fading sps
 

I have been having problems over the past few months with my acro colonies and frags slowly fading in color. When I get them they are nicely colored and then slowly fade until they are white and dead. They are not bleaching from the tip or base but rather an overall slow fading in color.

I have 3 - 250w 10,000k Ushios and 4 vho actinics across a span of 5' and a depth of 24". The actinics are on from 7 AM until 10 PM and the Halides are on from 1 PM until 9 PM. The bulbs are 8" from the surface.

I have a chiller to maintain temp, good flow and calcium reactor to maintain alk at 10 and calcium around 400.

Water perameters are fine except my iodine has been extremely high due to an overdosing mistake. I have done numerous water changes in my 190 tank and can't reduce the iodine levels. I think it has been absorbed into the live rock. The livestock is fine and the lps and softies are fine, although could be better.

Can high iodine levels cause this kind of fading in acros? Is there a product available to reduce high iodine levels. Could my lighting produce this kind of effect?

I am at my wits end and have lost waay too many acros over the past few months.

I appreciate any advice..... :frown:

Jim

Jim, did you ever try those polyfilter pads?

http://www.jlaquatics.com/phpstore/s...uct_ID=md-bmpf

no Christy.... I couldn't remember what they are called

Thanks Christy... I will order them. I see they are on backorder.

I am still not sure that is the problem.

I think there's a thread on Reef Central on this subject, do a search overthere, seems alot of people are reducing there photperiod, some are only running there halides for 3-4 hors and are getting a deeper color from there there acros.

If your water is good, no red bugs or anything else that could be causing this, you may want to try reducing your photperiod.

Thanks, I already reduced it from 10 am to 9 pm to 1PM to 9 pm. I used to run it alot longer in my old tank. It just doesn't make sense to me

I don't have any idea if low magnesium levels would cause sps corals to fade, though it might be one possibility. Out of curiousity, do you know reguarly check and adjust the magnesium level is in this tank?

Thanks Bev,

My magnesium runs a little low, when I remember I bring it up. However I never had any problems in my old tank, This tank has been set up since the beginning of April.

If anyone can confirm that low magnesium can cause fading or there is any reading on it, let me know.

uh oh Jim you asked for reading... you know what that means. :eek: :razz:

Jim,

Why don't you do an experiment? Check and adjust your magnesium weekly and see if there is any improvement. This would have to be a long term experiment, say at least three months, to be able to notice if consistently stable magnesium levels have any effect on fading. If nothing else, you will get to know the magnesium uptake in your tank.

Here's the Reef Chemistry Calculator:

http://home.comcast.net/~jdieck1/chem_calc3.html