What shocked my corals?

[WilliamH2529]

Hello guys I’m here since I KNOW I shocked my corals I just want to figure out which thing I specifically did to shock my corals or if it was a mixture of it. So the basic run down,

I tested my tank and saw that my PH was incredibly low, (7.5) my magnesium was low as well (1080) my phosphates were ironically a bit high being 0.14, my nitrates were 0.1, my calcium wasn’t horrifically low but wasn’t as high as I’d like it at 390 my alk was pretty low at 9.2 my salinity was fine at 1.025

anyways I dozed my tank with reef buffer to quickly raise the PH to 8.3 I dosed with a little API calcium to raise the calcium and I dosed with admittedly a lot of magnesium to raise the magnesium.

doing this caused all my corals to to close up being zoas, frogspawn, mushrooms and caused my lepto to what I believe is bleach a little bit and extend some slimy type tentacles and my toadstool… well they’ve turned white and yellow in some spots.

so this is a two pronged question of asking what I can do to help the corals after my mess up and a question of which thing did I do that probably caused the issues?

 

[blaxsun]

1. Don't adjust your parameters further (try to keep them stable).
2. Try not to raise them so quickly next time (weeks instead of hours or days).

 

[KrisReef]

What does the instructions suggest is an ok increment/day to raise pH with the buffer?
Same question for the Mg? I think those changes were made too swiftly, or not too swiftly if you wanted good results?

Ironically, the frogspawn and the leptoseris were probably in no danger from the low calcium or magnesim but swift ionic changes in the water column are going to stress them, as you discovered.

Never make sudden changes. If it goes low, slowly, over days/weeks move the water parameters back towards the numbers that are easiest for your system to maintain. Optimum parameters, if they are never stable will never work.