Corals looking Bad/Dying - Help Please

[that Reef Guy]

Lately my Corals have been looking bad and possibly dying.

I have

Montipora loosing color
Acans coming right off the skeleton
Chalices receeding
etc.

The only thing new is I have started to use GFO which I have never used before in my 4 years of reefing.

I do religious water changes weekly and my parameters are perfect except for Phosphate.

I did not do anything major to either of my aquariums

No new Lights
No Power Head changes.
No new Fish
No new Coral
No new Fish Food.

What is going on?

This is so frustrating.

I am just trying to make my aquariums perfect and it all goes downhill?

I always thought that Phosphate just caused Algae Problems.

Then I was told it will kill Coral so I got scared.

I was told get it to zero ASAP to keep Coral from dying from high Phosphate.

I was told that it would also make my Corals grow much much faster and color up much nicer if I have Zero Phosphate.

Everything was doing great so I figured I would try GFO as I have never heard any problems of people using it before.

Now this.

What is going on?

What should I do?

I am doing everything by the book spot on.

 

[Eienna]

What exactly are your phosphate and nitrate readings?

If you drop your nutrient levels too low that can starve and kill your corals. Have you been target-feeding at all?

Zero is actually NOT where you want it. Close to 0 is. There has to be enough for the corals to utilize while also not enough to overwhelm them.

 

[Snookin]

First, what are your parameters?
Second, I have heard others complain that adding GFO too quickly will change your tanks parameters so rapidly that corals will get stressed and exhibit all the signs you noted. So you may want to back off and add a 1/4 of the GFO that you were told and slowly move up.
Third, how are you using GFO, reactor, in filter sock, etc.?

 

[that Reef Guy]

What exactly are your phosphate and nitrate readings?

If you drop your nutrient levels too low that can starve and kill your corals. Have you been target-feeding at all?

Zero is actually NOT where you want it. Close to 0 is. There has to be enough for the corals to utilize while also not enough to overwhelm them.

Nitrate = 0 (Like it always is)
Phosphate in 55 = 0.46 (Down from 1.14)
Phosphate in 29 = 0.15 (Down from 0.53)

I ususally Never Feed and have never had a Problem in the Past with Corals due to this (I mean yes, I am sure it hurt growth very much from not being fed but they never looked bad like this).

Why do you say Low Phosphate Levels hurt Coral?

I was told by many that Low Phosphate Only hinders Algae Growth (A Good Thing).

And that High Phosphate can Kill Coral and Slow Growth and Lead to a Loss of Color.

That is why I got scarred.

I was worried that my Coral would die due to my Long Term High Phosphates.

That is why I started using GFO.

 

[that Reef Guy]

First, what are your parameters?
Second, I have heard others complain that adding GFO too quickly will change your tanks parameters so rapidly that corals will get stressed and exhibit all the signs you noted. So you may want to back off and add a 1/4 of the GFO that you were told and slowly move up.
Third, how are you using GFO, reactor, in filter sock, etc.?

My Parameters are perfect like always.

Temperature 78
Salinitiy 1.025
PH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Alkalinity 8 on 55 Gallon and 11 on 29 Gallon

I have always had High Phosphate which was the problem.

The GFO is in the Filter Pad on Tetra Hang on the Back Filters.

I am told that doing it this way will lower the Phosphates slower than by a Reactor which most people use.

Hence making the Tetra Filter Safer than a Reactor.

 

[Eienna]

Nitrate = 0 (Like it always is)
Phosphate in 55 = 0.46 (Down from 1.14)
Phosphate in 29 = 0.15 (Down from 0.53)

I ususally Never Feed and have never had a Problem in the Past with Corals due to this (I mean yes, I am sure it hurt growth very much from not being fed but they never looked bad like this).

Why do you say Low Phosphate Levels hurt Coral?

I was told by many that Low Phosphate Only hinders Algae Growth (A Good Thing).

And that High Phosphate can Kill Coral and Slow Growth and Lead to a Loss of Color.

That is why I got scarred.

I was worried that my Coral would die due to my Long Term High Phosphates.

That is why I started using GFO.

Well, with those numbers, I don't think you're too low in phosphate.

Please allow me to clarify.

Corals need SOME nutrients in the water. In the case of nitrate and phosphate, you want it under one, but a clean 0 is actually a bit too little.

I think what gets ignored is that while 0 phosphate and nitrate will do as you say (keep algae growth way down), there is also GOOD algae within the coral - and it needs a tiny bit with which to make the coral's main food.

It's my personal belief that nitrate should be between 0 and 6, but not 0 (none at all), and phosphate should be between .5 and 0 but likewise not 0.

 

[that Reef Guy]

I just checked everything and here are the Results.

55 Gallon

Salinity 1.026
Temperature 78 Degrees
PH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Alkalinity 8 DKH
Calcium 445
Magnesium 380
Phosphate 0.46 (Down from 1.14 less than two weeks ago)

29 Gallon

Salinity 1.025
Temperature 79 Degrees
PH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 0
Alkalinity 11 DKH
Calcium 445
Magnesium 1350
Phosphate 0.15 (Down from a High of 0.60 5 Weeks ago)


I use only RO Water that I always measure with a TDS Meter before using it and it always reads between 0 and 6 (I also add Seachem Prime to take out any possible Chlorine not taken out by the RO Machine).

I do Weekly Water Changes (About 50%).

Have my Lights on 8 Hours a Day (T5HO) Bulbs are two months old and ATI.

I have added no new Fish or Corals in many months.

I have changed nothing besides adding GFO.

What is going on?

 

[Eienna]

Your mag looks low in the 55 unless that's a misprint.

Beyond that, I don't know. I'd personally try to replace all the water over a couple of weeks to remove any unseen contaminants, but that's just me. Best wait for other input.

 

[ReefHero]

Wow! Your po4 was waaaay up there.....still kinda is IMO.....I run mine much lower without any issues.
Was your sps growing?


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[Nano sapiens]

Remove the GFO, perform a few WCs over the next week or two.

I have seen GFO causing issues on many threads, usually when too much is initially used. Corals can be shocked by any sudden changes, including a rapid decline in phosphate. The old adage holds true: 'Nothing good happens quickly in a reef tank'.

Phosphate builds up in the sediments over time and especially in detrital material. Detritus removal should always be the primary export method of choice IMO. GFO can be helpful in certain circumstances, but can never replace good tank husbandry.

 

[that Reef Guy]

I did not notice any problems when I was using the Pura Phos Lock for 4 Weeks.

But within One Week of using Bulk Reef Supply I noticed things started to Crash.

Could it be that Bulk Reef Supply sells Bad GFO?

Has anybody else had Problems with Bulk Reef Supply GFO Specifically?

 

[josh4107]

From my experience when starting to use gfo you want to start with MUCH LESS than what it says on the package. My guess is you added too much gfo to start with even if it was only what was recommended on the label. I have no idea why they recommend so much to start with but I only use a fraction of recommended dose. And since your tank is a relatively small volume of water like mine it only compounds the issue.

 

[josh4107]

Also, I use bulk reef supply gfo and it says something like 1 tablespoon per 4 gallons which is way too much to start out with. I still only use 1 tablespoon for my 33 gallon and my phosphate stays around .02-.03 but when I started using it I used close to recommended dosing and shocked my tank. I'd do some water changes and if u still want to use gfo start small an build up over weeks of time. Hope my own experience helps.