Loosing large SPS colonies

[Reef Pilot]

Originally Posted by Werbo

Ok thanks. Not tomorrow but soon. Very soon

I use Hanna for P04, but you don't need an expensive kit for N03. I just use API, and N03 shows up pretty well if it is present.

[jason604]

I think I may have the same problems as U. At first I thought it was aefw as well but it was not. I was having rtn on my sps. Mainly targeting my millis. I stopped dosing vinegar and vodka and that seemed to have stopped the rtn. My mag was a lil low at around 1050 so I dosed it up to 1350 currently and 2 more milli colony is starting to STN. I believe these problems r caused by stressing in changes of water chemistry but not sure. Try stopping ur carbon dosing n see what happens. Also what are ur parameters at?

[Werbo]

Originally Posted by Reef Pilot

I use Hanna for P04, but you don't need an expensive kit for N03. I just use API, and N03 shows up pretty well if it is present.

Ya gonna grab a cheap api nitrate kit.

[Myka]

Originally Posted by Werbo

Ya gonna grab a cheap api nitrate kit.

Write the date on it when you buy it and chuck it out in a year. IME, that's about when they start losing their accuracy. For $8, you can buy a new one every year.

[Werbo]

So it's been a week. I was out of town and I am happy to report the large turaki colony looks better. By better I mean the tissue appears thicker and healthier. The tips that have died now have algae and it is slowly populating the dead areas.

Picked up a chiller (thanks Ryan). Bought a API nitrate test kit. I'm somewhere between 2-5 ppm for NO3. So not to bad but could be better. Test PO4 tomorrow and Alk/Ca.

[Myka]

Originally Posted by Werbo

The tips that have died now have algae and it is slowly populating the dead areas.

I'm somewhere between 2-5 ppm for NO3. So not to bad but could be better. Test PO4 tomorrow and Alk/Ca.

Fwiw, tips seem to recover faster if you nip the dead ends off. NO3 looks good to me! I'd be more concerned about PO4 and alkalinity if NO3 is only in the 5 ppm range.