are at 0 for the first time since starting the tank...0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, phosphates 0, ph 8.3, and salinity right on. Very little algae growth now other then a little bit of brown algae...its the best the tank looks, except these dam leathers.

Is this normal? Thought maybe they are getting to much light...one looks pale but its on the side away from main lighting. Finger is directly under the light but description said med/high flow and med/high light. I have turned the flow down, reduced lighting, still the same.

is this normal with these? thought they were easy? Harder corals look stellar...just so frustrated.
 
Leather corals can be very temperamental sometimes. Hopefully it's just a phase and will pass, but if your not seeing the corals turn black or disintegrate then I wouldn't worry too much about it.
 
Not only temperamental, but they can be very slow to acclimate to change. They aren't hurting, they just don't like to blow up or polyp out and that can last for days and even over a week.
 
Giving toadstools a little more flow and you may never see him shed anymore, at least that's what has happened to me. When he was in lower flow he would shed every week.
 
ok...my leather corals look like crap...I have a toadstool with long polyps and was the first one I ever owned, 2 months old...that has been doing great but now is closed up and shrinking. I think that one may start shedding, at least I hope so. It is shiny on the surface so Iam hoping this one is going to be ok.

I have 2 others that just havent looked good and are about a couple weeks old. One is a finger and the other a toadstool. The finger has only opened a couple times the last couple weeks and did shed a few days ago. After shedding it opened nicely but that only lasted a day. They all just dont look good.

I had one die 3 weeks ago, well it may have been ok and I may have jumped the gun on that one cause it just looked like it was going rotten and gave it over a week, but heaved it cause it kept looking worse and was nervous about polluting my tank.

all other corals look good...zoanthids look great...green birdsnest and elegance coral the same, tho the elegance is only a week old. Have some beautiful lightning strike polyps that are spreading from frag plug onto the rock...look great.

actually, this is the first time seeing my green star polyps slightly retracted, tho they have been spreading like a weed, so Iam not to worried about those.

my water parameters have been stellar, at least what I check...nitrates are at 0 for the first time since starting the tank...0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, phosphates 0, ph 8.3, and salinity right on. Very little algae growth now other then a little bit of brown algae...its the best the tank looks, except these dam leathers.

Is this normal? Thought maybe they are getting to much light...one looks pale but its on the side away from main lighting. Finger is directly under the light but description said med/high flow and med/high light. I have turned the flow down, reduced lighting, still the same.

is this normal with these? thought they were easy? Harder corals look stellar...just so frustrated.

It would be fantastic to see your currently water parameters.
 
Post up some pics of the leathers. They may just be trying to shed, very common depending on the strain. I have one that closes for a week out of three and one that never sheds. They need turbulent and strong flow for optimum health.
 
also what test kits are us using , if api get better ones. on that note, my friend has kept leathers for 6 years in his tank. he cant kill them. his nitrates where 100ppm and they still lived. i will say one thing, they dont like fast change. try not to move them, try not to move power heads. i find they can survive in just about any water conditions, just not drastic changes
 
Aw, API isn't so bad. :) Just figure your Ca is about 20 - 40 higher than it is showing, LOL...

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
 
ok...the one leather that was out since day one was in fact shedding...came home today and saw some polyps trying to push thru the skin...kinda strange looking and wish I took a picture of it... so I took a turkey baster sucked it off and blew it off...looks good now...all polyps extended. Love this leather and thank goodness thats all it was.

the finger, which shedded last week, decided to do it again...wierd...wouldnt think it would shed so quickly back to back...polyps also extended and looking good again. Hope it stays this way.

The other one, still not opened but did shed also recently...my guess its doing it again as well. Weird...had skin flowing all over the tank from the two shedding...scooped most of it up.

I use api but havent tested for anything other then nitrates, phosphates, and ph. No longer test for nitrites or ammonia...they have been 0 for a while. Mainly focus on trates and phosphates, both at 0 now and probably will stop checking those unless I think there is a problem. Definitely gonna get some test kits for the other stuff. I really need to start testing for that stuff.

my first leather that has always looked good...now done shedding for the first time and looking good. Has moderate to strong flow.


finger leather: shedded again, shedded last week too. You can see the skin flapping...polyps now extended and looks good. Strong flow on this one.


this one still not opened...guessing shedding yet again. Also shedded last week.
 
Well, phosphates I could understand not checking unless you think there is a problem...but not nitrates, not in a tank with a full bio-load of fish, anyway. I have to say, though...unless you start checking your kH and Ca at least (and mag if you dose it separately) you probably won't be able to run a successful tank for long. Do you dose with anything now, and just not test for it?

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
 
Well, phosphates I could understand not checking unless you think there is a problem...but not nitrates, not in a tank with a full bio-load of fish, anyway. I have to say, though...unless you start checking your kH and Ca at least (and mag if you dose it separately) you probably won't be able to run a successful tank for long. Do you dose with anything now, and just not test for it?

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk

I do not dose...25 % water change every 2-3 weeks. Yea, I meant phosphates Iam done testing unless I encounter algae issues. Will still test my nitrates once a week. If they get pass 10, I will make a water change if it happens before the 2-3 week period. Iam definitely gonna start checking the other stuff. Time to buy some test kits...hoping my water change takes care of those numbers.
 
Sounds like a great plan to me...all of it!!! :) So glad your leathers are okay...shedding is so weird, isn't it! When a big massive leather sheds it looks really, really weird. ;) It is a good thing, though...means they are growing! :)

Sent from my SM-G900P using Tapatalk
 
I was testing my phosphates with API and had zero. I bought the Hannah ULR phosphorous checker and it was maxed out above .6. Also if you truly have zero nitrates and phosphates then your corals have no food. But seeing the little bit of algae on the rocks tells me it's not truly zero.

I'd say your toadstool at the top looks fine, the finger leather just looks like it's shedding. But that last one doesn't look to great. If it's new it may just be acclimating to your water.
 
I was testing my phosphates with API and had zero. I bought the Hannah ULR phosphorous checker and it was maxed out above .6. Also if you truly have zero nitrates and phosphates then your corals have no food. But seeing the little bit of algae on the rocks tells me it's not truly zero.

I'd say your toadstool at the top looks fine, the finger leather just looks like it's shedding. But that last one doesn't look to great. If it's new it may just be acclimating to your water.

Yea, I had some algae, in fact it was popping up everywhere and posted about it...but its diminishing greatly and pic brings it out a bit, but you should of saw it before. Was quite nervous seeing it all, new tank syndrome...very little left in the tank now, thank goodness.

all is very well...all opened up, including the one hold out and they all look great! Including harder to care for corals:bounce1:.
 
Back
Top