SPS burnt tips? Couldnt ID the cause of it please help T_T

Roli's Reef Ranch

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I’m going with low/depleted nutrients as well. Final answer.

I’ll continue to say that low or depleted PO4 is the #1 killer of Acro’s.
These are the numbers and this is the tank. High NO3 and PO4 aren't going to hurt your corals. Low will.
 

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Pod_01

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These are the numbers and this is the tank. High NO3 and PO4 aren't going to hurt your corals. Low will.
I am with you on the low Phosphates no discussion there, low Nitrate (NO3) not so much. Other forms of N, yup corals need it.
1681773446677.jpeg

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Regardless of the method you have beautiful reef.
I hope I can get mine to be like that, but right now I seem to have a knack for mess it up every 3-6 month. Last time I turned my reef into fresh /brackish water :(.
 

Roli's Reef Ranch

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I am with you on the low Phosphates no discussion there, low Nitrate (NO3) not so much. Other forms of N, yup corals need it.
1681773446677.jpeg

1681773568881.jpeg


Regardless of the method you have beautiful reef.
I hope I can get mine to be like that, but right now I seem to have a knack for mess it up every 3-6 month. Last time I turned my reef into fresh /brackish water :(.
This is a a bare-bottom system. It had 2 Dino outbreaks in the first year. I dosed Nitrate and phosphate, ran the skimmer for 4 hours a day, and fed 4 times a day to get detectable levels. It took time to get past the ugly phase and increase nutrients. You'll get there. Just stick it out. IME reefing is mostly patience, dedication, and a time investment.
 
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yuzusama

yuzusama

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Just a little updates, I am feeding heavily both for my fish and corals and still I have only NO3 to 1~5 and undetectable Po4, but I did lower my KH to around 7~8 and the burnt tips disappeared.
 

homer1475

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Just experienced this myself.

I run pretty high nutrients(no3 15-25, PO4, anywhere between .1 and .2). My DOS decided to dump my entire ALK container into my tank one day. Luckily it was almost empty so I only climbed from my normal 7DKH to 12DKH nearly instantly. Some but not all of my acros started to get burnt tips with little tufts of algae growing on the tips(what first alerted me to an issue).

I have since clipped the tips, and let my ALK lower back down to my normal 7ish. And all is well again.

Just goes to show that high ALK regardless of nutrient levels, will burn acro tips if they are not used to it.
 

Icryhard

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I had non detectable phosphates and an alk of 9.5 and was getting burnt tips. When I started dosing phosphates the tip burns stopped. I lowered the alk as well. Either way, the high alk and low nutrients combined were the problem. Plenty of people run high alk but they have detectable phosphates.

Current levels for me and it's working:
NO3 - 60
PO4 - 0.1
Alk - 8.6
Mag - 1280
Cal - 480
Doesn't your tank get flooded with algae with those parameters, if I may ask?
 

Dburr1014

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Just a little updates, I am feeding heavily both for my fish and corals and still I have only NO3 to 1~5 and undetectable Po4, but I did lower my KH to around 7~8 and the burnt tips disappeared.
Feeding heavy = more ammonium and phosphorus = feeding coral what they need.
 

tbrown

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Reefahholic

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Just experienced this myself.

I run pretty high nutrients(no3 15-25, PO4, anywhere between .1 and .2). My DOS decided to dump my entire ALK container into my tank one day. Luckily it was almost empty so I only climbed from my normal 7DKH to 12DKH nearly instantly. Some but not all of my acros started to get burnt tips with little tufts of algae growing on the tips(what first alerted me to an issue).

I have since clipped the tips, and let my ALK lower back down to my normal 7ish. And all is well again.

Just goes to show that high ALK regardless of nutrient levels, will burn acro tips if they are not used to it.

That’s probably from the swing itself. That is a major swing. I’m surprised you just had burnt tips.
 

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