BIG TROUBLE!! Need advice please. - Page 2

christyf5 · #11 09-26-2011, 04:12 PM

I've had high Mg levels before (way higher than the 1500 the kit maxed out at) without any problems. But the high Alk and low Ca could be part of the problem esp if you have new stuff that isn't acclimated to those levels (and I'm talking long term here not just the acclimation to your tank). Sometimes RTN can trigger a cascade effect and cause RTN in other colonies that have been in your tank for awhile. Try to get the alk back on track and the other levels should fall in line with water changes with new/better salt.

Bblinks · #12 09-26-2011, 07:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by christyf5

I've had high Mg levels before (way higher than the 1500 the kit maxed out at) without any problems. But the high Alk and low Ca could be part of the problem esp if you have new stuff that isn't acclimated to those levels (and I'm talking long term here not just the acclimation to your tank). Sometimes RTN can trigger a cascade effect and cause RTN in other colonies that have been in your tank for awhile. Try to get the alk back on track and the other levels should fall in line with water changes with new/better salt.

+1. if you are running probiotic system like pellets or zeovit, you alk should be around 7 anything over 10 dkh you will run into issues. I would get your alk and cal back to proper range and go from there, snip off the rtn sps frag it or what ever but try to get rid of all the other that rtn'ed before it begins a domino effect. best of luck, I know it sucks but just hang in there.

doch · #13 09-27-2011, 02:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bblinks

+1. if you are running probiotic system like pellets or zeovit, you alk should be around 7 anything over 10 dkh you will run into issues. I would get your alk and cal back to proper range and go from there, snip off the rtn sps frag it or what ever but try to get rid of all the other that rtn'ed before it begins a domino effect. best of luck, I know it sucks but just hang in there.

OH BOY! So you think that I should clear out anything that is dying? Can anyone else vouch? I've been taking stuff out and fragging it as best as I can and ditching th RTN portions if I can tell that they aren't going to make it, but there are a couple in there still that aren't looking great... should I frag and toss the parts with RTN??? Unfortunately, I'm now out of frag plugs and glue due to the massive amount of fragging that has been going on.

This sucks.

doch · #14 09-27-2011, 02:35 PM

Well, after reading the last 2 posts, I cmae home after my night shift, cracked a beer (it's more like 8pm for me right now... lol) and went to work. I pulled out 5 pieces from my display... most of which are among my oldest corals, and 6 or 7 from the frag tank. The display pieces ranged from golf ball to soft ball size. Tossed them all. I had tried to save one last night, but came home this morning and the frags were all RTNing, so... essentially, I gave up. If I had frag glue, I'd try, but I'm out of that and plugs, so eff it. My alk is coming down slowly... 229ppm/12.8dKh. On the bright side, since i've added the right amount of gfo, my phosphates are down to 0.00 on the hanna. I just hope that the drop from .10 to .00 wasn't too much for everything right now. I've lost many of my favorite pieces... and most of the frags that I just spent $440 on. I've got my wife going to the crappy in town pet store (refuse to call it a lfs) today to see what she can find me for salt. When I wake up, I'll do yet another water change. I'm just so happy that I have my water change tank operational through this. An 18x18x20 water change (28Gal) takes me about 5 minutes of work. I just wish that my 'fish room' (furnace room with my equipment in it) was a few inches wider... or maybe that I was a few inches narrower... lol. It's pretty tight in there. I'm regularly walking by the outside wall of the room taking measurements and wishing for my wife to let me relocate the wall.

Anyways, there's my morning rant... again... wish me luck!

Ah... what the heck... maybe one more beer before bed! hahaha! It's 5pm somewhere, right?

kien · #15 09-27-2011, 03:07 PM

ah man that sucks. I feel for ya. It's tough losing that much money so quickly. Certainly enough pain to drive you to drink, which by the sounds of things it has

As you already know the parameters in your display tank are all over the place and not very synchronized. It sounds like you're on top of that though and hopefully it gets sorted out. Quarantining what's surviving is a good idea.

Myka · #16 09-27-2011, 04:16 PM

Omg Doch...I just read this. This is awful.

I think you did good fragging and tossing the RTN. Instant Ocean is probably the only salt your wife is going to be able to find for you. It is low in magnesium (around 1150 ppm in all my buckets) so you could get Mg down with it. Just make sure you add calcium to it before you use it because calcium is low (~380 ppm). Albeit, IO has high alkalinity at 11 dKH. If it was me, at this point I would be unplugging the dosers and doing daily 10 gallon waterchanges (if using IO bump calcium to 440 ppm to match 11 dKH). I would also quickly get calcium where it needs to be in the display (by testing and dosing several times today if need be...just wait at least 1 hour between dosing and testing). When calcium goes up alkalinity will go down. Waterchanges will bring magnesium down. By tonight you should have calcium at 440 ppm in the display, this will probably drop alkalinity to 10-11 dKH.

On the brighter side, I wonder if the person who sold you the frags would be nice enough to give replace the ones you lost as I'm assuming this is from the recent thread where the OP wanted the corals with someone else as back up for his future tank.

christyf5 · #17 09-27-2011, 05:12 PM

Aw man, sorry to hear this. I hope you can get things turned around and possibly get replacement frags

daniella3d · #18 09-28-2011, 02:03 AM

For the frags that are having RTN, you can try a 1/4 peroxyde 3% mixed with 3/4 tank water and leave them in this dip for 1 or 2 minutes. That could help.

That treatment stopped the RTN on my blue pocillopora instantly. The coral is doing great now.

doch · #19 09-28-2011, 03:16 AM

[quote=kien;639138]Certainly enough pain to drive you to drink, which by the sounds of things it has

QUOTE]

I don't know about that... jsut an after work beer!! lol Ok... 2.

doch · #20 09-28-2011, 03:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Myka

Omg Doch...I just read this. This is awful.

I think you did good fragging and tossing the RTN. Instant Ocean is probably the only salt your wife is going to be able to find for you. It is low in magnesium (around 1150 ppm in all my buckets) so you could get Mg down with it. Just make sure you add calcium to it before you use it because calcium is low (~380 ppm). Albeit, IO has high alkalinity at 11 dKH. If it was me, at this point I would be unplugging the dosers and doing daily 10 gallon waterchanges (if using IO bump calcium to 440 ppm to match 11 dKH). I would also quickly get calcium where it needs to be in the display (by testing and dosing several times today if need be...just wait at least 1 hour between dosing and testing). When calcium goes up alkalinity will go down. Waterchanges will bring magnesium down. By tonight you should have calcium at 440 ppm in the display, this will probably drop alkalinity to 10-11 dKH.

On the brighter side, I wonder if the person who sold you the frags would be nice enough to give replace the ones you lost as I'm assuming this is from the recent thread where the OP wanted the corals with someone else as back up for his future tank.

Yup... IO it is. Sea Salt, 160 gallon bucket... $146.99. I just about crapped my pants when my wife tild me this. Got me by the short and curlies I guess. Oh, and for frag glue, they sold her aquarium silicone. Man I hate that place.