Help! I am not able to keep any LPS alive in my tank for more than a few months. The typical is they look good for about 1 to 2 months and then they start shrinking and tissue receding until the flesh is gone. I have tried lots of different LPS and a few "easy" SPS with no success. Softies survive - but really don't grow very much. Here is the info on my tank and what has been successful and what hasn't. I am looking for any suggestions/insights!
Tank: 90 gallon (24" high, 18" deep, 48" wide) + 15 gallons or so in sump, system is 2.5 years old
Flow: 2 Tunze 6055 running full (1450 gph each)
Lights: 2 AI Hydra 26HD, using BRS settings that approximate Radion AB (UV 119, Violet 116, Royal Blue79, Blue 80, Green 4, Deep Red 4, Cool White 22), runs at these settings for 6 hours with a 3 hour ramp up and 3 hour ramp down. Tank covered with glass top. Lights 10" above water line.
Par Measurements: (using Seneye) Sand bed measures 20-50 par, mid level measures 50-80 par, top level 75-180 par
Filtration: Filter sock, skimmer, refugium with chaeto, carbon/gfo reactor - but I stopped running reactor a month ago
Water: RODI with BRS 4 stage (measures 0 TDS), ATO using Kalkwasser mixed in with RODI water
Salt: Brightwell Neomarine Reef Salt
Parameters
Salinity: 1.025
Ammonia & Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0 - 0.5 (NYOS test, usually either on 0 or slightly tinted but less than 1ppm so I am estimating 0.5)
Phosphate: .03 (Hanna)
Calcium: 420 ppm (Red Sea)
Magnesium: 1320 ppm (Red Sea)
Alk: 8.6 - 9.7 but typically in upper 8.X (Hanna)
Ph: 8.2 - 8.3 (Red Sea)
Temp: 77.7 - 78
Maintenance
Corals that haven't survived (different ones tried over the past 2.5 yrs) various Euphyllia (hammer, octo, frogspawn, torch), Elegance, Blastos, Candy Cane, Bubble, Chalices, Acans, Scoly, Scroll, Goniopora, Birds Nest, Montipora. The typical pattern is the LPS seem to "waste away" over a period of 1-4 months. SPS corals seem to turn brown and then die (over 3-4 weeks)
All fish are classified "reef safe" and I have never seen any showing any interest in corals. All new corals inspected closely for critters, dipped in Bayer, dipped in Seachem Reef Dip before put in tank.
Attached is a pic of my tank, a pic of a euphyllia I have had for 5 months now (has shrunk some over that period), pic of a hammer coral that looked good for a couple months and then started shrinking to nothing over a month period until all that is left is the skeleton.
I may be doing something stupid/wrong - so my feelings won't get hurt if you point out something. Just tired of wasting money on corals that fail and also feel bad for the animals. My best theory from what I have read is i need to have some Nitrates ("water too clean"). So far, haven't been able to raise Nitrates by turning down skimmer and reducing Chaeto hours (planning to reduce hours further).
Going to submit an ICP test to make sure nothing is crazy out of whack from an element perspective.
Tank: 90 gallon (24" high, 18" deep, 48" wide) + 15 gallons or so in sump, system is 2.5 years old
Flow: 2 Tunze 6055 running full (1450 gph each)
Lights: 2 AI Hydra 26HD, using BRS settings that approximate Radion AB (UV 119, Violet 116, Royal Blue79, Blue 80, Green 4, Deep Red 4, Cool White 22), runs at these settings for 6 hours with a 3 hour ramp up and 3 hour ramp down. Tank covered with glass top. Lights 10" above water line.
Par Measurements: (using Seneye) Sand bed measures 20-50 par, mid level measures 50-80 par, top level 75-180 par
Filtration: Filter sock, skimmer, refugium with chaeto, carbon/gfo reactor - but I stopped running reactor a month ago
Water: RODI with BRS 4 stage (measures 0 TDS), ATO using Kalkwasser mixed in with RODI water
Salt: Brightwell Neomarine Reef Salt
Parameters
Salinity: 1.025
Ammonia & Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0 - 0.5 (NYOS test, usually either on 0 or slightly tinted but less than 1ppm so I am estimating 0.5)
Phosphate: .03 (Hanna)
Calcium: 420 ppm (Red Sea)
Magnesium: 1320 ppm (Red Sea)
Alk: 8.6 - 9.7 but typically in upper 8.X (Hanna)
Ph: 8.2 - 8.3 (Red Sea)
Temp: 77.7 - 78
Maintenance
- Water change every 2-3 weeks (15-20 gallons)
- Filter sock changed every 2 weeks
- Skimmer - has been set to skim very little (to hopefully help boost Nitrates) - cup only fills after 3-4 weeks
- Chaeto - lit 12 hours over night, harvest 50-60% every 4 weeks
- Feed fish 1 cube frozen + 1/4 cube PE Calanus daily and occasional pellets in evening (2-3 nights per week)
- Have tried target feeding reef roids, reef chili, and other coral food - 2 times/wk
Corals that haven't survived (different ones tried over the past 2.5 yrs) various Euphyllia (hammer, octo, frogspawn, torch), Elegance, Blastos, Candy Cane, Bubble, Chalices, Acans, Scoly, Scroll, Goniopora, Birds Nest, Montipora. The typical pattern is the LPS seem to "waste away" over a period of 1-4 months. SPS corals seem to turn brown and then die (over 3-4 weeks)
All fish are classified "reef safe" and I have never seen any showing any interest in corals. All new corals inspected closely for critters, dipped in Bayer, dipped in Seachem Reef Dip before put in tank.
Attached is a pic of my tank, a pic of a euphyllia I have had for 5 months now (has shrunk some over that period), pic of a hammer coral that looked good for a couple months and then started shrinking to nothing over a month period until all that is left is the skeleton.
I may be doing something stupid/wrong - so my feelings won't get hurt if you point out something. Just tired of wasting money on corals that fail and also feel bad for the animals. My best theory from what I have read is i need to have some Nitrates ("water too clean"). So far, haven't been able to raise Nitrates by turning down skimmer and reducing Chaeto hours (planning to reduce hours further).
Going to submit an ICP test to make sure nothing is crazy out of whack from an element perspective.
