Torch coral overnight Bleaching Help

[James7]

Hello


I bought a Torch coral from a fish store and then put it in my 20 G tank.

After about 10 hours later in the morning, I see the coral start bleaching. I see white bone on edges of the coral with some transparent residues that fell apart from it (I think this is coral flesh).
First pic : yesterday night
Second Pic : Today morning.



I checked my water conditions. Salinity is 1.0225 And PH is around 6.8

I am planning to add more salt to raise salinity above 1.023, and buy crushed coral to raise PH.

Any Idea what is the main cause for bleaching in few hours?




My question : Will my coral recover and survive from my effort??





Thanks in advance.

 

[Jekyl]

Welcome to R2R! Can we have some more details on the tank? Age? Using RODI? What tests are being used? Have you had your measurements verified by your LFS?

For now you need to get salinity to 35ppt or 1.026.

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

Your salinity is low, your pH is very low, and I can only assume your other parameters are off, too. Can you give us a full list of all your parameters? Nitrate, phosphate, calcium and alkalinity. Jekyl brought up a good point too, check with your LFS to make sure your measurements are right. If your parameters are truly what you told us they are, then that is definitely the cause. Is the torch your first coral?

 

[James7]

Hello


I bought a Torch coral from a fish store and then put it in my 20 G tank.

After about 10 hours later in the morning, I see the coral start bleaching. I see white bone on edges of the coral with some transparent residues that fell apart from it (I think this is coral flesh).
First pic : yesterday night
Second Pic : Today morning.



I checked my water conditions. Salinity is 1.0225 And PH is around 6.8

I am planning to add more salt to raise salinity above 1.023, and buy crushed coral to raise PH.

Any Idea what is the main cause for bleaching in few hours?




My question : Will my coral recover and survive from my effort??





Thanks in advance.

last photo update; 24h later one. got bad even more.

 

[James7]

Welcome to R2R! Can we have some more details on the tank? Age? Using RODI? What tests are being used? Have you had your measurements verified by your LFS?

For now you need to get salinity to 35ppt or 1.026.

almost 1 year. tap water but I checked my city water is good. I have aquarium test stripn7 in 1 . 0 nitrate and nitrite. Total alkalinaty 100mg/L. Carbonate (KH) 0 mg/L. pH 7.5

salinity is now 1.024.



Help this is my most expensive coral that I bought.

 

[James7]

Your salinity is low, your pH is very low, and I can only assume your other parameters are off, too. Can you give us a full list of all your parameters? Nitrate, phosphate, calcium and alkalinity. Jekyl brought up a good point too, check with your LFS to make sure your measurements are right. If your parameters are truly what you told us they are, then that is definitely the cause. Is the torch your first coral?

I have aquarium test strips 7 in 1 kit. https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B09J8WGPYK?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

 

[slingfox]

The sand in the photo looks brand new. Can you provide a full tank photo? You may want to start with other more beginner friendly coral before getting anything expensive.

 

[Jekyl]

almost 1 year. tap water but I checked my city water is good. I have aquarium test stripn7 in 1 . 0 nitrate and nitrite. Total alkalinaty 100mg/L. Carbonate (KH) 0 mg/L. pH 7.5

salinity is now 1.024.



Help this is my most expensive coral that I bought.

The problem is you have no idea what's in the water without running a test on it. The biggest concern is copper which will accumulate over time. Test strips are also not accurate for saltwater.

 

[VintageReefer]

You are probably going to lose that coral

Your parameters are either incorrect or unknown. The test strips are not accurate

Torches are sensitive and I’ve seen people with much better conditions that still can’t keep torches.

How are you testing salinity?

As advice before spending money on coral you should be buying test kits - alkalinity, nitrate, phosphate, and calcium

From any of these brands: salifert, Hanna, Red Sea. Do not use api and do not use test strips

 

[Borat]

The problem is you have no idea what's in the water without running a test on it. The biggest concern is copper which will accumulate over time. Test strips are also not accurate for saltwater.

..and even bigger concern is chlorine/chloramine in tap water.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

Torch coral is not a beginner level coral. Tap water and lack of test kits indicate your tank might not be ready for advanced corals.

What kind of lighting and flow does your tank have? Do you have any other corals in your tank?

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I wouldn’t trust tap water. One of the first things I ever got for my tank was a RODI, tap water can contain lots of harmful elements that can build up over time. As far as test kits go I’ve used api master test kits and Red Sea. API master kits do get some flack for not being “100% accurate” but it’s better than using test strips and is a cheaper option than the Red Sea kits. You could also look into salifert (said seachem on accident, I was still waking up this morning lol) or nyos test kits as well

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

OP, you are not ready for corals. Do you know what you are testing for in the water, or are you just testing for it because that's what's in the kit?

Your sand also looks crystal clean. Your tank is way too new for a torch coral. You have to start with easy corals especially if this is your first tank.

Your torch is not going to survive.