Ryan Messick

Howdy and welcome as well. I also live in Dumfries (real close to Montclair), and struggle to find a good store close-by. I totally agree that BRK is worth the trip. Drop me a line if I can help out with anything and I'd be happy to donate a few corals to a fellow reefer in Dumfries.

Tom, thanks for the explanation. Okay, so then the right answer to your question is "no". I'll do a WC today and advise of the results.

Tom, I do run carbon (I add a small amount every 2 weeks). I don't understand why carbon would inhibit the gradual decrease of alk as the stony corals grow. Yes, it's nice to *really* know what my alk is. I'm guessing that two more 20 gallon water changes will get me somewhere around 10dKH.

Okay, after a 20 gallon water change today, my alkalinity is now in detectable levels! Now it's 260ppm or 5.2mEq/l or 14.6dKH. For reference my calc is 400ppm.

Tom, totally agree on all points -- many thanks!

Update: By visual inspection, things are looking better. The sluffing has stopped on the stony corals. The palys look better and the pocilipora has a better polyp extention. Things don't look great, but they've definitely stopped getting worse. Using the Hanna electrical alk tester, my reading is above range. Unit flashes 300, so the reading is above 300ppm, or 6.0mEq/l or 16.8dKH.

David, Thanks. Yeah, I haven't been too active on here (insert excuses about work, kids, etc...), but somehow it makes a difference to know that we are all in the same area... Yeah, it's been kind of stressful. Mike just picked up a fancy electronic alk tester from BRK, so I'll have that new toy thanks to this latest problem. By visual inspection, the sluffing is progressing, but maybe slower than before. I'll do another 20 gallon water change tonight... and advise of the results.

hypertech -- I believe whatever my alkalinity is, it's out of range of the test I was using. I tested again after the water change and it's still really high. I stopped adding drops after 15. So, it's higher than 15. I don't know how to describe it, but it just turns a different color blue (like a deep royal blue) unlike tanks with normal alk levels. For reference I tested my frag tank downstairs, and it came out to 10 dKh. My plan is to do 15-20 gallon water changes daily until I'm in a normal range... flowerseller -- I dose this: http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/products/calcium-alkalinity-magnesium/calcium-supplements-for-aquariums/1-gallon-bulk-calcium-chloride-for-aquariums.html and this: http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/products/calcium-alkalinity-magnesium/alkalinity-supplements-for-aquariums/1-gallon-bulk-sodium-bicarbonate-for-aquariums.html from Bulk Reef Supply. About 2 weeks ago I tested calcium and it was low (around 300-350), and so I stepped up from 2 TBS of both of the above daily to 3 TBS. John -- I doubt it. The guy I bought them from had a reef tank. treesprite -- haven't calibrated for a long time. Testing against RO/DI water showed 1.000. My refractometer showed my water to be 1.026, and my friends showed it to be 1.027, so I'm pretty confident that I'm in a reasonable salinity range. Thanks again to all for your input and questions as I try to wrestle things back to normalcy.

epleeds, Makes sense. I changed 25 Gallons, I'm guessing that I have around 85 gallons of water between the DT and sump, so that's almost a 30% water change. I'm guessing not too strong of a decrease... Either way, the water change is done. I'll test and do another tomorrow, size will depend on what readings I get, but I'm planning on changing around 15 gallons or so... -Ryan

Okay, I'm back from my friends house -- and the answer is: alkalanity. Its higher than 18dKh. We tested using a kit where you added one drop for each dKh and we got all the way up to 18 before we stopped. So, he had some saltwater already mixed up, as do I so, I'm off to do a 25 gallon water change, followed by more alk testing. Thanks to all for your quick help and input! (Flowerseller -- I have a Mg test kit, but didn't think to use it. Once things die down, I'll see where that's at...)

Jon, Chad, re: alkalinity Hmmm it may well be alkalinity -- my test kit ran out about a month ago. I'll grab a test kit and advise of results... Der Abt, Now that you mention it, I added two new (well used from CL) koralia 4 powerheads a week and a half ago. I'll unplug for now, and test when I can get my hands on a voltmeter (would that be the right way to test?) I'm in Dumfries, VA , I change carbon about every 2 weeks, and have never used polypad. -Ryan

Chad Thanks for the quick reply! Doh! Totally forgot to mention that. It's in between 1.025 and 1.026 measured with a refractometer. When I get the known "good" ro/di water from my friend I'll borrow his as well for a "2nd opinion". You mentioned salinity drift -- drifting high or low?

And here are some pictures of the corals: Monti cap: Acropora: Monti digi: Pocillipora(?): Palys: Yet the clowns continue to care for their eggs:

Background: Okay, I'm kind of freaking out here. I'm seeing signs of a total tank crash and I'm not sure how to fix it. Many of my stony corals appear to have what I think is White Tissue Necrosis (although admittedly, it's been some time since I've read up on the topic. Many stony corals have significantly reduced polyp extension, and the zoas/palys look funny. I'll try to lay out the story and my proposed action plan. First off, I've had moderate success with saltwater tanks for the last 2.5 years. I got my current 75 gallon tank a year ago and have done a reasonable job with upkeep. I have the following fish: yellow tang, hippo tang, midas blenny, two ocelarris clownfish, and a blue damselfish. Last fish addition was probably somewhere around a year ago. I have various SPS, LPS, zoas and palys. Observables: 1) 2-3 weeks ago my fire shrimp died. Inoticed about two weeks ago that I hadn't seen the fire shrimp in the last week or so. Didn't stress about it, these things happen, I've probably had him for 1.5 years 2) 1 week ago my RBTA went into seclusion -- he's somewhat new to the tank, probably been in the tank for about a month (I traded out my GBTA to my frag tank downstairs. which I've successfully kept for 2 years). 3) Two days ago: A medium sized piece of Montipora digitata began to sluff off the outer skin, exposing the white white skeleton underneath. The piece was about half dead, and I was pretty sure I couldn't save it, so I just took it out of the tank. 4) Today: Many stony corals have the same WTN-like issue. White spots appearing with 'skin' sluffing off: Orange monti cap, orange monti digi, bali green slimer. Zoas/palys are kind of retracted/closing up, with many closing the 'wrong way'. Tests: I ran two sets of tests: Round 1 (Red Sea): --------------- PH: 8.6 Ammonia: 0-0.25(!) this wasn't quite 0, but it wasn't quite 0.25. I've had <10 nitrates in my tank for years, and haven't tested for ammonia in a long, long time. Nitrite: inconclusive