torch coral help

[Jesterman22]

I just bought a torch coral and a duncan coral on sat night and i got them set up in my 24g JBJ and they seem to be doing really bad. I have been having a hard time finding a spot for the torch and i left it in in kind of a strong waterflow and the the tentacles were blowing to one side then when i woke up today they were all smashed in a little spot on the tiny frag i got. now i am thinking it is going to die. I moved it to a spot that gets less flow but it still seems to still be doing bad. i will have a picture up in just a little bit. then my next one is does the duncan take about a week to open up cus mine is just starting to a little now?

[Sisterlimonpot]

It's hard to say, Pictures and water parameters will help narrow the problem down.

[MrMarth]

The duncan is probably just stressed from the move, as long as it isn't melting/discoloring or anything like that I wouldn't worry about it too much.

I wouldn't count the torch out yet. Less flow was probably a good idea. I would just leave it in the lower flow area for now as long as it's not too high in the tank (I don't know how strong your lights are compared to where you got it from).

Only time will tell, I hope you the best of luck.

+1 on checking water parameters too. If those are off it will be quite hard on your coral.

[Jesterman22]

the only thing that is usally wrong with my water is low ph so i add a marine buffer every time i do a water change. I have a picture of what it looks like. I think my tank is running compact fluorescent lights i have the torch about in the middle of the tank because when it was in the bottom the flow was way to much.

[Sisterlimonpot]

Why are you buffering the ph? are you dosing alk? Even though you say there's nothing wrong with your parameters it still helps if you post what they are. We may see something that you don't.

[Jesterman22]

The reason I am doing the buffer is because every time I take my water to get tested at the LFS they say I have low Ph so they tell me I should add some. I know I need to get a test kit but I am having a hard time finding the right one.
I will get my water tested right away and get them to you guys. Thanks so far for your help.

[Sisterlimonpot]

There may be an underlying problem to why your PH isn't right (if it is in fact wrong) What type of live rock did you use? was it man made?

[Jesterman22]

ok so my levels are way off from what they were.
Ph-7.7
ammonia-2.0
nitrite-.3
nitrate-0 -12.5
1.030
I am going to work on getting the stuff better over the next few days.

[Sisterlimonpot]

hopefully you are mixing up a batch of salt water right now. How long did the cycle take when you started the tank?

[Jesterman22]

i think it took a little over a week and a half i am doing a water change right now.

[Jesterman22]

now when i went to the pet store they told me my salt lever was 1.030 when they tested it with the refractometer but when i test it with my hydrometer says it is about 1.022 do i add salt?

[sks4613]

Target is usually 1.024. the torch may live if parameters get right. It isnt dead.... yet. They do not tolerate strong flow at all. Not sure what lighting it came from compared to what you have they typically preffer medium light with low to medium flow. all my torches have been touchy, never killed one but finally found them all different tanks. Sounds like you have bigger issues with your water though.
Please understand I am not trying to be the slightest but ugly however this is an expensive hobby! If you do not yet understand how to raise your SG level you should take the corals to a friends establish tank any tank ASAP and start READING. READ READ READ AND READ. Correct SG levels and how a tank cycles and processes you should understand before even buying a tank to set up.
You levels indicate your tank hasn't cycled or somehow was thrown into a mini cycle of sorts. That alone will quickly kill everything in there.
Good Luck.

[Jesterman22]

my take did a full cycle a year ago. No i understand this is a hobby that takes lots of skill to do. I just did a water change and i will do another one tomorrow.

[Jesterman22]

so the torch looks like it is getting worse i hope the water changes work. how do u know if a torch is dying? because i cant find any pictuers on what they look like

[costellow]

+1 on relocating the life until your parameters are stable for a few weeks. Your PH is way too low, what's your alk? Your ammonia, nitrate, and nitrite should be zero. And trust the refractometer, your Salinity is too high. How many fish and corals do you have? And where are you getting your salt water? Are you using SW to top off? If so, stop and use RO for topoffs. If you are mixing your own salt are you letting it sit 24 hours with powerhead to mix?

[Percula9]

I agree the salinity is to high and the levels of ammonia is what is killing your corals. I doubt your corals will recover.

[Jesterman22]

my problem is i have nowhere to put my fish and coral for a few weeks. My ALK is 3.0 i have three fish and 4 coral. should i just get rid of my hydrometer since it is not working right? i was mixing my saltwater. I usually just add RO to top off. but the last water change was i think 3 months ago. no i usually just mix the salt in and then add it to the tank.

[jbird69]

dont get rid of the hydrometer because you need something to measure the sg with. I would clean it thuroughly with vinigar. Salt deposit can build up on the swing arm causing it to get heavy which could explain your low reading. Once you get it clean, compare it to the refractometer at the lfs. (herein lies the problem...is your lfs reliable and does the employee know how to use the refractometer and has it been calibrated?)
once you know the difference between the refracto (if its accurate) and your hydro, you can just do the math to get your sg to .025.

If your tank is a year old, I really doubt you have nitrites and ammonia present unless youve had something nasty die in there like an anemone.

That torch looks badly retracted, hard to say if you can save it. Definitly keep it out of direct flow.

Also, dont just mix the salt and dump it in. I would recommend letting it "mix" for at least 3 hours.

[Jesterman22]

ok i will clean the hydrometer. Nothing has died in thier that i know of. ok i will start letting the salt mix for several hours now. could my tank be going though another cycle?
I think the LFS people know how to use the refracto because they were right most of the other times. should i use prime to help the tank? or just keep doing major water changes every day.?

[jbird69]

I would do water changes. Not major ones tho. 15% everyday will change out the entire volum in a week. thats what I would do. Changing too much water at a time is just throwing water on a grease fire. Changing the tank peramers too quickly (even for the better) can seriously stress the livestock. especially since it appears you need to lower your salinity. Doing that quickly would NOT be good.

make sure your new water matches the temperature you keep your tank at. Make it up at around .025 sg. I assume your using RO/DI water??

[Jesterman22]

yes i am using RO water. so i will keep doing the water changes for the next week or so to see how things go.thank you everybody all of you guys have been a great help.

[dg3147]

make sure your hydrometer doesn't have any bubbles hanging on the arm when taking the reading.

[Jesterman22]

so i had my hydrometer get checked today and it is way off. so i am thinking about getting a refractometer this weekend. the torch died today, the strange thing is everything else in the tank is doing great. so i guess i have to chulk this off as a learning experience. the duncan is starting to open more so i am very happy about that.

[SaltieG]

When you say the torch died, how did it die? Did the polyps actually bail out of the skeleton?

[jc-reef]

Something could be munching on it too. I have a branching frag of torch coral in which, believe it or not, some of my peppermint shrimps have been dining on some of the larger heads over the course of the past few weeks.. just a thought.