need help on keeping lps

[audacious1]

I can't seem to keep lps alive. I've lost an open brain, lobophylia, hammer and bubble coral really fast. The strange thing is that i also have a rose anemone and a couple sps frags that are encrusting and growing quite fast.

heres my tank info:
80 gal
20 gal sump w/chaeto
swc 180 skimmer
2 ecotech radions @ 45% intensity
1 mp40 1 koralia
tlf phosban reactor with rowaphos.

my parameters are: (just tested)
ca-420 salifert
mag-1340 salifert
alk-135 ppm with hanna
ph 8.1 - reefkeeper lite ph probe
nitrate 5-10 salifert
phosphate - 0.04 ppm with hanna
ammonia - 0 api

any info would be nice! thanks

 

[greech]

That is odd. When I saw the Rowaphos and the larger skimmer, I thought your water may be too clean but if you have nitrates and PO4, that must not be the case. I added too much Rowa once and my LPS didn't like it at all. Thought I was going to lose some but they ended up pulling through. Not downing Rowa, its a great product IME and I still use it. Just be careful not to run too much at once.

Lighting seems good and shouldn't be too much at 45%. Were these corals on the sandbed or mounted higher in the tank? Also what is your SG?

 

[Sleepyhead]

If 135ppm is 7.56 DKH, I would raise the to Alk to about 10 DKH.

 

[chrisfont23]

I have all LPS. FWIW, when my NO3 dips below 20 or so, I see the tank go south. Not sure why this happens. I lost a branching hammer and a brain early on when I set up my 90. I thought it was my lights, only to realize the water was too clean. I came to this when I experimented with carbon dosing and ran my NO3 down the gamut again, this time near 10. Bad move... corals no likie.

Now I am not saying this is a bona fide #1 idea and go do it. My corals may have acclimated to the higher levels or something - who knows. And the rapid decline may have "shocked" them initially, and for all I know, they could have survived at that level for a while post shock...but I wasn't sticking around w/ the carbon dosing to find out.

Just my experience...

 

[trinidiver]

did all of them die all at the same time? how tall is your tank? where were all the corals placed..............high up or low down on the sand? did this happen just after you placed them or did you have them long before and this recently started

 

[audacious1]

greech: thanks for your reply. i add all the 250ml of rowa at once. maybe i'm doing too much? also, my lobophylia is on the bottom(almost dead) . bubble long gone was also on the bed and the open brain was in the middle. i had 2 175 watt mh and changed to leds a couple months ago. i started at 25% and am currently at 45. i also have a squamosa clam that is doing extremely well.

sleepyhead: alk is 7.56 dkh, i will raise it up a little each day. thank you

chrisfont23: i would do that but i want to keep sps too.

trinidiver: most were place on the sand bed. they all died randomly. tank is 22" high. happened a little before i purchased them. they seemed to be doing good and then bam they took a turn. funny thing is that i gave my brother in law the open brain and its huge in his tank with nitrates at 50 and phos around the .35ppm. it's frustrating..

 

[audacious1]

heres a few pictures to kinda give you guys and idea on whats going on.


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