acropora bleached out over night

[codyreef29]

Acropora frag went all white over night?

I did a water change and clean the tank up some yesterday.

I have 4x54 watt t5ho 12k 460act 12k 420 actinic. plus 6 3w n white cree leds.

woke up this morning and it's all white? what could have cause such a sudden death?

[BigCountry74]

how long has your tank been up and running. something is off with your water, it's not the lights. lights would not bleach something that fast.

[reefnewbie83177]

Cody,
If this is the same tank as in your other thread, you need to be checking Ca/Alk/Mg. I don't think that you are doing this. On top of it your tank is quite new. You NEED to give us params in order to help you and you NEED to listen to the advice of others on here. You listen to nothing anyone says. Please stop killing livestock until you get your tank safe for inhabitants.

[codyreef29]

Ok i have a calcium test kit all the lfs has

calcium 380 ppm
salinity 120

So I need to get a alkalinity test kit and magnesium

I have purple tech should i get calcium magnesium and alkalinity additives?
as well as test kits.

If i want to start growing sps i will need this stuff anhow?

any other things to get?

[tony11387]

In addition to the other test kits, I'd recommend test kits for nitrates, phosphates and PH.

[dannyp02908]

Purple tech isnt really that great. If you want an SPS tank, you should at a bare minimum have 2 part and some magnesium. Test these things as well. I like to test monthly to take into account for growth and adjust as necessary. Also, i like to test a couple of days in a row with new additions to adjust as necessary. If you want to make it a bit easier, get dosing pumps or a calcium reactor. Reactor will be hard to dial in if the tank is small/not heavily stocked.

[reefnewbie83177]

Originally Posted by codyreef29

Ok i have a calcium test kit all the lfs has

calcium 380 ppm
salinity 120

So I need to get a alkalinity test kit and magnesium

I have purple tech should i get calcium magnesium and alkalinity additives?
as well as test kits.

If i want to start growing sps i will need this stuff anhow?

any other things to get?

I don't know what salinity of 120 means. You salinity if using a refractometer should be 1.025 - 1.0264. Ca should be 400-450, alk 8-11, mg 1350. I really like bulk reef supplies two part kit for dosing ca/alk/mg. daily dosing of ca and alk will be necessary, and mg doesn't seem to fluctuate too much. The exact numbers as long as they are in the specified range don't matter as much as consistency. My tank is running at Ca = 480, alk = 8.7, and mg (i don't know as my mg test kit is not giving accurate results.

You should also have a very good indirect flow in your tank. most say for sps to have 40-50 x turnover of water. so for my 90 gallon that would be 4500gph.

As well, lights. You need very strong lighting. On my 90 I have 78 3w Cree LED's. This is a little overkill, but they are controllable so I have my whites turned down to 60% and my blues at 100%.

One last thing (but one of the most important) is to check your nitrates/phosphates. they need to be 0 or very close to zero.

Hope this helps. You really need to get the water chemistry down and have a stable system to keep sps. Good luck and I hope it helps.

[codyreef29]

Thanks I found some stuff at marine depot

magnesium test kit
alkalinty test kit
2 part calc and alk additive
magnesium additive

I have 55x turnover at about 3000 gph on 55 gallon tank
1650gph 2x 500 maxijet 1200 on skimmer plus 150gph hob

I'm going to start running the skimmer and a little hob with carbon.
Is nitrate remover or nitrate reducer ok to run in a hob? like fluval nitrate remover?

I'm gonna run 2x 12000k 1 actinic 460nm 1 actinic 420 nm Plus 6 3w cree whites at 100%
I guess this will be enough.

I'm mixing saltwater to top off with till my tank is back up to 1.025

I don't think nitrate will be a problem but i will run nitrate remover.

[sponger0]

From reading this thread, I dont think you are ready for SPS yet.

Go get some mushroom and xenia. Something hard to kill. Once you do that and are able to make them 'thrive', then move up to SPS. With SPS, water parameters are number 1 and lights are second.

You didnt even have proper testing supplies, nor were you running your skimmer.

[reefnewbie83177]

Originally Posted by codyreef29

Thanks I found some stuff at marine depot

magnesium test kit
alkalinty test kit
2 part calc and alk additive
magnesium additive

I have 55x turnover at about 3000 gph on 55 gallon tank
1650gph 2x 500 maxijet 1200 on skimmer plus 150gph hob

I'm going to start running the skimmer and a little hob with carbon.
Is nitrate remover or nitrate reducer ok to run in a hob? like fluval nitrate remover?

I'm gonna run 2x 12000k 1 actinic 460nm 1 actinic 420 nm Plus 6 3w cree whites at 100%
I guess this will be enough.

I'm mixing saltwater to top off with till my tank is back up to 1.025

I don't think nitrate will be a problem but i will run nitrate remover.

Good. I don't think that your skimmer pump counts towards your flow, as it is the flow through the tank that is important. You need to know the max flow out of the overflow and subtract that from the flow you are putting through with your pump. My Ehiem 1262 has a rated 900gph, but I am likely only getting 300-400gph flow, b/c I have to reduce the flow to match the overflow. Each powerhead has a gph and that is what you are getting in the tank. So, for a 55 gallon, with 55 gallon you would need at minimum maybe 2000gph. So, if you are getting ~500gph with return (that may be high), you need to find power heads to give you another 1500gph.

I don't know anything about running carbon as I don't use it and am also new to the hobby.

I can't comment on the lighting either as I only use LED's and have never used T5's. But, for what it is worth, I would think that 36 cree LED's would be enough, but with the T5's and the 12 LED's you may be OK

As for the nitrate remover, I don't know. Have never used a nitrate remover and have always had undetectable nitrates. Having a sump with a refugium helps with this b/c the algae that is grown in the refugium helps to sequester nitrates out of the system (I think it also helps in phosphate removal, but I could be wrong on that). HOwever, before dumping any chemicals into your tank test the parameter you are trying to fix. Do you know what your nitrate level is?

You are on the right track, but I would say you have at least a couple of months before I would add any more SPS.

Good luck Cody. I am glad that you are listening to the advice given on here. I don't by any means know everything about this hobby, and am only speaking based on what I have learned on RC and my own experiences. I did things a little quick. My tank is only 5 months old, and I added my first sps about 2 months after my cycle, but I was confident that I had all the right parameters to add sps.

[sponger0]

Carbon is mostly used for chemical warfare between different corals in the tank. It nuetalizes the toxins.

T5 lights would be fine for a 55 as long as you have 4 bulbs.

Why are you thinking of using a nitrate remover? Do you have nitrates? If you do, by using something just to remove it, you are just putting a bandaid on the issue and not addressing the issue at the source.

Im going to say this again....you dont have the husbandry skills yet for SPS. That will come with experience.

You need to do more research to properly house that kind of livestock....which you should do before you buy anything you put in your tank.

Here are all the basic test you are going to need: Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, magnesium, calcium, alkalinity, and an accurate phosphate test. I would trust API kits for the last 4. Look at Red Sea Pro, Salifert, or Hanna Checkers.

[MaxxedMan]

If it bleached over night after your water change and messing around in your tank, I would wonder if the water you put in what too different from your tank (salinity for example), or if your hands were not clean (soap counts as your hands being dirty in this hobby)

If nitritrate remover is a chemical, don't use it. Even experts need to be careful with stuff like that. Some of the stuff under my sink may be safe to drink, but I'm not going to risk it.

[Meshmez]

read through this thread http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2133437 And it should give you some insight into what went wrong....

[sponger0]

Originally Posted by Meshmez

read through this thread http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2133437 And it should give you some insight into what went wrong....

OMG.....I remember this thread. This kid doesnt listen to anything. Its pointless to comment. He keeps updated but doesnt take into count any advice anyone gives.

There is no point in offering any advice as this guys just does what he wants and never researches. According to that thread he has 2 clarkii's and 2 damsels.

[Meshmez]

Originally Posted by sponger0

OMG.....I remember this thread. This kid doesnt listen to anything. Its pointless to comment. He keeps updated but doesnt take into count any advice anyone gives.

There is no point in offering any advice as this guys just does what he wants and never researches. According to that thread he has 2 clarkii's and 2 damsels.

and rocks from the front yard, and lowes sand... in a tank that is just over 2 months old..

[sponger0]

Originally Posted by Meshmez

and rocks from the front yard, and lowes sand... in a tank that is just over 2 months old..

Some serious back country lights, no reguard for anything he puts in the tank. Most people dont approach this hobby and think hope it doesnt die. Most of us think how do I keep it alive. Its like this guy just keeps his fingers crossed with every step.

[sasharotty]

Just read through that last thread he made. This guy has to be trolling. Rocks from the front yard and lowes sand with 5 clowns in a 55. Rc's been trolled. And just went back and saw his 1st 10 gallon. He's running skimmer 2 times a week and not doing wc's. Lol Oh yeah with a mandarine and a snowflake eel IN A 10 GALLON. C'mon dude this has to be a joke??? Right????

[CHSUB]

Originally Posted by sponger0

From reading this thread, I dont think you are ready for SPS yet.

Go get some mushroom and xenia. Something hard to kill. Once you do that and are able to make them 'thrive', then move up to SPS. With SPS, water parameters are number 1 and lights are second.

You didnt even have proper testing supplies, nor were you running your skimmer.

my xenia always crashes after growing like a weed for several months??? never had a problem with sps....

[sponger0]

Originally Posted by sasharotty

Just read through that last thread he made. This guy has to be trolling. Rocks from the front yard and lowes sand with 5 clowns in a 55. Rc's been trolled. And just went back and saw his 1st 10 gallon. He's running skimmer 2 times a week and not doing wc's. Lol Oh yeah with a mandarine and a snowflake eel IN A 10 GALLON. C'mon dude this has to be a joke??? Right????

Well this guy is a serious troll. He has pictures lmao

[f3honda4me]

You killed some Kenya leather and some mushrooms. To kill those off there is some serious problems in your tank. Your bleached acro is just the start of an unavoidable tank crash.

[sasharotty]

Originally Posted by sponger0

Well this guy is a serious troll. He has pictures lmao

I know

[Rploaded]

I find it very disconcerting that people so casually invest in a life form and follow no common sense in respect to its care. Both threads from this OP are really sad and hopefully people realize that several serious posts by people really trying to learn go unanswered each day.

[sponger0]

Lets see what this guy has to say today.