Zoanthids melting and sky high nitrates

[TripleTruble]

i use Hanna phosphorus and Hanna alk and nitrate was from Salifert

 

[TripleTruble]

Elegance has had issues for a bit now everything else is doing great till the zoas

 

[TripleTruble]

Are you saying you filled it up with old used sand ?

Yes so I was thinking that may need to go

 

[TripleTruble]

I tried narrowing the algae type but I was getting a lot of clear bubbles on rocks and green slimy. No real hair algae. I would siphon and brush off

 

[TripleTruble]

The spike in algae I presume at first came from adding my second light. when I started the second light I went down to 70 intensity this weekend I put it too 50.

 

[NS Mike D]

So here is my theory i may have found out. This dry rock was in an aquarium than dried out. And was put into tank without a full clean and also the sand.

so dry rock that has dried out poses some issues. Firstly in needs to be cured before going into a tank to get rid of all the dead stuff. This will explain the nutrient over load.


If it was cured, then it takes time for the bacteria film to develop and mature and for coraline to cover the rock to help keep algae at bay.

So, we are onto something. We need to help you rock mature and keep the algae at bay,.

It's generally accepted that keeping NO3 and PO4 low in new tanks helps while the tank matures and develops the natural defenses - BRS For tanks 1 - 2 years old, recommends a range of 0.5 - 3ppm for NO3 and 0.03 - 0.07ppm for PO4.

 

[NatD]

Can you share the last couple times you tested and what the results were? This will help us understand if it is the rock and sand.

 

[NS Mike D]

The spike in algae I presume at first came from adding my second light. when I started the second light I went down to 70 intensity this weekend I put it too 50.

another clue


dirty rock adding dead stuff in excess of tank export/uptake capacity leads to NO3 PO4 rise

dry rock with lots of light = attractive invitation for algae


Addition of light could explain zoa closing


Let's add to solution bringing down light to let coraline form and keep corals alive, while noyt fueling the algae. This will be threading the needle, but a lot of corals don't need as much lighgt as we think, expecially new corals that benefit from an acclimation period.

 

[TripleTruble]

Nitrates have been up for at least 2 weeks since I had the Salifert test I had an api here but don’t trust it. Phosphorus checker for 2 weeks also

 

[TripleTruble]

I have been doing regular changes of water using rodi. I just replaced those filters also on Friday getting 0 tds out it’s a 5 stage

 

[TripleTruble]

Yes that’s why I dropped light intensity today

 

[NS Mike D]

Yes so I was thinking that may need to go

@brandon429 Rip Clean Sand Rinse Alert. dirty dry rock, dirty sand in new tank.


@TripleTruble I've called Brandon429 to this thread to solicit his input.

 

[Malifry97]

To add on to what @NS Mike D said. DO A RIP CLEAN! @brandon429 can help. 54g is still manageable for a rip clean. As for phosphate, that will be an ongoing problem as the rock will leach it. Id suggest rip cleaning and sand rinsing and then I would add a refugium.

 

[TripleTruble]

Here is current sump set up

 

[TripleTruble]

To add on to what @NS Mike D said. DO A RIP CLEAN! @brandon429 can help. 54g is still manageable for a rip clean. As for phosphate, that will be an ongoing problem as the rock will leach it. Id suggest rip cleaning and sand rinsing and then I would add a refugium.

What is a RIP Clean exactly

 

[Malifry97]

What is a RIP Clean exactly

Essentially taking sand out and rinsing it completely. Then taking the rocks and rinsing all detritus off and out of them, then use hydrogen peroxide (3% from grocery store) to kill any algae. Rinse one more time. Couple this with a 100% water change.

And that my friend is a Rip Clean.

 

[Dixon B]

Do a series of large water changes over the next two weeks for the most natural approach, or run out and get a container of nopox and start dosing that in combination with water changes.

 

[Dixon B]

So here is my theory i may have found out. This dry rock was in an aquarium than dried out. And was put into tank without a full clean and also the sand.

That's going to account for a lot of excess waste in the system. In fact it's pretty much guarenteed that an approach like that will lead to undesired results. I still think short of taking all of that out and deep cleaning it that a series of water changes will allow it to do its thing over time and also allow for the export of all that stuff.

 

[Bxr126]

No big mystery here. Your NO3 and PO4 are way out of wack. Lights wont cause that. Algae is taking over because you have created the perfect environment for it. Resist the urge to over-react. Change your socks daily, do significant water changes. daily if need be. Cut back on feeding. crank your skimmer to wet skim, and clean the holy crap out of your tank and sump. Keep this up until those parameters get back down. As far as algae is concerned you could crank the intensity down on those lights, but with the all you can eat buffet you have going there, that alone isn't going to solve much.

 

[NS Mike D]

What is a RIP Clean exactly

What is sounds like

Official Sand Rinse and Tank Transfer thread

If you are reading this thread to cure a tank invasion from a link I sent you, we do not need to identify your type of invasion here we do not need you to test anything at anytime regarding nitrate, phosphate etc Above all, we do not need to see a microscope slide picture of your invasion at...

www.reef2reef.com

We (actually you and Brandon is going to walk you through it) are going to pull the rocks and sand and clean them. I can't speak for the water, you may need to replace, but in some cases it can be reused.

the bacteria, fish and corals will be fine. When you put everything back the tank should be good, aside from the PO4 leaching which @Malifry97 mentioned.

Add that you should get your hands of a PAR meter (can be borrowed or rented) to make sure you don't burn the corals