watching husbands tank HELP!

[madeline23]

hey my husband is out of town for a few weeks and i need help. his corals shrunk and will not come out! i did a water change and that didnt work. my water was tested and it was a little high in nitrates so i did another water change and still no improvement. i really dont want him to come home to this. have any advice?

 

[Fizz71]

What all did you test?

Off the top of my head we'd want to see Amomia, Nitrate, pH, Calcium/Hardness, Temperature, and Salinity.

Also..any issues with the lights? Are they going on and off daily?

 

[madeline23]

the light has a timer and 4 light settings so i dont touch the light. they tested all of the things you said and everything was fine but the nitrate level was a little high

 

[Whys]

Check salinity, and what are you using to test it?

 

[Whys]

Oops, simultaneous posting. :]

What about temp?

 

[madeline23]

temp is 75 degrees and i took in to the local store to check the salinity because they said that they had a better way to check!

 

[Juruense]

Would it be better to call your husband for guidance since he is most familiar with the setup?

Some corals "come out" at night and some during the day. Are you sure you are not just observing normal behavior?

 

[Fizz71]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14844793#post14844793 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by madeline23
the light has a timer and 4 light settings so i dont touch the light. they tested all of the things you said and everything was fine but the nitrate level was a little high

Can you give us numbers? What's "a little high" for nitrate. And what was the salinity? Do you have any idea what your husband kept it out to know if it's dropped? No offense, but I don't trust an LFS I've never been to, so I'd prefer to hear numbered test results.

And all I was asking about the light was whether or not they were still turning on and off like that have been...in otherwords...the tank hasn't been dark for the last 48 hours.

EDIT...you got me the temp now.

 

[Fizz71]

Personally I think 75 is low, I run mine at 78, but if that is what your husband runs it at all the time then it's not the issue.

Is there any way to contact him to see what he normally runs things at.

 

[thegrun]

Your man got a good woman, I have to beg just to get my wife to feed my fish when I am out of town, no way would she do research into any problems. Good luck with the corals.

 

[madeline23]

the salinity is 1.022 i just checked it. they did not tell me what the nitrates were but i can check. the light does go off everynight for a few hours. and the temp he wants it between 75 and 80.

 

[davewbush]

Do you know what salinity your husband keeps the tank at. 1.022 is a little low but some people keep it there.

 

[Henry Bowman]

Your salinity is low. Should be 1.025 or 1.026. You can do another water change with salt that is high in salinity. Dont do more than 5% change with salt in the 1.03 area. Move the tank salinity up SLOWLY or you will further stress the corals.

 

[Sisterlimonpot]

is that where he keeps the salinity? when you did a water change did you match salinity or did you go off 1/2 cup per gallon of salt?

 

[Fizz71]

When you did a water change...you put salt in it right? Please don't be offended.

 

[madeline23]

they told me it was fine but it is lower than he likes it i am going to recheck everything thanks for the salinity advice.

 

[madeline23]

i am not offended i am just for advice and that is what i am getting so thankyou. i got ra water with salt mixed in from the lfs and that is what i did the water change with.

 

[WaterKeeper]

Darn good question Fizz.

 

[WaterKeeper]

Hi Madaline,

I need a little more info. How big is the tank and how much water did you change? What do you do to feed the tank and how often?

 

[Juruense]

Are you sure you are not just observing normal behavior OP? Please elaborate on exactly what is happening with the corals. Please specify lighting conditions prior to and during the periods in which you observe the problem.