Really starting to hate SPS

[Puff]

Originally Posted by niloc16

do you have red bugs? they are extremely small and lots of times when pieces die people think its just by fluke but the colony is infested with them. just an idea

do these red bugs ever go on to zoas? last night i was looking at my zoas and saw 2 small red flecks on them, but they werent moving so i assumed it was nothing.

[BMW Rider]

Red bugs are specific to acros. They do not go after any other types of corals.

[Chaloupa]

Murray...I totally get where you're at! I have recently had red bugs and now have acro eating flatworms =disaster!!! so I totally understand!

[rusty]

I feel your pain buddy!!! I had a dozen beautiful bali acro frags ready for sale I was going to post pics and sell them but then they died. All my othe sps are fine though. Including the mother colony!! Just the frags died, three months after I mounted them on plugs and up to that point the were growing awesome.

[Snappy]

Originally Posted by BMW Rider

Red bugs are specific to acros. They do not go after any other types of corals.

Actually I once had them and they were all over a Montipora danae as well. They do however just feed on sps.
Sorry to hear about this Murray, but I doesn't sound like red bugs to me. My guess is nitrate/phosphate issues, temp swings, alk too low and then spiked or perhaps not enough flow. Not enough lighting can cause problems but will mostly brown them out as the corals tend to increase their hosting zooxanthellae count to compensate for the lack of carbohydrate production due to lower light levels. Lighting issues don't happen over night. Was it RTN? (rapid tissue necrosis) What did the corals look like? Is there a loss of tissue leaving just the bare skeleton? Pictures would be helpful for a diagnosis.

[Murminator]

No red bugs skeletons now reside in my sump 2X250 14 hamiltons that are a year old I have new bulbs I just need some alcohol to clean the reflectors 1st.....I find it better to do when I'm drunk , and the carbon changed out 3 or so weeks ago, should I maybe try chem pure?

I'll try to get pics but i'm crappy at it and a crappy kodak camera maybe the fat guy has a new one for me for x-mas

[wickedfrags]

How are you controlling your temperature? With 2 - 250W halides on your tank, the cold season, and unreliable and innacurate heaters temp. swings can cause stress.

[Aquattro]

Although I recommend really trying hard to avoid temp swings, my tank went from79F to 89F everyday for an entire summer and I only lost one species of acro. Everything else did really well. If all else is ok, I don't think temp swings alone would do it, based on my experience.

[untamed]

Originally Posted by reef_raf

Although I recommend really trying hard to avoid temp swings, my tank went from79F to 89F everyday for an entire summer and I only lost one species of acro. Everything else did really well. If all else is ok, I don't think temp swings alone would do it, based on my experience.

I think it has been well experimented/accepted that too high temperature causes the coral to expel its zooanthelle. I don't know about rapid temperature swings...but high temperature is certainly bad.