Candy Cane Corals not inflating

[Zoa_Fanatic]

I've had these guys 8 months. They've gone from 2 heads to 20ish. The last 2 or 3 days they haven't wanted to inflate at all with the tissue held close to the skeleton. Tank is nearly 7 years old. Parameters are:

Nitrate - 5ppm
Nitrite - 0ppm
Ammonia- 0 ppm
Calcium - 520 ppm
pH - 8.2

Recently raised pH from 7.8 back to 8.2 over 2 days. Wondering if the pH change could effect them. What can I do to help them recover?

 

[Mono]

When in doubt, water change. It's almost impossible to know what's bothering them. Your calc seems pretty high? Are you running it that high on purpose?

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

When in doubt, water change. It's almost impossible to know what's bothering them. Your calc seems pretty high? Are you running it that high on purpose?

Nope. No additives either. I’m using a color changing titration test so it’s between arpund 490-520 depending on how you read the color. I’ll get some water tomorrow if they haven’t improved and do a small water change. If there is no tissue recession are they going to survive?

 

[JCTReefer]

Curious as to what salt you’re using. No additives either. Hmmm. Candy canes are pretty bullet proof IME. What kit are you using to test calcium? Just curious. Calcium does seem pretty high. You say, you’ll get some water. Like saltwater from a LFS? Or Ro/Di to make your own. 7 year tank should be pretty dang mature/stable. And you must be doing something right to go from 2-20 heads in that period of time. Water changes never hurt. Lol. If nothing has changed with flow, light, etc, idk.
They’re pretty tolerant of a wide range of conditions I’ve found. Everything else look good in the tank? If so, I wouldn’t worry about too much. Phosphates good also?

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

Curious as to what salt you’re using. No additives either. Hmmm. Candy canes are pretty bullet proof IME. What kit are you using to test calcium? Just curious. Calcium does seem pretty high. You say, you’ll get some water. Like saltwater from a LFS? Or Ro/Di to make your own. 7 year tank should be pretty dang mature/stable. And you must be doing something right to go from 2-20 heads in that period of time. Water changes never hurt. Lol. If nothing has changed with flow, light, etc, idk.
They’re pretty tolerant of a wide range of conditions I’ve found. Everything else look good in the tank? If so, I wouldn’t worry about too much. Phosphates good also?

Everything else in the tank looks fine. I use distilled water and mix my own saltwater. My parameters don't really change at all hardly. My pH swings a bit and I use pH stabilizing powder in mix water to up it when needed. I think a water change with higher pH may have made them mad.

I am measuring calcium using an API calcium test kit with two parts. I have to titrate the second solution in and watch for a color change. Problem is its hard for me to determine when the color is dark enough to consider the test complete.

I know these dudes are legit unkillable since I FW dipped these guys when they had only 2 heads to kill some parasitic worms eating them from the inside. They shrank up and had 0 tissue showing. I thought they were D-E-D dead. They came back. These guys were my first LPS coral and have grown so dag on fast I just don't want them to die.

I dipped them in reef iodine dip for 10 minutes just now hoping to help them some. Anything else I can do? I have acans, blasto, zoa, torches, a tiny tiny hammer, leptastrea, a mushroom, and pale grandis. Nothing else in the tank is mad but my tiny hammer and that's just because my nassarius are idiots.

 

[Hincapiej4]

Ok, let me just make this point.

With candies, unless they are melting off the skeleton, they are fine. Just keep parameters where they should be

Source, my tank:

 

[Hincapiej4]

Wait a minute.

You're using api to check calcium? You left out alk...what is it? Since you're using chemicals to raise ph...you probably have really really high alk and the canary in your tank are the candies...

Please..please...get some salifert tests

 

[JCTReefer]

Everything else in the tank looks fine. I use distilled water and mix my own saltwater. My parameters don't really change at all hardly. My pH swings a bit and I use pH stabilizing powder in mix water to up it when needed. I think a water change with higher pH may have made them mad.

I am measuring calcium using an API calcium test kit with two parts. I have to titrate the second solution in and watch for a color change. Problem is its hard for me to determine when the color is dark enough to consider the test complete.

I know these dudes are legit unkillable since I FW dipped these guys when they had only 2 heads to kill some parasitic worms eating them from the inside. They shrank up and had 0 tissue showing. I thought they were D-E-D dead. They came back. These guys were my first LPS coral and have grown so dag on fast I just don't want them to die.

I dipped them in reef iodine dip for 10 minutes just now hoping to help them some. Anything else I can do? I have acans, blasto, zoa, torches, a tiny tiny hammer, leptastrea, a mushroom, and pale grandis. Nothing else in the tank is mad but my tiny hammer and that's just because my nassarius are idiots.

I’d be curious to compare your calcium levels with another kit besides API. Like RedSea for example. Those API kits led me astray long ago and I rarely use them for anything now. Especially their Nitrate test kit. That thing was way off.. I might use them to test my tank during cycling. That’s about it. Lol... You have a pic of what they look like?

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

I’d be curious to compare your calcium levels with another kit besides API. Like RedSea for example. Those API kits led me astray long ago and I rarely use them for anything now. Especially their Nitrate test kit. That thing was way off.. I might use them to test my tank during cycling. That’s about it. Lol... You have a pic of what they look like?

I iodine dipped them this morning and they look fine now lol. I plan to get a Red Sea kit as soon as I am able to test everything. I don't care for API myself so I replace the kits every six months. I have so much soft coral in my tank though it wouldn't surprise me if the nitrates are 0. The Xenia is sucking so much up its growing like a weed.

I’d be curious to compare your calcium levels with another kit besides API. Like RedSea for example. Those API kits led me astray long ago and I rarely use them for anything now. Especially their Nitrate test kit. That thing was way off.. I might use them to test my tank during cycling. That’s about it. Lol... You have a pic of what they look like?

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

I’d be curious to compare your calcium levels with another kit besides API. Like RedSea for example. Those API kits led me astray long ago and I rarely use them for anything now. Especially their Nitrate test kit. That thing was way off.. I might use them to test my tank during cycling. That’s about it. Lol... You have a pic of what they look like?

Wait a minute.

You're using api to check calcium? You left out alk...what is it? Since you're using chemicals to raise ph...you probably have really really high alk and the canary in your tank are the candies...

Please..please...get some salifert tests

I plan to get some Red Sea kits as soon as I can afford it. I can't test alk at all right now. I iodine dipped them early this morning and now they look fine. Everything else is open and looks great today as well. My candies are the same color and roughly 1/4 the size of your colony right now. They grow faster than any coral I have ever seen before.

 

[rtparty]

First red flag I see is using any type of pH buffer. pH buffers will spike your alkalinty so if you raised it from 7.8 to 8.2, you likely spiked your alkalinity something fierce. I would stop using that immediately.

Get yourself the Red Sea foundation test kit for like $60. Alk, Ca, and Mg and you can trust the results. Alkalinity is far more important than calcium so you should be watching that IMO

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

First red flag I see is using any type of pH buffer. pH buffers will spike your alkalinty so if you raised it from 7.8 to 8.2, you likely spiked your alkalinity something fierce. I would stop using that immediately.

Get yourself the Red Sea foundation test kit for like $60. Alk, Ca, and Mg and you can trust the results. Alkalinity is far more important than calcium so you should be watching that IMO

Theyre doing fine this morning. Yeah I plan to. Everything is doing great today except my poor hammer since the clowns don't know how to leave it alone lol

 

[Hincapiej4]

you can get a salifert alk test for like 25 bucks. imo not expensive and anything other than having it for a least a backup for a red sea or hanna is an excuse.

personally, i have hanna, salifert, and red sea kits.

 

[Hincapiej4]

TBH, I'm willing to help you get one if you are unable to. The curiousity of your alk level is killing me lol

 

[Storm Trooper Reefer]

got any fishies in there? an Mon Calamari, or foxface?

 

[Fish_Sticks]

+1 for kh. Also test mag pls.
Waiting in anticipation of KH levels. Who wants popcorn?

Salifert tests for the win.

I was going to mention kh is prolly low since calc was so high, but didnt see you were adding ph buffer. Anyones guess till we test.

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

got any fishies in there? an Mon Calamari, or foxface?

Nah just some premium frostbite clowns. No ones messing with them they’re just angry for some reason.

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

TBH, I'm willing to help you get one if you are unable to. The curiousity of your alk level is killing me lol

I didn't know I could get a kit just for ALK. ill look into that when I get paid this week. Its the last kit I need. I've got bits and pieces of everything else I also need to replace my nitrate kit. I know its reading low.

 

[Hincapiej4]

I didn't know I could get a kit just for ALK. ill look into that when I get paid this week. Its the last kit I need. I've got bits and pieces of everything else I also need to replace my nitrate kit. I know its reading low.

You can get separate tests for everything. Go on BRS if you need to take a look.

At the risk of being rude, you said the tank is 7 years old, how do you not know these things?

 

[Zoa_Fanatic]

You can get separate tests for everything. Go on BRS if you need to take a look.

At the risk of being rude, you said the tank is 7 years old, how do you not know these things?

I know all of these things. That was kinda rude tbh. I don't test for every parameter because chasing numbers never leads to anything good in this hobby. I haven't lost a single coral to anything but predation the whole time I've been doing this. I mainly ask these questions as a way of assurance to backup what I already either know or suspect. I honestly just never wanted to spend the money to get tests to come up with actual readings and then mess something up chasing numbers when everything is in my tank is fine.