Low alk causing some coral bleaching?

jay24k · #1 06/06/2007, 10:29 PM

From your experience, does low alk for an extended amount of time cause corals to bleach from the base up? I didn't realize my alk dropped to 4.5dkh and 3 pieces are having issues. After inspection, no bite marks, just appears as a regular STN but extremely slow STN. Did a dip just in case and nothing.

Have any of you experienced this with low alk? I'm currently correcting it as my media got really low.

Thanks.

dukes707 · #2 06/07/2007, 05:12 AM

wow you too huh. i just posted a thread about this exact same problem i am having. i'll keep an eye on this thread too thanks J.

Randy1 · #3 06/07/2007, 06:19 PM

From the base up is ussally lack of flow. IME.

Dog boy Dave · #4 06/07/2007, 07:41 PM

Low alkalinity will cause corals to loose their flesh. Get it right first and then see what happens. Don't start chasing ghosts until after you get what you know is right.
Dave

mmotown · #5 06/07/2007, 08:14 PM

I thought we wanted low ALk. Mine was high and I had problems. Now it's low once I figured out that my Ph probe needed to be calibrated. I am having slow RTN on some pieces. I just ordered a P04 kit and tomorrow I will be changing my media from Rowa to Warner Marine Research PHOSaR. I have been running ROWA and now I hear it could be ALk. I guess I 'll see what the problem is. If it is ALk how do you raise it?

jay24k · #6 06/07/2007, 08:54 PM

Well I'm sure it isn't a flow issue. I raised my alk up but was curious on other people's responses.

To raise alk, you can use baking soda.

PUGroyale · #7 06/07/2007, 09:22 PM

Low alkalinity can most definitely cause recession/STN near the base and/or tissue thinning/loss on the tips of acro's. It can also cause patches of bleaching in the underside areas of the branches. How low alkalinity affects a given coral depends on any number of factors IMO: Type, hardiness, placement, flow, the corals health, etc... IME if you've been running below NSW alkalinity levels for a period, you'll notice some of these symptoms on just one or two of the more susceptible corals first. The other, more resilient, corals will still appear normal. HTH

cwegescheide · #8 06/07/2007, 10:46 PM

The times my alk has gotten low my corals faded bigtime. I got my alk back up and over a few weeks the coloration returned for me.

chrisaggie · #9 06/07/2007, 10:49 PM

I have noticed that when my alk drops low my coral don't like it. Color and health fades when the alk gets that low.

mmotown · #10 06/07/2007, 10:49 PM

Do I add baking soda to my top off water or do I place it in my sump to disolve? Also what measument ratio do I use?

Justin/TiV · #11 06/07/2007, 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by mmotown
Do I add baking soda to my top off water or do I place it in my sump to disolve? Also what measument ratio do I use?

I put it right in the sump about a teaspoon at a time usually. You can use the reef calculator to figure it out. But honestly, I haven't found it to be very accurate.

carib · #12 06/08/2007, 12:05 AM

how low is that low

jay24k · #13 06/08/2007, 12:29 AM

I was starting to get worried there but you guys descibed the symptops to a T. I saw the splotchiness and thought AEFW. I did a dip and nothing game off. I didn't see bite marks or eggs at all. It seemed to affect my valida, chips, and an ora blue polyp.

The one thing I have read with AEFW is lack of poylp extension and tiny bite marks everywhere. All the polyps are fully out and didn't see any bite marks. I did the dip just in case anyway but nothing.

Thanks again guys.

Billybeau1 · #14 06/08/2007, 12:46 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Justin/TiV
I put it right in the sump about a teaspoon at a time usually. You can use the reef calculator to figure it out. But honestly, I haven't found it to be very accurate.

Sorry to butt in, but, the calculator is extremely accurate. You should estimate your actual water volume and not use tank size.

You should always dissolve your baking soda in fresh ro/di and pour it in a high flow area. Never add it directly to the tank. Makes livestock real angry.

jay24k · #15 06/08/2007, 01:20 AM

I've foudn it to be accurate as well. I dump it in my sump near my skimmer. Dissolves quick enough and doesn't make it to the main tank in powder.

onad75 · #16 06/08/2007, 02:26 AM

my alk is around 7.8 and i am dosing 30ml of B-ionic Alk ever day to raise my alk. Is the baking soda more effective? what type or brand?

dukes707 · #17 06/08/2007, 02:57 AM

ya i'm with you jay24k. everyone has described my symptoms exactly as well. i aslo thought aefw or redbugs, but no bite marks or lack of PE. i raised my alk with some b.soda to about 10-11. (i find the reef calc. to be quite accurate as well. but you gotta give the correct starting watre volume or else things will be off by a large margin). since bumping up the alk to a more viable level, the stn has either stopped completely or slowed down to an almost undetectable level. i'll keep an eye on them and let ya'll know what happens. also gonna do a water change for good measure, couldnt hurt i guess. thanks

dukes707

jay24k · #18 06/08/2007, 07:11 AM

arm and hammer works fine. It is just as effective and super cheap. With RC here, I wonder why anyone even buys 2 part when you can make it for so cheap.

nwrogers · #19 06/08/2007, 08:21 AM

I discovered I had low alk after losing a purple digitata I got from tubs to STN. I relizied something must be wrong with my test kit because with the numbers it was giving me I shouldn’t be having any problems. Last night I lost another coral I got from tubs, my pink smootie digi

I am so bummed. I did a 50 gallon water change and dosed 1 cup of the alkalinity part of my randy’s two part. I got in this situation from a bad test kit and my corals for the first time in two years are looking like crud and dieing on me. I have never had a problem keeping any corals until now. It’s like a nightmare watching my tank die from low alk. I bought a new calcium test kit and my calcium was at 530ppm! My salifert kit read 370

Anyway I would say yes low alk IME will cause STN. Hopefully you will have better luck than I am having…

mmotown · #20 06/08/2007, 10:03 AM

After calc my volume I still don't know how much baking soda to use? Also using the Salifert ALk kit, what number is low for ALk when you have 1)ALk/ 2)Dkh? Thx

NaH2Ofreak · #21 06/08/2007, 10:05 AM

Been seeing lots of coral deaths recently due to the bad Salifert brand Alkalinity test kits. Sure wish Salifert would respond. Be sure and check your Alk. levels with a different brand test kit if you think you might be having alk issues. My Lamotte kits arrive today!!

Dennis

Justin/TiV · #22 06/08/2007, 10:09 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Billybeau1
Sorry to butt in, but, the calculator is extremely accurate. You should estimate your actual water volume and not use tank size.

You should always dissolve your baking soda in fresh ro/di and pour it in a high flow area. Never add it directly to the tank. Makes livestock real angry.

I think that may be my problem then...I don't know how much rock I have to consider displacement, how the heck do I figure that out....lol. SO yeah, it may be way off on tank volume. But I just add a little at a time and do tests no biggie. And I put the baking soda in the sump, and it never upset anything, but I'll start dissolving it from now on.

nwrogers · #23 06/08/2007, 10:57 AM

Check out what I just bought! The Multi-Reference Solution from Fauna Marin…

http://www.aquariumobsessed.com/mm5/...ory_Code=FM-SI

For those of you interested I will post the results from these tests on my local reef club forum. There is some interesting info there now so it may be worth a read…

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...readid=1137925

ben&bobbi · #24 06/08/2007, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Billybeau1
Sorry to butt in, but, the calculator is extremely accurate. You should estimate your actual water volume and not use tank size.

You should always dissolve your baking soda in fresh ro/di and pour it in a high flow area. Never add it directly to the tank. Makes livestock real angry.

chiming in, been through this on a couple myself. ended up fragging them and starting over.

i am not 100% sure of the calculator you are talking about, but the big one i used told me to raise my cal from 390-450 would take the equivalent ounces to 4 12pks!

which calc are you using?

jay24k · #25 06/08/2007, 06:36 PM

I use the one from jideck or whatever it is called. If you type in calcium alk calculator, I believe it is the first link which is off a comcast address. I just calculate about 10% less then what total is. For example, I have a 180 gallon tank plus a 40 sump. 220 total. I do it for 200 gallons. I then only dose about 80% of their recommendation and retest.

My alk is good so I will wait and see how everything goes. I was getting worried for a little there but I haven't added any corals in over a year except 3 pieces and that place actually dips every new addition in interceptor and TMPCC or whatever it is called.

But in this hobby you just never know.