Had this 10 gallon jbj set up for the last 4 months just added stuff about three weeks ago, hammer coral frogspawn, two clowns, some shrooms, three zoas frags and a candy cane colonie, my water ph-8.2 nitrite-0.25 nitrate-3.0, I did a water change and put some prime in but my zoas and star polyps are not opening nor is this hard coral with soft polyps. Had my alkaline and calcium tested at a lfs and it checked out. I'm going to post pictures.
No idea what's going on...
- Thread starter Workerant
- Start date
Did the pictures help any?
mcgyvr
New member
Thats quite a bit of stuff to add to a fairly new tank all at one time..
The problem with 10G and other "small" tanks is that slight changes can shift parameters,etc.. very quickly
Nitrite should be 0 but it could just be an error in measurement.
Ever test for ammonia?
Even daily changes in flow as you have been doing probably aren't helping..
With a small tank consistency is key to maintaining it..
In the reefing world nothing good happens fast.. And small tanks are much harder than large tanks due to the smaller volume of water..
That light probably isn't really sufficient either.. Fish and low light corals like mushrooms.. sure... but anything else it might not be sufficient. Stay away from SPS
Pics of the other corals will help (to see if they even have a chance of coming back)..
Are you feeding the corals anything?
The problem with 10G and other "small" tanks is that slight changes can shift parameters,etc.. very quickly
Nitrite should be 0 but it could just be an error in measurement.
Ever test for ammonia?
Even daily changes in flow as you have been doing probably aren't helping..
With a small tank consistency is key to maintaining it..
In the reefing world nothing good happens fast.. And small tanks are much harder than large tanks due to the smaller volume of water..
That light probably isn't really sufficient either.. Fish and low light corals like mushrooms.. sure... but anything else it might not be sufficient. Stay away from SPS
Pics of the other corals will help (to see if they even have a chance of coming back)..
Are you feeding the corals anything?
CStrickland
New member
What are your numbers for ammonia, temp and alkalinity?
And for how long have the last two been stable?
There shouldn't ever be ammonia and temp shouldn't vary more than a couple degrees, alk by 1 dkh.
Do you have an automatic top off, or are you adding fresh water as it evaporates?
What is your water source, do you filter it yourself or buy it?
And for how long have the last two been stable?
There shouldn't ever be ammonia and temp shouldn't vary more than a couple degrees, alk by 1 dkh.
Do you have an automatic top off, or are you adding fresh water as it evaporates?
What is your water source, do you filter it yourself or buy it?
I have a very pricey ro system on my house but I do actual water changes I buy it from my lfs and Idk my alkaline calcium numbers had it checked today and was told they were fine and about a week ago had a small amount of ammonia but I put prime in and did a decent water change and it was gone after I tested it.
CStrickland
New member
Not at all. You're new to the forum but let me tell you, people are dumb in ways you wouldn't believe. There was a guy in here a few months ago who set up a tank using rocks he dug out of his yard, and I saw a thread where they used Morton's table salt to make water. And the best part is, where you start doesn't have any relation to where you end up. Everyone with a pretty tank now had an ugly tank at some point, and killed a few coral or fish getting there. If It was easy everyone would do it, but it's totally worth it to keep trying.
Have you seen this thread? http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1031074 It's set up like chapters of a book so you can skip around and learn what not to do from folks who made those mistakes already
bshow24
Member
Flow should always be on. The ocean waves never stop and neither should our powerheads! This will help your corals as well, as they feed by catching things they need in the flow. No flow is probably causing them some stress.
As for the light, the picture of the SPS does look like it could be bleaching, which would mean the coral was shocked from the light. I'm guessing your tank height isn't too high, so make sure the SPS isn't too close to the light for now. Only time will tell if that light is strong enough, but again, it does look like the SPS got slightly bleached.
As for the additions, the corals don't add onto the bioload, but with little experience with them I'd be careful to placing more in your tank. Try and get use to these ones first!
As for the light, the picture of the SPS does look like it could be bleaching, which would mean the coral was shocked from the light. I'm guessing your tank height isn't too high, so make sure the SPS isn't too close to the light for now. Only time will tell if that light is strong enough, but again, it does look like the SPS got slightly bleached.
As for the additions, the corals don't add onto the bioload, but with little experience with them I'd be careful to placing more in your tank. Try and get use to these ones first!
