Will my BTAs survive after pH change

[gingeramoeba]

Hey,
Sorry for the frequent posts. Hopefully this will be my last for a while.
On Tuesday, I checked my pH and it was 7.8. Not realizing that that was probably okay I panicked and added APT pH buffer. It wasn’t completely dissolved when I added it and the powder irritated everything and all my corals/BTAs immediately closed. Everything has recovered except my BTAs. They used to be at the top of the highest rock but all 3 have moved to the bottom. They shot out some zoo (of course, I basically bleached them). They seemed better yesterday and look about the same today. They are still mostly closed and some of the tentacles are poking out but most are shriveled and neon. I’m wondering if they will have any chance of recovering? First pic was what they looked like before my rookie mistake.

Tank Parameters:
Salinity: 1.021 (doing 15% water change today)
pH: 8.0
Alk: 13
Nitrite: 0
Ammonia: 0
Nitrate: 40 (water change today, was 160 when i got the tank and everything was thriving)
Phos: 4 (yep, I know)
Copper: 0

Inverts only (snails and hermits)

 

[Rtaylor]

They will most likely recover

 

[exnisstech]

All you can do it wait it out. Alk is a bit high, my bubble tips thrive around 8dkh. Salinity is also a little low for them. Closer to 1.026 would be better, I run mine at 1.025. Nitrates a little high but not really terrible at least from my experience and you said your doing a wc.
How are you testing phosphate? If yours is 4.0 and not 0.4 that's seems extremely high and your tank doesn't look bad. If it is 4.0 I would try a different test kit before making any adjustments.

 

[gingeramoeba]

All you can do it wait it out. Alk is a bit high, my bubble tips thrive around 8dkh. Salinity is also a little low for them. Closer to 1.026 would be better, I run mine at 1.025. Nitrates a little high but not really terrible at least from my experience and you said your doing a wc.
How are you testing phosphate? If yours is 4.0 and not 0.4 that's seems extremely high and your tank doesn't look bad. If it is 4.0 I would try a different test kit before making any adjustments.

Thanks. I am using API master tests kits for everything. The Phos gives me a heart attack every time I check it but the BTAs were doing fine in it before. I will try another kit. The salinity used to be closer to 35ppm but I tried to calibrate with RO water (big mistake) and checked again because it said it was high. so i dumped RODI water in and then came to my senses. Got some calibration fluid and realized I screwed up so I’ve been slowly increasing salinity by putting saltwater in ATO. I just did the water change and will check levels in about an hour.

 

[exnisstech]

Maybe see if you have a lfs that can test for you till you get another kit? I like the Hanna ultra low range phosphate tester.

 

[Nano_Man]

They will be in the huff . They should improve over the next few days I’ve had BTA sit in one place for months on end then they get up and go walk about and then land back up were they started . BTA are quite hardy for a anemone

 

[gingeramoeba]

Maybe see if you have a lfs that can test for you till you get another kit? I like the Hanna ultra low range phosphate tester.

I brought in a sample from before wc (to compare it to my test kit) and it was 1.0… so, much better but still needs work. I have Phosphate reducer in the cassette.

 

[gingeramoeba]

They will be in the huff . They should improve over the next few days I’ve had BTA sit in one place for months on end then they get up and go walk about and then land back up were they started . BTA are quite hardy for a anemone

Good to know. Thanks for helping my spirits!

 

[exnisstech]

I brought in a sample from before wc (to compare it to my test kit) and it was 1.0… so, much better but still needs work. I have Phosphate reducer in the cassette.

Go slow with it. You don't want to strip to much out to quickly

 

[gingeramoeba]

Go slow with it. You don't want to strip to much out to quickly

That’s what I’m trying to do. I’ve had the phosphate reducer in there for a week and it’s a really small amount. I don’t plan to change it for a few mor weeks, along with the activated carbon.

 

[Nano_Man]

Good to know. Thanks for helping my spirits!

Anemones like a bit of nitrate and phosphate so you don’t have to be too low with them If your lowering phosphate slowly slowly like above said . Good luck you will be fine exnisstech will keep you right on the nems

 

[gingeramoeba]

Update for anyone who made a similar mistake as myself. Nems seem to me making a comeback! Water params have been mostly stable.
Sg: 1.024 (gradually improved since the incident and still slowly increasing)
As of 9/11
Alk: 212
pH: 8.0
Phos: 2.3……
Ca: 395 (started dosing magnesium on weekly wc’s since this was checked - 2 wc’s)
Mg: 1150 (see above)
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0.1
Nitrate: 61 (two WC’s since then and have been slowly removing nasty sand in each WC)
*These params were measured at my lfs electronically and I have done two WC since then. I don’t trust the API kit so much but API is showing Nitrates at 20-40ish (hard to read). All other API measurements concur with parameters from 9/11.

Corals seem to be very happy (lps, soft, and zoas). My urchin is healthy and eating really well so I’m taking that as a good sign.

Here is the current state of the nems. They are missing several tenticles but it looks like they are starting to grow back. The ones they have are almost always extended during the “day”. They have all moved to higher areas on the LR, closer to where they where before the incident. Hopefully they will fully recover back to their former glory.