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Keep up the truly amazing work. Glad I discovered you and this thread!
When you see so many people killing corals it's refreshing to see someone bringing them back from the brink.
I went to a frag swap today (it’s my first year in the hobby) and finally found a wish list coral for a good price (Jason Fox solar flair for $75).Hi again! Thanks so much for the kind words of encouragement!
I used to have a website documenting all of this, but it took time away from the work itself. Plus, I'm not a vet/doctor, so I'm not qualified to give any "real" advice. Unfortunately, I've seen a bunch of people read a few words of advice, hear what they want, then do dumb things. You all know what I'm talking about.
Here's the very basic outline of what I do. I think there are some things I do that I can't explain why, but I go off intuition. I'm an engineer, so I used to have at least a modest amount of rigor in my methods (ohh, you should've seen the simulation I built of coral pest reproduction lifecycles and the impacts of different medications/treatments. It was great, except I think the software company is obsolete now.)
- Bottom line: There is no magic solution. This is 12 years of effort, learning, and FAILING. I've checked - I spend more money trying to save coral than if I were to just buy healthy coral like everyone else. If you think this is a way to get cheap coral, it's not.
- I used to limit what corals I'd take in (e.g., at least 75% of a polyp remaining, only certain pests, no brown jelly substance, etc.) Now, I take in everything since I feel like I can deal with nearly anything that comes in (including brown jelly). Who doesn't want a challenge?!
- Maintaining good water quality is a must, and this is a huge challenge if you always have a tank full of dying stuff. If you have any problems, don't take in more problems.
- Softies get a 5-second dip in a 10% hydrogen peroxide (standard grocery store strength) - tank water mix dip, followed by a Bayer dip, followed by a CoralRx dip
- LPS get the same as above except a 20-second dip in the hydrogen peroxide water dip
- SPS get only the Bayer & CoralRx dips
- Fish are another story...(not in this post)
- Everything is quarantined for 30 days. If I see a sign of anything, I handle the problem, and then the coral has to be clean for 30 days. Stuff still gets by me, but it's rare.
- When I did this on a larger scale (had a 1000 sq ft workshop with about 1000g dedicated to rescuing), I had a secondary QT/grow-out. This helped prevent pests from migrating.
- If I see signs of any problems, I treat for those problems. This requires inspecting every coral all over every day, including late nights to search for the nocturnal pests.
- Damaged corals have dying tissue removed, and I superglue a line along the healthy tissue to the skeleton.
- All corals have the majority of excess skeleton removed, especially any sharp bits (septa, etc.)
- Bleach, bleach, bleach, hydrogen peroxide, vinegar... Keep everything as clean as possible (tools, etc.)
- Have every medication/chemical available on hand. For example, levamisole, potassium permanganate, Bayer, Furan 2, chloroquine diphosphate, methylene blue, fluke tabs (my stock is getting *old* now that they're discontinued!!), etc.
- Know how to treat for everything, and have a microscope to help with determining the problem (ooooh the nasty things you'll find!)
- Are you ready to handle Acanthastrea-eating spiders? Predatory Rhodactis flatworms with tentacles (who knew?) Black bugs? Nudibranchs of every shape and size?
- Feed according to the problem & coral. I feed bleached corals 3-5x per week with my homemade food. But, there are some corals I've learned to not try to feed until they are at a certain point in recovery (not sure how to explain this). Otherwise, the corals just can't seem to digest the food. It rots, and the corals rot too. I guess I look for a feeding response - if they aren't actively trying to feed, I don't force it.
I'm sure I'll think of more later, but that's my late-night attempt to put it on "paper".
And, another pretty shot:
I'm so sorry to hear that - it's heartbreaking and frustrating all at the same time. Sending you good coral vibes!!I went to a frag swap today (it’s my first year in the hobby) and finally found a wish list coral for a good price (Jason Fox solar flair for $75).
I brought it home and CoralRX dipped it, but I think I over-dosed it (1/2 gallon with 2 cap-fulls).
Now, about 90% of the coral is bleached out, with only a small section of polyps left.
I’ve never had anything like this happen before, and don’t know if it’ll recover.
Your posts give me hope. Fingers crossed.