Orange Chalice

[Reef Pilot]

I just lost my Orange Chalice that I purchased about a week ago. Not sure exactly why. It was fine for a couple days, then started to lose colour, and next thing I know I see skeleton.

I suspect it was either my KH or too much light. I did a water change (IO salt) and my KH fell to 7 (normally it is between 8 and 9). I read that they like 8 or higher, so maybe that was it.

I had placed it about mid tank on the side of a rock, but my Radions Gen2 are set to 90% and maybe too bright for it to start off.

I also acquired a Yellow Birdsnest at the same time, which I placed 2/3 up on my tank. I noticed it was getting a little bleached, too, so moved it lower and now looks like it is fine.

And also, I got a Tyree Cyphastrea Japonica, and it started to bleach as well. It was at mid tank, so I moved it lower, too, in partial shade.

All my other corals seem to be doing fine. So far only lost the Orange Chalice, but not sure if it was the light or KH that did it in, or something else.

[daniella3d]

I think probably too bright light and it bleached and RTN.

I don't have an orange one but I have a purple with green eye and it likes a bit of lower light.

I don't think it's the KH because mine is always quite low at around 7 to 7.5 and my chalice has been growing very well for a year.

With LED, corals need a very good acclimatation. This is what I like about metal halide, as I can put corals near the surface and I never get anything bleached. It seem to be a gentle light to corals, no matter where they are in the tank.

LED seem to be too strong or too concentrated in certains wavelength and unless the corals already come from an aquarium with LED and are well acclimated to this type of light, I would go really slow.

I just got a radion as a back up to my MH to light up the left side of my tank and I put it very low, at 35% for now. I will see with time.

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

I just lost my Orange Chalice that I purchased about a week ago. Not sure exactly why. It was fine for a couple days, then started to lose colour, and next thing I know I see skeleton.

I suspect it was either my KH or too much light. I did a water change (IO salt) and my KH fell to 7 (normally it is between 8 and 9). I read that they like 8 or higher, so maybe that was it.

I had placed it about mid tank on the side of a rock, but my Radions Gen2 are set to 90% and maybe too bright for it to start off.

I also acquired a Yellow Birdsnest at the same time, which I placed 2/3 up on my tank. I noticed it was getting a little bleached, too, so moved it lower and now looks like it is fine.

And also, I got a Tyree Cyphastrea Japonica, and it started to bleach as well. It was at mid tank, so I moved it lower, too, in partial shade.

All my other corals seem to be doing fine. So far only lost the Orange Chalice, but not sure if it was the light or KH that did it in, or something else.

[Nano]

A kh of 7 isn't anything to fret over. If your lights are at 90% it may be too much. Other parameters would help if listed.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by daniella3d

I think probably too bright light and it bleached and RTN.

I don't have an orange one but I have a purple with green eye and it likes a bit of lower light.

I don't think it's the KH because mine is always quite low at around 7 to 7.5 and my chalice has been growing very well for a year.

With LED, corals need a very good acclimatation. This is what I like about metal halide, as I can put corals near the surface and I never get anything bleached. It seem to be a gentle light to corals, no matter where they are in the tank.

LED seem to be too strong or too concentrated in certains wavelength and unless the corals already come from an aquarium with LED and are well acclimated to this type of light, I would go really slow.

I just got a radion as a back up to my MH to light up the left side of my tank and I put it very low, at 35% for now. I will see with time.

Interesting what you say about MH not bleaching corals as quickly as LED. I thought it was the other way around, which is why I placed them where I did. From what I heard others here say when they switched from MH to LED, they found the LED not to be as intense??

But I think you may be right in my case, as some of my other new corals had started to bleach as well.

I do have some SPS that I got earlier right at the top of my tank, and they all seem to be fine. However, I started those when I still had my old Radion Gen 1s, at an initial 50% setting. I ramped them up to 100% over a couple weeks, and then switched to Gen 2 Radions. I started these off at 70% (supposed to be 20-40% more intense than Gen1s), and ramped them up to 90% over another couple weeks.

I am using the Natural Mode though, so they gradually ramp up during the day (just like the sun), and then back down over a period of 12 hours. So it is not like they are getting blasted at high intensity for a long time.

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Nano

A kh of 7 isn't anything to fret over. If your lights are at 90% it may be too much. Other parameters would help if listed.

KH was down to 7 after water change, but am adjusting my dosing to bring it up to 8 again. Currently today at 7.5, so not quite there yet. Ca at 400. N03 is zero. P04 at .06 at last check (Hanna checker) and varies between zero and .07 lately. Haven't tested Mg for a while, so not sure what it is right now.

As discussed, I suspect it is the light, though, as a couple of other new corals had bleaching, too. My Tyree Cyphastrea Japonica is not doing too well either. I moved it down and into partial shade. I hope I wasn't too late with that one. My new Yellow Birdsnest was moved down too, and it seems to be OK now.

My older corals, incl some SPS right near the top of my tank seem to be doing fine, with new growth and good colour.

[Proteus]

I have trouble with some chalice. I keep them in fairly shaded spots. My radion is at 80% and yeah even that's a little bright for lps. I went from a MH to the led and sps I had on top of tank under MH had to go 2/3 down.

[Seriak]

My original radions are still at 70% and they still bleach corals more than half way up the tank.

[Proteus]

Yep. I started mine at 40% and ramped them 5% every week. Even still I lost a granulosa that I should have put on bottom but foolish me put it half way up

[Doug]

My chalice looses its brilliant colour if its to far down from the lights. When I recently experimented running both my led fixtures, it had bright blue and red. Now back to one fixture, half way up its dull again.

If your guys Radions are bleaching corals like you say, then my leds must suck big time.