Help my whole tank seems to be dying :(

[Searchin]

So I had a 5 gallon reef. Everything was more than great. Then I got a new 20 gallon. I was trying to switch everything from the 5 to the 20 so my gf could take the 5 gallon off to school and start her own reef. Anyways, I filled the 20 with ~ 17 gallons of RO (store bought) mixed in the salt. Had the heaters and power heads running for a couple hours to make it the same temp and dissolve the salt. Then I started taking things out of my 5, and adding to the 20. Acclimating on the way. The same way I successfully acclimated before: taking the coral and putting it in a small container with enough original tank water to cover it. Then slowly adding some of the new tank water every couple minutes till water volume doubled. Then introducing it into the new tank.

That was Friday. On Saturday I checked the tank parameters:

Ammonia- 0
Nitrite- 0
Nitrates -0
Salinity- 1.024
PH- 8.0
KH- 9
Temp- 78

I have no fish, only clean up crew. The only thing I didn't transfer is the sand. I just have to rocks/ coral and CUC.

The inverts are moving. The hermit even molted immediately after introduction. The coral look worse and worse. Birds eat is getting white patches. Mushrooms shriveled. Torches look decent but not great. Hammers are deflated and limp. Pulsating Xenia aren't pulsating.

I'm about to go to my LFS and get 7 gallons of their SW mix. What else can I do?

 

[Searchin]

Here are a few pictures. The hammers and mushrooms look the worst

 

[Phranque]

Sounds like you did everything right, except.... You didn't let the salt in the new tank mix long enough. Typically, you're supposed to let salt mix a minimum of about 12 hours before use..... I like to go 24, or more. Don't know if this is the culprit, but it's the only thing in your description that I can see that wasn't done correctly.

What you don't mention is was there any switch in lighting?? Corals need to be light acclimated as well, especially if you picked up more powerful lights for the new tank....

 

[Searchin]

No change in light. Put the new tank under the same light with same height adjustment.

I did start to suspect the salt as well. Dang...

I'm pretty sure I lost my birdsnest, polyps are falling off it in patches.

 

[begginersluck]

Sorry to hear that.

Were you checking for any spike in ammo or trites on a daily basis? Moving rock can be tricky as you're disturbing the bacteria on the surface of the rock and stirring up all the junk.