Chaeto suddenly dying after years of doing well

hllb

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 30, 2019
Messages
2,175
Reaction score
1,544
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
I know it's a recurrent question, but most of the answers are your tank is too clean. My parameters look good for the most part:

ph: 8.0 to 8.3
Nitrate: 14.2
Phosphate: .064
Calcium: 405
Alk: 8.2
Mag: 1745 (doubt this number is real, but I've always tested high)
Temp: 77-78
salt: 1.026

My tank is a 65g mixed reef, all my corals are growing well. I do a 10-15% water change each week and use HW Marinemix Reefer salt.

This tank has been up for 2.5 years, and was a transfer from a smaller tank that was up for 3 years. I've had chaeto that entire time, and never had issues. It grew very fast and biweekly I'd need to harvest half of it. I use a cheap amazon fuge light and keep it on for about 12 hours opposite my main lights. Nothing has changed in my tank forever. I used to run lower nutrients, my phosphate would be around 0, but the chaeto grew well, so I assumed it was taking it all up. My phosphate has come up now that the chaeto isn't doing well. For the past 2 months, it just wasn't growing fast. I checked it today and and its starting to fall apart now.

Any ideas? I also dose Red Sea Colors once a week. I haven't done an ISP test in a long time, but not sure anything in that would affect chaeto and not my coral.
 

Cjmatt

New Member
View Badges
Joined
Dec 10, 2017
Messages
6
Reaction score
4
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Did it make a difference? I had issues with it dying off too but a few water changes and some cheato gro seems to have fixed it. My nitrates are about 17 also
 
OP
OP
hllb

hllb

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 30, 2019
Messages
2,175
Reaction score
1,544
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Did it make a difference? I had issues with it dying off too but a few water changes and some cheato gro seems to have fixed it. My nitrates are about 17 also
Not sure yet - I’ve been out of the country for 10 days and heading home today. Before I left, it seemed a little better, or at least not worse. I also scraped the coralline off the sump wall as I have the light shining through it. I would’ve thought it was getting enough light anyway, but maybe not
 

Making aqua concoctions: Have you ever tried the Reef Moonshiner Method?

  • I currently use the moonshiner method.

    Votes: 50 20.5%
  • I don’t currently use the moonshiner method, but I have in the past.

    Votes: 5 2.0%
  • I have not used the moonshiner method.

    Votes: 177 72.5%
  • Other.

    Votes: 12 4.9%
Back
Top