Brown Acropora

[smiffy20]

Hi there guys just have a question for you stony coral guys and girls.

i bought some acropora about 3 weeks ago now and i placed them right up high at the top of the tank (where i have a metal halide) and the polyps extended when i put them in i think.
they have started to turn a white colour at the base of the colonie.
i then moved them a bit further down because i maybe thought that they were getting bleached.
they seem to have got a bit more colour now.
any idea in what it might be or what i might be doing wrong for them.
please help i dont want them to die

aaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrggggggggghhhhhhhhh

thank you in advance for all of your answers

[weegaz22]

it may help if you tell us more about your setup, you say you put it under your lights, but what are they? 400w? 250w? 150w?

what kelvin rating are the lamps?

how much flow/turnover do you have in the tank?

water parameters?

[smiffy20]

sorry im new to this.

i have a 260litre aquarium
ph 8.2
salinity 1.024
nitrates are 30ppm
amonia 0 ppm
nitrite o ppm
calcium is 420 ppm
60 kg live rock
turnover rate of my tank is about 12000 lph
250 w single end 14000 kelvin metal halide
aquamedic protein skimmer
1biological canister
activated carbon
rowa phos.
hope this is enough info, if its not then please let me know
here is a pic of the acropora

[elliot]

Could be acclimitisation shock (light), or could be due to phosphates.

I would frag deep into the healthy tissue, and hope it can recover.

e

[smiffy20]

what do you mean by frag into healthy tissue ive never done this before.
sorry if im being stupid.
will the white patch never grow back then or what?????????

[smiffy20]

does any one also know wht type of acropora this is?
do i need it down low in the tank or high?

[5061litres]

that is one of the staghorn acropora's. looks to me as though it's been stung by something.. is it near any mushrooms or button polyps?
if not, then i'd say it was light shock, but usually goes from the tips.

when adding a new acro, care must be taken to acclimatise it to it's new light.

Fragging is where u take a cutting or branch off of a healty or dying coral and stick it to a small piece of rock so that it may grow on. best to use superglue gel to stick the frag to the rock.

tony.

[elliot]

the white patch is dead coral skeleton... and no, it rarely comes back.

when the coral receds like this, it is advisable to try and save it by fragging off a healthy piece and placing it lower down.

What is your alk, and phos, and how do you add kalk? As basal stripping is frequently due to a problem in one of these areas

e

[smiffy20]

its not next to nothing tony
its just in stong water flow, it looks a bit more colourful now i moved it down a bit.
what will happen if i leave it how it is will it just keep going whiter or will it recover itself?

[5061litres]

oh.. and the white patch will never grow back.
the tissue will grow OVER the white patch but never in it.


tony.

[5061litres]

usually when a coral starts to die due to RTN or a similar disease it happens RAPIDLY!! in the course of a couple of hrs or so. but as yours has not gone any whiter, i'd say it will be o now that u have moved it.

your nitrates are a bit high, and also check ur phosphates and alk.


tony.
:D

[smiffy20]

if i frag this off then can i use a hack saw to do this?
can i also use deltecs purple cement to place it onto a bit of my live rock.
what is the best way to do this?
i should really do this to keep it alive ?
sorry for being a pain if i am
much appreciated on all of your info though really helpful

[5061litres]

a hacksaw is prolly not the best thing to use. just break it off in ur fingers, that way u will cut down the damage to the coral.

using superglue is by far the best way. i have found that using a milliput type sticky stuff the coral dies alot quicker.
just a small blob of glue on a rock and stick the corals broken end into it. let it set for a few seconds and place back in the tank.

[daz100]

i find the best way to frag a coral is with pliers but i would not frag yours yet i would wait and see if it recovers if not then frag it

darryl

[smiffy20]

here is my tank tony the camera hasnt done it any favours it looks very yellow for some reason