Too much flow hurt SPS?

wojo · #1 10/24/2007, 11:12 AM

hi guys, i accidently moved my Koralia 4 power head and was directly blowing onto one of my SPS for couple of days. Today i noticed that one of the branches is bleaching so i realized what happened and moved the pump away.

would this hurt the coral, the pump is around 8 inches from the coral and blows 1200gph.

if so, will the coral come back or not.

thanks for your help

twon8 · #2 10/24/2007, 12:22 PM

it will hurt it, direct constant flow is never a good thing, but if healthy otherwise it should recover

kalel1976 · #3 10/24/2007, 02:18 PM

High direct flow right on a coral can basically blow off the coral's tissue thus making it look bleached.

wojo · #4 10/24/2007, 04:32 PM

thanks guys,

should i cut that branch off or leave it be, i am worrying that it will spread onto others!?

MCsaxmaster · #5 10/24/2007, 06:49 PM

Agreed, the tissue was likely blown off the branch...literally. I'd just leave it.

adam_kips · #6 10/24/2007, 07:27 PM

i had it happen and it started to turn white and die so i sawed that piece of and the base survived and is looking good now. good luck with what you do.

captainandy · #7 10/24/2007, 07:47 PM

Cut it off, or at least be prepared to cut it off if there is any progression. Then again, I'm a surgeon.

MCsaxmaster · #8 10/24/2007, 10:03 PM

There most likely won't be any progression. There has been physical damage which should heal quickly, though that tissue is now gone. Cutting the coral again, causing more physical damage, will just create a new wound...

twon8 · #9 10/24/2007, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by MCsaxmaster
There most likely won't be any progression. There has been physical damage which should heal quickly, though that tissue is now gone. Cutting the coral again, causing more physical damage, will just create a new wound...

while i agree with this, there is the possibility that algae can grow on the skeleton which could irritate the acro. just keep an eye on it and if you have to frag later on do it.

J. Montgomery · #10 10/24/2007, 10:08 PM

I had the same thing happen to a birds nest coral, though this went on for months. I finally moved the coral a few weeks ago and the tissue had significantly healed in about two weeks.

MCsaxmaster · #11 10/24/2007, 10:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by twon8
while i agree with this, there is the possibility that algae can grow on the skeleton which could irritate the acro. just keep an eye on it and if you have to frag later on do it.

But if algal growth growing on the exposed skeleton will prove too much for the coral, then how will fragging it and exposing skeleton help the situation?

twon8 · #12 10/24/2007, 10:22 PM

i've never had algae grow on a freshly fragged acro tip, only on parts that were stung and had skeleton showing. within a day or two there is a new layer of flesh and another few days before new corallites are sprouting from the break point.

markandkristen · #13 10/24/2007, 11:28 PM

is this the same with tunzes. ive been noticing a few of my acros bleaching as well

twon8 · #14 10/24/2007, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by markandkristen
is this the same with tunzes. ive been noticing a few of my acros bleaching as well

yes, if you mean do you not want to point them directly at acros...

kalel1976 · #15 10/25/2007, 07:07 AM

Especially with Tunzes. Their flow is very direct as apposed to the soft wide flow of other powerheads.

markandkristen · #16 10/25/2007, 07:32 AM

i have some of mine at 12" away is that still too much. on a 6100

kalel1976 · #17 10/25/2007, 07:34 AM

Is the stream directed right at the coral? If so then yes. I try and aim them at the sides of the tank so the flow hits the glass. This creates a little more of a random flow pattern in the tank.

Serioussnaps · #18 10/25/2007, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by kalel1976
Especially with Tunzes. Their flow is very direct as apposed to the soft wide flow of other powerheads.

I find this to be contrary to my experience with Tunze Streams.

barjam · #19 10/25/2007, 04:17 PM

My hydor did this to one of mine, recovered very quickly (within a week or so).

MCsaxmaster · #20 10/25/2007, 04:30 PM

Extremely rapid waterflow can rip the tissue off of corals. You can get this from just about any pump out there. The rate of waterflow is a function of the size of the nozzle and the rate of pumping. A small nozzled pump that pumps water slowly would have to be close to a coral to cause damage. A small nozzle moving a lot of water needn't be that close to a coral to cause damage. With a larger outlet (e.g., tunze streams) and a lot of water movement the coral needs to be fairly close to cause damage. Exactly how close depends on the coral and the rate of waterflow you actually obtain, which can vary a bit.

cj

hyperfocal · #21 10/25/2007, 05:27 PM

I'm in the same situation -- I accidentally blasted my A. sarmentosa with flow from a Koralia 3. It wore off the coenosarc on the 'windward' side of the coral, leaving the polyps tightly holed up. It's recovering now, I think it'll make it. Of course, this is the coral that's too dumb to die; it's weathered SG, Ca, and Alk spikes... temp fluctuations... every algal and cyano outbreak imaginable... and it's still shuffling along. It hasn't grown much at all, and it does look pretty hideous now though. I like it