So for context, the tank is 6 months old 2 days ago, since about a month ago I've had several corals decline in both appearance and several other factors. I've had an Acan since May, and it bloomed wonderfully loving life for several months, it had even started to develop a new head, rapidly at that. I've had my bubble coral since then as well, and it recovered from shipping and got even bigger and more beautiful, it has also started declining in the last month or so. The third coral that isn't doing well is my Mandarin firework, It was absolutely beautiful, 12+ heads on the frag when I bought it. ( I should mention the other tank inhabitants that are all doing well ( A monti, favia (doing amazing), chalice, pulsing xenia, several zoa tyes, a mushroom, and 2 sps (they aren't fairing well but I know why that is) (actual livestock: tail spot blenny, very small orange spotted goby, peppermint shrimp, BTA (now dead))
My parameters have been pretty constant since I've had the tank, Ph 8.2-8.4 Salinity 1.026 SG Cal and Mag are elevated (I believe due to instant ocean salt mix) at 475 and 1560, they always have been a little high. Kh 10.5-11.5.
My biggest problem starting the tank was that it's a fluval 15g all in one, I didn't have a skimmer for the first 4 months, got one two months ago, I also couldn't use NOPOX because I didn't have a skimmer. I had a high nitrate problem I bounced between 20-40ppm for a long time, but all the corals seemed fine. Then I started having an algae problem with the firework, lost several heads cuz the nitrates were so high the algae strangled the delicate heads. So I started dosing nopox until I hit like 5ppm nitrate. That's when all the problems started. My sea anemone melted. The acan is down the head it was trying to grow and maybe losing another soon, and is now coated in some kind of mucus. The bubble gets smaller every day. and the mandarin firework maybe only got helped a little bit. I feel like my tank was doing better when I had 20-40 ppm nitrate than now, I've been gradually bringing it back up to 10ppm and feeding more since I have a skimmer now. But everything seems to be doing terrible in what is considered to be "more ideal" conditions. I feel like i've done so much research and testing and monitoring but I'm failing, am I missing something?
I'm attaching pics of when I got them, some growth, and then the downhill.
My parameters have been pretty constant since I've had the tank, Ph 8.2-8.4 Salinity 1.026 SG Cal and Mag are elevated (I believe due to instant ocean salt mix) at 475 and 1560, they always have been a little high. Kh 10.5-11.5.
My biggest problem starting the tank was that it's a fluval 15g all in one, I didn't have a skimmer for the first 4 months, got one two months ago, I also couldn't use NOPOX because I didn't have a skimmer. I had a high nitrate problem I bounced between 20-40ppm for a long time, but all the corals seemed fine. Then I started having an algae problem with the firework, lost several heads cuz the nitrates were so high the algae strangled the delicate heads. So I started dosing nopox until I hit like 5ppm nitrate. That's when all the problems started. My sea anemone melted. The acan is down the head it was trying to grow and maybe losing another soon, and is now coated in some kind of mucus. The bubble gets smaller every day. and the mandarin firework maybe only got helped a little bit. I feel like my tank was doing better when I had 20-40 ppm nitrate than now, I've been gradually bringing it back up to 10ppm and feeding more since I have a skimmer now. But everything seems to be doing terrible in what is considered to be "more ideal" conditions. I feel like i've done so much research and testing and monitoring but I'm failing, am I missing something?
I'm attaching pics of when I got them, some growth, and then the downhill.