Gold torch dying

[DonTavo27]

What’s up reefers, So I’ve had this gold torch for over two years now, it was a spawn from the colony at my LFS. It was doing great, got to about the size of a tennis ball, but recently in the past 4-5 months has been slowly dying off, or melting? I’m at a loss, for what to do, I purchased some Brightwell Coral recover, which is a natural remedy for damaged or fragged coral, and have dipped it about two times in the last 2 weeks, but it doesn’t seem to be responding well. I know this will require a lot of patience, which I’m not afraid of, but some advice would greatly be appreciated. My magnesium has always run high 1500ppm, calcium was tested yesterday at 500+ppm, and alk just tested at 6.5 dkh, salinity just checked out at 1.026
All of my other torch, hammers, and coral are doing great. Thanks for your advice in advance.

 

[wesman42]

Your alkalinity is a little on the low side. You should probably try to keep it around 7.5+.

 

[Phil D.]

Definitely Alk is issue, I keep mine at 9.8-10ppm and torch is VERY happy.

 

[JoshH]

#Reefsquad any other thoughts on this?

 

[xaflatoonx]

Has it been secreting any brown jelly like texture?

 

[DonTavo27]

Thanks everyone, fortunately I haven’t noticed any brown jelly. I will work to slowly raise my Alk, hopefully this does it. It’s just hard, because all other livestock is growing, and glowing! Which is why I am puzzled as to what it could be.

Your alkalinity is a little on the low side. You should probably try to keep it around 7.5+.

Definitely Alk is issue, I keep mine at 9.8-10ppm and torch is VERY happy.

Has it been secreting any brown jelly like texture?

 

[Auto-pilot]

I don't think it's an alkalinity issue unsless your alkalinity is unstable. I keep my alkalinity at 7-7.5 and I've had times where it's been low and not had problems with my torch or corals. It would help to know what your phosphate is at, nitrate, and if your parameters are stable ?? If they are always bouncing up or down this will happen. Your calcium is high and if your dosing I would stop, same with magnesium. Alkalinity needs a bump and maybe higher dosing to keep it up and stable.My torch seems to extend more if my water is dirtier. If you have low nutrients it could be starving, my torch is the first to let me know if my nitrates get too low

 

[Ben Seaver]

Agreed with the response above. Another step would be an iodine dip, not too strong. I assume you’ve e checked for pests as well?

 

[Jberge]

I had the same issue with my frogspawn. After about a year in my tank it shrunk up from the size of a softball to 6 heads barely extended a half inch. My torches and hammers are doing great. Alk was low, in the 6’s, because I hadn’t started testing or dosing yet but nothing else showed any effects. I thought for sure I was going to lose it. It’s been about 4 months now and it’s still holding on and appears to be recovering. I never figured out what happened though

 

[DonTavo27]

I don't think it's an alkalinity issue unsless your alkalinity is unstable. I keep my alkalinity at 7-7.5 and I've had times where it's been low and not had problems with my torch or corals. It would help to know what your phosphate is at, nitrate, and if your parameters are stable ?? If they are always bouncing up or down this will happen. Your calcium is high and if your dosing I would stop, same with magnesium. Alkalinity needs a bump and maybe higher dosing to keep it up and stable.My torch seems to extend more if my water is dirtier. If you have low nutrients it could be starving, my torch is the first to let me know if my nitrates get too low

Agreed with the response above. Another step would be an iodine dip, not too strong. I assume you’ve e checked for pests as well?

I had the same issue with my frogspawn. After about a year in my tank it shrunk up from the size of a softball to 6 heads barely extended a half inch. My torches and hammers are doing great. Alk was low, in the 6’s, because I hadn’t started testing or dosing yet but nothing else showed any effects. I thought for sure I was going to lose it. It’s been about 4 months now and it’s still holding on and appears to be recovering. I never figured out what happened though

I have a dosing pump and my parameters stay pretty stable.
In the last 2 months I did bring the dosing down on alk, cal, and mag, since they were all running kinda high. I’ve been runnning this tank skimmerless for about two months now, and when I tested my nitrates before taking the skimmer of line, nitrates were almost undetectable via salifert, as I only keep two clown fish in a 40g. The only thing I can think of is planaria worms, but I don’t see any on the actual torch, I just have a few roaming around. I will try dipping it, with a couple drops of lugols, hopefully that doesn’t stress it out, and it bites the bullet.
Also I’m running cheato in my sump with the light on 24/7.

 

[Leadfooted]

For what it's worth, my Alk dropped to around 6.5, some corals looked happy, others seems stalled. I raised it to a tic over 7 and my torches tentacles are swollen, fat and happy again. I also increased my feeding so not 100% sure what helped, maybe both.

 

[BellaCoop]

I have had this issue with my black torch.. The levels did not affect it that much but it all came to feeding for mine. How do you feed it? I started spot feeding Reef Roids, with a tea spoon of RR and just enough water to make it so the syringe could slurp it up and after that the Torch brightened in color and became very healthy again.

 

[DonTavo27]

I do feed my coral at least once per week, polyp booster, followed by reed roids, I’m being conservative due to going skimmerless. I’ve been manually dosing 5ml Alk spread apart by 10 hrs, on top of my dosing pump, will test Alk tonight.

 

[DonTavo27]

For what it's worth, my Alk dropped to around 6.5, some corals looked happy, others seems stalled. I raised it to a tic over 7 and my torches tentacles are swollen, fat and happy again. I also increased my feeding so not 100% sure what helped, maybe both.

I have had this issue with my black torch.. The levels did not affect it that much but it all came to feeding for mine. How do you feed it? I started spot feeding Reef Roids, with a tea spoon of RR and just enough water to make it so the syringe could slurp it up and after that the Torch brightened in color and became very healthy again.

 

[Auto-pilot]

Ok your cheato could be keeping the water too clean for the coral maybe. I do not feed my frogspawn hammer or torch and they are all growing. They eat reef roids and just spit it out later.

 

[Saltyreef]

I have LPS that discolors and melts in anything below 7dkh. Mainly chalices. Other soft coral seems fine. The only euphyllia i had in my tank was a member of the melt squad and never recovered as all my chalices did. so it makes me believe low alk was your issue.

 

[Abdullah Al Faruq]

Any updates ? Recovery ?

 

[Tamberav]

My alk gets as low as 6.5 but usually right around 7 and my euphyllia grow and grow and grow. Your nutrients seem low to me. My nitrate hangs around 8...and PO4 around 0.08.

 

[CindyKz]

My euphyllia don't like nitrates below 5.

Also, I have had great luck with Lugols dip on a couple of torches. Just follow the directions on the bottle.

Good luck!

 

[Aquacrazed]

I don't think it's an alkalinity issue unsless your alkalinity is unstable. I keep my alkalinity at 7-7.5 and I've had times where it's been low and not had problems with my torch or corals. It would help to know what your phosphate is at, nitrate, and if your parameters are stable ?? If they are always bouncing up or down this will happen. Your calcium is high and if your dosing I would stop, same with magnesium. Alkalinity needs a bump and maybe higher dosing to keep it up and stable.My torch seems to extend more if my water is dirtier. If you have low nutrients it could be starving, my torch is the first to let me know if my nitrates get too low

Reviving an old thread here. This advice was spot on. I had the exact issue the OP had, all my corals doing really great (hammers included) except my 2 torches. Turns out the issue was my nitrates bottomed out.