Help! Coral dying...

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Jillann

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Nov 19, 2011
Messages
12
Location
Atlanta, GA
For the last week my leather coral has been laying on its side and it's color is changing from a bright lavender to a faded one. All my parameters are normal except that my Calcium is high in the 500's. Is there anything I can do to save it?
 
Jillann said:
For the last week my leather coral has been laying on its side and it's color is changing from a bright lavender to a faded one. All my parameters are normal except that my Calcium is high in the 500's. Is there anything I can do to save it?

What do you use for lighting, and where is it placed in the tank.

Sorry about your situation. :(
 
I have LED lights. It was on the bottom but I moved it towards the top/middle.
 
leathers are not high light corals. exactly what LED fixture do you have and what size tank is this?
what test kit is telling you your calcium is at 500? what is your alk? if in fact your calcium level is 500, i'm betting your problem is very low alk.
 
then your calcium is not 500. the api calcium test kit is not accurate IMO/IME.
what fixture are you using over the 36, and what are the dimensions?
 
Try moving the coral back down in the tank. My cabbage is at about 2/3 up in my tank and fully healthy with ecoray60D LEDs. My cabbage is about a foot below the acutal lights. However, my calcium isn't that high either.
 
Thanks, I moved it back down but now noticed that my torch is not looking right. I retested my water and got the same results.
 
Jillann said:
Thanks, I moved it back down but now noticed that my torch is not looking right. I retested my water and got the same results.

Your tests may not be reading correctly. Try taking a water sample to your LFS to confirm or by using a friends tests.
 
I think what mr x is asking is what kind of powerheads are in the tank. Are they creating a lot of movement in the water? Does the surface break throughout the length of the tank? Is there movement in the water under the surface?
 
There is good movement, surface breaks throughout entire length. I do not have a power head. The guy at the aquarium store said I shouldn't need one since I have good movement.
 
i can't see how you can have good flow with out a power head. coral tanks need better flow than fish tanks do. i have never seen a successful reef tank without power heads.
 
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