Help Velvet Branch Monti

[alford35]

What should I do if polyp extension has almost became non existant? The polyps are still visable but barely and has been this way for aprox 36 hrs.

Lighting Radion ramped up to aprox 50% 10" above tank
Cal-420
Alk-9.5
Mag-1550-1600
Ph-8.3
Salinity-1.024

Placement is on sand bed right now aprox 14" below water line. It is getting flow but not direct and is right beside a peach branching coral that looks good.

Any suggestions on where to move it or leave it alone or what?

 

[bskiba]

how long has it been in the tank? what other things have been changing with your tank . could be lot's of things but more info is needed.

could be phosphates or nitrates increased.
could be something harrassing it, fish or coral,
lighting could stress it out.
many other possibilities.

 

[alford35]

Its new but hasnt been showing signs of stress other than when it has been plowed over onto the sandbed by a large snail or urchin. That was about 5 days ago. It was laying on the sand and only a tip of one of the branches was actually touching the sandbed.

It has been in the tank for about 12 days and came from LA.

Trates are 0 may need to feed fish a tad more as I feed them flakes once a day and frozen every other day.

Phos- barely a trace on the test

I have fed the corals once every 2 to 3 days. I fill a shot glass with tank water and add one drop of coral food that is enough for 50 gallons. Then I add half of that glass to the tank since it is only 16 gallons.

No sudden changes in the tank params and the only param that is different when I mix the water change is Alk which is higher in the Instant Ocean mix than what I keep it at in the DT. Mix measures 10.5-11 and DT has been around 8.5-9.5 since I started testing right after I bought the SPS corals. These are my first go at keeping sps and this tank is newer.

Monti plate bali looks good
an acro looks good
and a branching monti that is pretty close to this one looks good
All other non sps corals are doing good

As far as fish or other coral stressing it
only fish are two black and white clowns
Coral its about 3 inches from a zoo rock and about 5 inches away from another branching monti

Lighting is at aprox 50% on the Radion I think it is actually 47% right now as I'm in the proccess of ramping it up higher.