Help with Favites!

jpc763

Active Member
I bought this coral in March and it seems to be bleaching. I have read up on some of the possible diseases and cannot find anything that matches what I have going on. It is slowly turning white on the top and back. Not the green centers, but the purple walls.
Can anyone help?
April 3rd


April 21st


Today


Thanks, John
 

jpc763

Active Member
To follow up with parameters...
Tested yesterday at 8:00am
T: 78
SG: 1.024
pH: 7.9
Amm: 0
Nitrate: 0
Nitrite: 0
Phosphates: 0
dKh: 7
Ca: 380
I have T5 4x54w lamps over a 55g tank. 15g fuge/sump with a AquaC Urchin skimmer. 600gph of circulation with the sump and 2x MaxiJet 1200 powerheads with Hydor Flo attachments.
 

jpc763

Active Member
Originally Posted by IBEW41
http:///forum/post/2619751
cal and ph are low also sg at 1.026 did your lights just turn on when you tested?
The lights had not turned on yet.
I tested earlier than I normally do. Usually pH is at 8.2.
SG was at 1.024, not 1.026.
Cal dropped from 420 to 380 so I have been doing 2 part calcium additions.
 

petjunkie

Active Member
Usually a sign of too much light but strange that it would take such a long time to show it, try moving it down into the shade for a while. Brains don't need much light so maybe it is just too exposed.
 

jpc763

Active Member
Here is where I have it. It is not much higher than the bottom (it is in the bottom 1/3)

Lower than that?
 

ci11337

Active Member
defiantly looks like it's getting to much light. Try moving him down and see if that helps. Also as long as he is bleached feed extra.
 

paintballer768

Active Member
Ok, Im thinking about getting a brain soon and just wanted to clarify things too, perhaps it'll help the original poster too. A mark like that on the OP's brain is from getting too much light? I would have thought that it was a sting from another coral, but thats not the case here.
Guessing thats why brains are often best at the bottom of the tank.
 

petjunkie

Active Member
In your pic it looks pretty exposed to me, right in the light and the lightening is happening at the top of the coral, I would put it either on the bottom or slightly shaded off in a corner would work well too.
Paintballer, a sting from another coral would bleach out and usually kill wherever it touched, this is only lightening up on the brown part. Depends on what type of coral attacks also, usually brains heal fast from attacks, IME. They can be placed high but need to be acclimated, my favia took months to adapt to halides from pcs but my lobos and trachys didn't seem to mind much at all.
 

paintballer768

Active Member
Originally Posted by petjunkie
http:///forum/post/2620929
In your pic it looks pretty exposed to me, right in the light and the lightening is happening at the top of the coral, I would put it either on the bottom or slightly shaded off in a corner would work well too.
Paintballer, a sting from another coral would bleach out and usually kill wherever it touched, this is only lightening up on the brown part. Depends on what type of coral attacks also, usually brains heal fast from attacks, IME. They can be placed high but need to be acclimated, my favia took months to adapt to halides from pcs but my lobos and trachys didn't seem to mind much at all.
Okay thank you. My tank is only a 24 gallon with a 150 watt halide on it, so its not like it would be very far from the bulb on the bottom of the tank regardless.
 

jpc763

Active Member
I retested after the lights were on for about 4 hours...
pH: 8.3
dKh: 12
Ca: 400
I removed the coral from it's exposed position and mounted it on some rubble. Here is a pic in process.

The side of the coral that faces the lights is pretty bleached
I had no idea that T5's could have that much power!
I placed it under an overhang on the sandbed where it can get light, but indirectly. Do you think this will work?

Thanks for all of your help.
 

rebelprettyboy

Active Member
Hopefully moving it down helps. Seems like favias bleach fast if to high in a tank with strong lights.
Had 2 on my frag rack in my 30 gal under 250 watts and they faded fast. Put them in my 14 gal undr Pc lights and they lookin amazing now
 

jpc763

Active Member
My plan is to monitor it in it's current place. I know that I will be looking to make sure it does not get worse and feed it more often (2x per week) while it is bleached.
Any ideas on how long it will take to recover?
 

jpc763

Active Member
Really? Mysis? The Mysis I buy is bigger than the coral polyp!
I have been feeding 2x per week Cyclopeeze and Coral Frenzy.
J
 
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