Raise of KH and things start looking down

[e1v4n]

Hello!

Ive been batteling this issue for around 2 weeks now.

Tank: Red sea max with a sump downstairs, total water volume 210L
Corals: 10 sps frags and minor colonies, 15 diffrent LPS, 7 zoas. and some other corals.
tank is quite crowded i think...
Fish: 1 clownfish, 1 salarias, 1 filefish, 1 yellow wrasse, 1 blue fairy wrasse
Lights: 1 hydra 26 and 4 t5 blues and violett, the ligths are around 10 months of use.

Tests:

KH: was 11.4 today 10.4 same exact number for 3 days now. Measuring with Hanna checker
Mg: 1410 stabile measuring with salifert. always around 1400-1450
Ca: 470 today its 460, always been 450 steady. measuring with salifert.
No3: 10-12 today 5-10 after around 50% water change in 3 days measuring with salifert. always been around 10
Po4: was 0.20 today 0.08 Measuring with hanna "Always been around 0.1
Ph: fluctuating between 8.2 - 8.4 daily using millwaukee ph probe.



Been from home mostly last 6 months, Been home and testing atleast 3 times a week and tank never looked better, colour,growth..some algae tho. (changed the usual 15%) once a month.
Once i got home i started doing weekly waterchanges 15%. 3 weeks after corals started feeling worse. Polyps went in, lost a tenuis frag, lost
6 torch heads and losing more, most corals have lost their prime colour and looking a bit not pale but dull. theres still colour tho.
Problem is affecting mostly sps,lps.

Did a ICP 6 weeks beck, never had better results only thin was Iodium was low, and flourine was half of what it should be.

My actions of fixing the issue was:

Changed 50l first day, then 25l next day and 25l the next day. Same salt, same temperature, same kind of water ect ect..
Started feeding the fish a bit less since po4 was a bit on the high side.

Some corals seem to have stopped the illness/dying off but still are cranky, the test last week have been pretty the same as mentioned.

If you have any advice of what could be wrong please do tell me.

 

[Borat]

When it comes to LPS issues - its often the flow I would look at (they don't like too much flow). When it comes to SPS issues - absent other issues, I would look into lighting.. I never ran T5 - but maybe tubes are due for replacement?

 

[Lavey29]

Your DKH fluctuations alone can cause SPS decline? Why running so high? With your nutrient levels, high DKH can burn tips

 

[e1v4n]

When it comes to LPS issues - its often the flow I would look at (they don't like too much flow). When it comes to SPS issues - absent other issues, I would look into lighting.. I never ran T5 - but maybe tubes are due for replacement?

I don't think the t5s are old but then again they could be

 

[e1v4n]

Your DKH fluctuations alone can cause SPS decline? Why running so high? With your nutrient levels, high DKH can burn tips

Always had a dkh of 8,5-9 but over the 6 months when not being at home something has changed and I believe the usual dosage of ATI has been to much since the corals stopped growing - hence the greater dkh.

That's what I think happened, they stoped using kh because of something happened and the kh went higher with the same dose..

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I'd look to stabilize the alk dosing to maintain whatever alkalinity you want in the tank. 11 dKH is at the high end, but is OK. It is not Ok to go up and down a lot.

 

[e1v4n]

I'd look to stabilize the alk dosing to maintain whatever alkalinity you want in the tank. 11 dKH is at the high end, but is OK. It is not Ok to go up and down a lot.

I know, my alk has been really stable in the past, just not sure when it went up to 11. It was during the last few months but i still think it was gradually and not that quick. My alk has been showing 10.4 for 3-4 days now and hopefully it will settle at that number. I would like it to be near 9 but i dont wanna mess it up again

 

[e1v4n]

I'd look to stabilize the alk dosing to maintain whatever alkalinity you want in the tank. 11 dKH is at the high end, but is OK. It is not Ok to go up and down a lot.

started seeing alot more green hair algae this last week and some fuzzy white gray stuff aswell, and finding some white ish slime under a rack and under a rock. (pictures)

Just above that rack i got the torches and now have lost 8 heads trying to save the rest.

What do you think could this be harmful?

 

[Mr. Roboto]

Paling from my experience is from too much light and not enough nutrient. From just skimming it seems like you did a lot quick and that is never good.

Mainly 11 alk at low nutrients (below around 20ppm NO3) is dangerous to me. I dont care what anyone else says if you run it this high with low nutrients and a high light source you are destined to bleach your corals. High light, High Alk, Low Nutrients is going to hurt something.

I would try to bring the Alk back down to 9 if you say that is where it usually ran... Keep Nitrates at or around 10 unless you feed heavily and watch the light source. Back off on the waterchanges and just let it come down and the nutrients go up. This should swing things around and soften the blow.

 

[e1v4n]

Paling from my experience is from too much light and not enough nutrient. From just skimming it seems like you did a lot quick and that is never good.

Mainly 11 alk at low nutrients (below around 20ppm NO3) is dangerous to me. I dont care what anyone else says if you run it this high with low nutrients and a high light source you are destined to bleach your corals. High light, High Alk, Low Nutrients is going to hurt something.

I would try to bring the Alk back down to 9 if you say that is where it usually ran... Keep Nitrates at or around 10 unless you feed heavily and watch the light source. Back off on the waterchanges and just let it come down and the nutrients go up. This should swing things around and soften the blow.

Measuring every night, last nights tests after a 15% (last waterchange in a while) goes:

Dkh: 10.1
No3: wierdly have gone up to 10-12
Po4: 0.09
Ca: 465
Mg: 1430

I have only ran ATI essentials the normal daily routine and fed the fish and some phyto with the food around 5 times a day.

Removed gfo 3 days ago, just worried that the po4 will rise to mutch, already starting to see hair algae building up.

Does bleaching also involve corals slime more then usual?

 

[Mr. Roboto]

Measuring every night, last nights tests after a 15% (last waterchange in a while) goes:

Dkh: 10.1
No3: wierdly have gone up to 10-12
Po4: 0.09
Ca: 465
Mg: 1430

I have only ran ATI essentials the normal daily routine and fed the fish and some phyto with the food around 5 times a day.

Removed gfo 3 days ago, just worried that the po4 will rise to mutch, already starting to see hair algae building up.

Does bleaching also involve corals slime more then usual?

Low to no nutrients cause all kinds of issues. High light during that could cause an excess of slim build up as the corals try to protect themselves. Back off on the feeding if the phosphates seem to be going up. 5 times is a little much even if they are eating it all.

Just work slow and make small changes.

 

[e1v4n]

Low to no nutrients cause all kinds of issues. High light during that could cause an excess of slim build up as the corals try to protect themselves. Back off on the feeding if the phosphates seem to be going up. 5 times is a little much even if they are eating it all.

Just work slow and make small changes.

So i got the icp back.. the results are wierd.

My testing with kh seems on point but on calcium magnesium it seems of odly. Im using new tests and there should be no problems.

Triton icp was 6-7 weeks back, the iodine was low back then. aquaforest is the new icp test and it show iodine is high??
I have dosed iodine from aquaforest probably once every 3 days as recomeneded for 24 hours dose. 2 drops per 24h.

Could high or fluctuating iodine do this to my tank?


Im noticing silicon and perhaps its time to change my ro filters.. other then that something is a bit higher then it should be, but the wierd thing is that my salinity has changed.. that is probably my fault when changing water..

What im thinking is weekly changing 25% of the water..and make sure the nitrates are 10-15 and po4 around 0.10 what do you guys recommend?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I'm not really seeing anything problematic in the ATI ICP.