Corals dying

[jerrod]

I did a tank transfer about 4 months ago and brought over half my live rock and all corals at around the 2 month mark, since then I have been losing colony after colony of SPS to a slow RTN and now I am losing some euphllyia corals to what looks like brown jelly disease. I have already lost one complete torch, three heads off of my dragon soul and a few heads of my hammers that I was able to salvage (cut affected heads off followed by Lugols dip). Now a week later my chalices are starting to recede. All fish have gone through quarantine before being placed in the tank so could only have gotten it from the rock I brought over from previous tank at first I thought it might be just an imbalance in bacteria but now am unsure so have been dosing Microbacter 7.

I think my issue is bacterial. This is all a guess based off symptoms and assumptions. I have no idea what it could be, if theres any others theories please let me know so I can keep researching.
At this point I am looking at starting to dose Cipro. Is there any risk to dosing the entire water column vs a hospital tank/frag tank (280 Display 50 Gal frag 70 gal sump 40 gal Refugium). I am still awaiting results of an ICP test to see if the issue is chemical or not. I will attach pictures in the morning when the lights come back on.

All water RODI 0 TDS. No Stray Voltage
Parameters:
1.026
NH3 - 0
NO2 - 0
NO3 - 10
PO4 - .03
KH - 9.66
CA - 438
MG - 1300

 

[mdb_talon]

I have no guess as to cause. If you are not already i would be running carbon and or chemipure.

 

[schuby]

How many fish, what kind, and size? How much and what do you feed each day/week (import), both for fish snd corals? What do you use to remove nutrients (export), such as GFO, ATS, skimmer, macro-algae, filter roller, lanthanum chloride, water changes, & chemipure? What phosphate test-kit?

Trying to get an idea of a day in the life of your reef.

 

[fishguy242]

@Eagle_Steve any insight on cipro dosing dt..

 

[jerrod]

Currently running Carbon in a reactor.
Current fish list. 4 tangs, I pyramid butterfly, 4 anthias, 3 chromis, dottyback, damsel, 2 dragonets.
I feed 3 sheets nori a week and three cubes mysis daily.
Nutrient export done with chaeto on reverse light schedule and filter socks. No GFO or phosphate reducer running.

 

[jerrod]

Lighting is done by Orpheks 16” above tank. Never rented a par meter but turned down to 65%. Tank dimensions 30x30x6’. Spot and broadcast feed corals with reef chili or reef roofs and Red Sea AB 2-3 times a week.

 

[schuby]

Ok. What is different in this tank vs previous tank? Size, lights/intensity, fish, corals, flow, amount of rock, salt, dosing, or nutrient levels?

My first guess is that your SPS are starving from lack of phosphate or light. However, if nutrient levels and lights were exactly the same in old tank, then I'd look elsewhere.

 

[Timfish]

+1 to Shuby's post. My first thought is low PO4 also. Low PO4, especially with high nitrates can cause a phosphorus deficiency in corals which can really screw up their photobiology.

 

[jerrod]

There is a lighting difference just due to the change in elevation going from a 24" to 30" tall tank but most the SPS were at the same height from the lights. I am using Hannah ULR to test for Phosphates as I did bottom out when I first moved everything and have brought them back up to readable levels. I cannot compare to what the old tank was as I only usually check for Alk, CA, and MG the only time I test for others is every two weeks or when there is an issue I have been overfeeding to raise nutrients. Could this be a lasting effect from when I zeroed out phosphate and just a residual effect from that. I had Dinos and it took me about a week to clear it up. I don't run a UV and had to turn off my protein skimmer and over feed to clear it up.

 

[Aldrinlights]

It sounds like a low par issue. I would find a local reef group and ask around at stores to see if you can rent a par meter. BRS also rents them. It's surprising how much less par you can have at even a few inches of depth as water disrupts the photons so very much especially if you have a ton of surface agitation.

The other thing I would recommend is doing a massive water change and run UV. It will kill any bacterial infestation but you have to make sure you are running the proper flow rate through it.

 

[schuby]

Based on your answers, the only change was tank size. Hard to fathom, but ok. If you had the same exact corals, lights, and fish, and you're feeding exactly the same amounts, then there is nothing glaring other than zeroing out on phosphate and subsequently running ultra low levels of phosphate.

Yes, zeroing out phosphate takes days to show and weeks or months to recover, once you start supplying adequate phosphate.

Keep in mind the new, dry rock will bind phosphate to it, removing it from the water column (may have caused your phosphate to zero out). Once coraline algae starts growing on dry rock, that is an additional load on ntrate, phosphate, alk, & calcium.

 

[jerrod]

I realize I didn't mention it before the new tank is bare bottom. Since it doesn't have the surface area of the sand could this just be the issue. I also think thats why nutrients have stayed so low and bottomed out as I never had that issue in the old tank with the same regimen. I will continue testing daily and try to dip the few corals that are having issues and try to get the tank to balance out. I don't want a knee jerk reaction and wait for results before I try something else. I added sand to my frag tank in hopes that it is just a bacterial issue. Attached are photos of my issues. Tissue recession and some corals browning out. If its nutrients with PO4 at .03 and nitrate at 10 I thought I should be good.