Porites Labata(?) continually withdraw

[Crush Coral]

Any other worm rock lovers out there have any experience with the host coral not acting happy? My tank is unconventional in that I set it up the same way I did when I managed a now defuct LFS called Exotic Fish World in Dallas. Hence I have a 75 with a reverse flow undergravel filter,a Rena SP3 driving same, and airation. The tank also has 100# of live rock. Tank residents are two ocelaris clowns, a mandarin goby, a cleaner shrimp, blastos coral, hammer coral, candy cane coral, star polyps cauliflower coral and one green mushroom. All corals are doing great and growing. Nothing is harrasing the porites. When I first bought the coral it was fully blossomed for about 3-4 weeks and since then I never see it "fuzzy". All water parameters are normal, temp 80 degrees. My questions in my head are is it due to the fact the it is so well fed that it is not hunting food? Or does it not like the 300 watts of compact flor. I have on it? Or does it not like water flow? Any one else with experience with this coral please clue me in. The worms are doing good and it has been in the tank for about nine months now.

 

[Jamokie01]

What are your water parameters? Power compact really isnt bright enough for sps, how high in the tank is it?

 

[coralnut99]

I would look to water parameters, water flow, and the age of your bulbs. SPS do fine under pc's. I've got plenty for sale if you don't believe me. In a 75 they'll do best somewhere in the upper third. Your other corals will do fine in less than optimal conditions, but Porites won't. Also PC's don't hold their intensity as long as T5's or halides. 9 months max. in my experience.

 

[Crush Coral]

Thanks for the responces. Am, Ni and Na are all 0. Ph runs 8.0 to 8.3. I do not test for calcium or Dkh yet. I add purple up when the coraline algae stops growing. I tried moving the coral to different hights in the tank and no change, so currently it is on the bottom because I read some where that it would like lower light levels. Between the 12" of air stones, the XP3 filter and 230 gph power-head in the tank there is good h2o flow. I do not add strontium, could that be needed? Also do any of you have porites in your tank? I feed my corals a couple time/day. I wonder if it just does not need to hunt. The porites were in the same position when I bought it from the display tank at the lfs where it had tons of light and the lfs thought that the only living part of the coral were the worms. I was surprized when I got home and put it in my tank and the entire coral got "fuzzy". Still looking for ideas.

 

[coralnut99]

My bet is your not using very good quality test kits. If you're feeding twice daily, I really think you have a phoshate issue from your description of your reverse undergarvel filters system. Most, even Salifert will read zero. If you intend to keep even less demanding sps, you need to test for Ca and Dkh regularly. These are absolutely critical and must be kept stable. Do you have a skimmer? Those airstones must cause quite a bit of salt creep / spray. If you keep the tank covered in an attempt to fight salt spray from the airsones, you're impeding the critical exchange of gases that occur at the water surface.

 

[billsreef]

300 watts of PC lighting over a 75 is low level lighting. Put that porites right up top and in an area of high current. The places I've seen it when diving are all high current areas. You also might want to consider putting in a couple more powerheads.

 

[Crush Coral]

I guess no one is going along with the answers I had hoped for. I will take the advise and move the porites to the top of the tank and near the power head. I do not have a sump to put a skimmer in and since the tank is in my living room and my wife will not suffer any noise I do not have one on that back either. I run rena phosphate remover in the XP3 (which works great by the way as evidence of syno earlier in the tank's life which immediatley receded after putting in the phosphate remover). At present I have no red or hair algae.
I am quarentining and treating my two occelaris clowns for slight ich and an infection in one of the clowns gills that looks like cotton. If I remember correctly it is lyphosistis and needs to be treated with Quick Cure. Any one know if I can treat with Quick Cure and Cupramine at the same time or not?
A note of interest if any one needs to keep a tank quiet, Coral Life single CF light strips (130 watts) do not have fans in them and on a 75 gal tank you can put two of them and another single florescent light strip on the top of your tank with no fan noise.
I also will invest in the other test kits on my next Doctors order.

 

[billsreef]

The quick cure and cupramine can be used in conjunction if needed. However, if it's fluffy and cotton like it is more likely fungus which malachite green (one of the ingredients in quick cure ) is the best cure. Lymph (think a case of warts) will look more like solid white granules or heads of cauliflower and is not treatable with medication, just good water quality and diet.

 

[PSam]

How long has it seemed 'irritated'? It may be shedding its outer layer? I have a porties that becomes almost smooth in appearance from time to time, only to come back with full polyp extension. could be a possibility, but ime, porites will do best under strong lighting & flow, 300w of pc may not be enough.

 

[Crush Coral]

The infection is more cauliflower like than fungal. That is why I thought lymphosistis. I picked up some Quick Cure today and will try it though the lfs guy also told me that it probably will not work. All I can do is try and see what happens. At the lfs where I bough the fish from the other clowns in that tank are now showing the same symptons.

Also PSam thanks for the feedback. My porites seem to shed a mucas from time to time also. Tonight I move them up and to more current. I hope it works because of all the corals the worm rock is by far my favorite. I feed the corals Rods Reef Food, Marine show and phytoplankton. I have had the worms for about 7 months now and except for the porites not extending themselves every other indication is good.