something's wrong with the water

I have a 55gal reef that's about 3 years old. A few months ago, my montipora experienced a big die-off, with death creeping up from the base of the different frags. A few soft corals were perturbed for a couple of weeks, but experienced no damage. My yellow tang also kicked the bucket.

Now the same type of die-off is happening again on the monti. Even before this, the soft corals would get cranky in the preceding day or two before a water change.

Whatever the problem is is definitely water-related since it goes away when I do enough water changes. But having to do more than a couple of water changes is not a good thing; I feel like there's a bigger underlying problem here.

Here's my numbers as of 15 minutes ago: ammonia/nitrite/nitrate = 0, pH = 8.17, Ca = 330, Alk = 2.5 meq/L. I'm led to believe that all of those numbers are pretty good, with the exception of the calcium. Even so, that couldn't kill coral like that could it?

One other thing: I'm running a DSB which may or may not be working. Or perhaps it's biological, since I added a big toadstool and some mushrooms just before the big breakdown.

If anybody wants to take a stab at this one, it'd be most appreciated: my family and I would prefer not to have to change the water three times a week for the rest of our lives.

 

Ok...

My guess is there is some serious chemical warfare going on in tank...most likely from your softies.

Always highly recommended not mix with sps...

The toxins are accumulating in your tank...so when you do a water change, they get diluted so everyone gets "happy" again. But this is only going to be a temporary state.

Frequent water changes are your only recourse, except getting rid of some corals or getting them a larger tank to play in.


Good luck.


:-/

 

IMO get calcium and alk up. Perfect water parameters should be any reefkeeper's #1 priority. If you have perfect water it is just another thing you don't have to worry about causing problems.

 

I agree' it sounds as if some "warfare" is going on there'
being 3 years old ' the tank is quite seasoned as well as the sand bed
I agree with Omard ' water changes are the only recourse here' or removing some corals
It's only a 55 gal. not all that much room for things to "breath" i would suspect after 3 years and sevral corals .

 

Thanks for the replies everyone. I am going to try to raise the Ca/alk levels as well, just so I can be sure that it's definitely not the problem.

If it is indeed chemical warfare, could something like a better skimmer (mine's not the greatest) or activated carbon help at all?

 

Skimmer and carbon is always welcomed, try placing the corals at separate ends of the tank, away from each other.

 

Well for what ever its worth ? Look at any post I ever put up concerning a DSB and at about 24 months on average they start to get loaded up with nutrients.. And at about 30 months they start to fail and then at on average 36 months they tend to bite the dust and kill everything in the system.. Now I base this on just experience with the beast and using recommended Bio loads the great Dr S. came up with..

I can tell you where this is heading and you will loose it all with in Hrs when it totally rolls up and releases its bio sludge into the water column . Now I have taken alot of heat on this subject over the yrs from the Experts as I had no data to support my opinions where as they did to support the theory they where correct and we nay sayers where wrong.

This whole concept has been tried for 40 plus yrs. before the last time it was trotted out. And if there where a bug or animal that could actually feed off of and live on Methanes and sulfides then yes it would work.. But there is nothing that can break these compounds that are the end of the sugar Carbon chain.. NOTHING above 4,000 ft in the ocean that is .. And since out tanks are not connected to a ocean as are the Natural reefs A fact the Great expert Brains that came up again with the concept over looked

All of them have lost their tanks also but they tend to keep it hush upped . And only one i knew to ever apply a DSB to a really large system lost his 750 gal reef to a DSB also 2 yrs ago Down in Texas .. But like the rest of them it could not have been the sand bed ..

Now if it where my I'd start to remove it ASAP and get Carbon and a strong mechanical filter going while the sand is being removed and have lots of new water on hand..

P.S Do not try jacking the Ca and DKH around that will just cause the problem to speed up the sand will solidify faster.. And you will loose what little filtration you now have. Sooner or later they all go this way..With lots of work and cleaning and little bio load and semiannual infusions of expensive sand fauna kits I have seen them go 5 yrs tops.