No coral growth but baby snails and starfish...

[RickvDam]

Hello,
I am so confused at the moment.
I have had quite a difficult time getting my tank stabilized with diatoms and low nutrients etc etc.

Since about 1,5 week I have started dosing Phosphates every now and then cause they keep bottoming out. I also feed AB+ to my corals.
My SPS (Montipora) was dying, but seems to slowly come back to life (all the browning is turning back to white, however some places is really thick red, while other places there are only a few red spots, is this normal as it is slowly regaining its health? The white branch on the picture is because of a snail that just went over it.), however my zoas or hammer, none of them show any signs of growth.

Since I got rid of diatoms coralline algae has been going wild, which is a good thing. A few days ago I noticed a Asterina starfish (I know they can be harmful, nothing yet luckily), and now I was feeding the tank and a baby Nassarius snail just pops up. How can my tank not be stable enough, but still stable enough?

After the last water change, I tested all my parameters, and I'm sadly not too happy with the results. It isn't terrible, but there are some things I need to work on:

• Nitrite: 0.05
• Nitrate: 50. I'm not sure why they went up like this. I think it's because of overfeeding while trying to raise my Phosphates. I will start feeding less, and with dosing Phosphates, I hope my Nitrate will lower itself.
• Magnesium: 1230. It isn't too low, but it's getting there. I will test again right before my next water change to see if it has gotten lower. If it stays at this level, it's fine, as long as it doesn't drop more.
• Calcium: 385. Same as the Magnesium. It isn't too low, but it can't get any lower.
• KH/Alk: 9.9
• Phosphate: 0.03. I can't wait until I receive my Hanna checker. My plan is to have my Phosphates at 0.1. It might be slightly on the higher side, but for my Zoanthids and Euphyllia, it won't hurt. I just hope my already dying SPS will hold on until then and not get mad, as I know they prefer lower Phosphates.
• Ammonia: 0
• pH: 7.4. Also on the low side. There are two options I can try: put in an air pump I have from my freshwater tanks or put my skimmer back in. If I'm correct, either of these options tends to cause higher pH levels.
  

The salt I use is Red Sea blue bucket. I always pre-mix 4.5 gallons and use 1.5 gallons a week for water changes. If anyone has tips to improve my parameters, every little tip is welcome!

 

[blaxsun]

I don't think that's a nassarius snail. I suspect your low pH has more to do with the state of your corals than any of the other parameters (while your calcium and magnesium are a bit low, they're not abysmally low).

 

[Kevinmj70]

I am new to reef tanks, just 18 months in, so I can not offer too much help. I can recommend you put the age of your tank in the post when asking for help. Tank maturity is always a major point. My recommendation would be to only do water changes, do not dose. It does not appear from the pictures your coral have much up take on all, calc & mag at this point. Dosing will add too many variables I’ve learned the hard way that the key is patience

 

[RickvDam]

I don't think that's a nassarius snail. I suspect your low pH has more to do with the state of your corals than any of the other parameters (while your calcium and magnesium are a bit low, they're not abysmally low).

The pH? Didn’t expect that. Is it really that low? Cause then I will start working on rising that. The snails looks the most like a nassarius and I have not added anything in weeks maybe even more then a month.

Tank maturity is always a major point. My recommendation would be to only do water changes, do not dose.

Sadly dosing Phosphates is neccesary. WaterchNges simply don’t help. Ive been battling low Phosphates for 6 months.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

how old is the tank? I get the impression its fairly new?

 

[blaxsun]

The pH? Didn’t expect that. Is it really that low? Cause then I will start working on rising that. The snails looks the most like a nassarius and I have not added anything in weeks maybe even more then a month.

Yes. A typical (normal) pH range is around 7.8-8.1. Anything above 8.1 will see increased coral growth (especially 8.2-8.4). Also note that pH naturally fluctuates during the day, and will be highest during the peak (usually late afternoon).

Nassarius snails are mainly nocturnal and prefer burying in the sand bed during the day. While they do come out they typically stick to the sand bed. I can't see details of your snail clearly enough, but there's a better than even chance it's not a nassarius snail (but some other hitchhiker).

 

[RickvDam]

how old is the tank? I get the impression its fairly new?

It is. About 6 months now. First 4 months I had alot of issues with Diatoms and all low nutrients. Since a few weeks thinks seem to slowly get better.

Nassarius snails are mainly nocturnal and prefer burying in the sand bed during the day. While they do come out they typically stick to the sand bed. I can't see details of your snail clearly enough, but there's a better than even chance it's not a nassarius snail (but some other hitchhiker).

Last thing I added was a zoa about 2 months ago… but who knows… I saw him directly after feeding mysis and when I feed mysis all my Nassarius come out of the sand and climb my glass. He also went in the sand after a while.

Yes. A typical (normal) pH range is around 7.8-8.1. Anything above 8.1 will see increased coral growth (especially 8.2-8.4). Also note that pH naturally fluctuates during the day, and will be highest during the peak (usually late afternoon).

Alright thanks. Should I add a airpump or put my skimmer back in? Just to be sure.

 

[blaxsun]

Alright thanks. Should I add a airpump or put my skimmer back in? Just to be sure.

The skimmer might help, but you should probably test your pH at different times during the day to first get a range. Sometimes just cracking open a window to get more fresh air can make a huge difference.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I think you're doing all right, can't expect much growth, if any, in only 2 months of stability. Hammers and digitata's grow slowly.

 

[jda]

I would always run a skimmer for aeration, if nothing else. 7.4 is likely a test error. I would not worry about pH unless you have a decent tool to test it - a meter or pen - and not a color changing test kit.

Do you have fish that you are feeding? If so, feed them more. You don't need to have measurable phosphates to have plenty of phosphorous. Fish food and fish waste is the best way to do this.