My tri color valida is at the top of my tank an it was doing great. Colored up really nice and was super purple and happy looking. Lately the color has been fading and there are some spots that are turning white. Is it getting too much light? The only other thing I can think that could be effecting it is the fact that I haven't been able to order any supplements to dose. What do you think?
Tri color bleaching. Move it down?
- Thread starter J.guokas
- Start date
I have had it for about 5 months and my alk is usually around 7.5-8. I haven't been able to make an order from brs for soda ash and calcium so I have been relying on water changes alone. I have a kessil a350w that everything has looke great under for over a year. This is the only sps that has started fading.
It's been getting a good amount of flow. Maybe not enough but it had been doing great in the spot it was until recently. I have a spot that is lower in the tank that will provide more flow and a little less light but not much. I use the pre mixed salt water from elite since I don't have the space or time to mix my own or else I'd use the rest of my salinity bucket that I have collecting dust. I have been doing weekly water changes instead of my usual one every two to three weeks.
how much of a water change are you doing? alk seems fine and i wouldnt think a lack of dosing calc would bleach it out... especially if jack has the same issue.
honestly... Ive heard a couple things about Validas.
1st) they like a ton of flow... back and forth, up and down, but all DIRECT. less flow ive seen they just brown/fade/bleach out
2nd) they like it high up near the light but only if it gets alot of flow... without flow the coral needs a lower placement with direct light
3rd) they like water a little dirtier. heres some others about it... but I have a piece and its a small frag, but i dont run a skimmer currently... my xenia and Valida love the water conditions... but people who run powerful skimmers, clear tanks and dont feed the coral have had bleaching/fading color problems as well as growth issues.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=19387287
Im not saying to stop the skimmer, by any means, but maybe feeding the tank slightly if you dont, or giving it more direct flow will help.
honestly... Ive heard a couple things about Validas.
1st) they like a ton of flow... back and forth, up and down, but all DIRECT. less flow ive seen they just brown/fade/bleach out
2nd) they like it high up near the light but only if it gets alot of flow... without flow the coral needs a lower placement with direct light
3rd) they like water a little dirtier. heres some others about it... but I have a piece and its a small frag, but i dont run a skimmer currently... my xenia and Valida love the water conditions... but people who run powerful skimmers, clear tanks and dont feed the coral have had bleaching/fading color problems as well as growth issues.
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=19387287
Im not saying to stop the skimmer, by any means, but maybe feeding the tank slightly if you dont, or giving it more direct flow will help.
That make sense Seth. My first frag lasted a while but since my tanks been getting pack full of coral, the MP10 hasn't been able to make as much wave, and that's when I noticed the biggest change. Plus 2 of the 3 frags are blocked by a rock.
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things!
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things!
i currently have my frag from Asn-naso sitting about 8" from my MP40 on 75% reefcrest mode. Its about 2" below the direct middle of the flow, so allowing the frag to get good high flow without being "direct" to promote the corals growth to the higher flow.
Asn-naso has a 125 and has a very nicely colored frag of tricolor Valida, shoot him a PM or maybe hell post in here... see what his params are, he has nice deep green with deep purple tips and great polyp extension, and his is on the opposite end of the 125 from his mp40... nearly by his overflow.
Asn-naso has a 125 and has a very nicely colored frag of tricolor Valida, shoot him a PM or maybe hell post in here... see what his params are, he has nice deep green with deep purple tips and great polyp extension, and his is on the opposite end of the 125 from his mp40... nearly by his overflow.
Even on starving, low nutrient frags, the tips should be as bright as ever.
I would not sweat the flow. There were awesome SPS tank that had all kinds of valida 15+ years ago when a 180G tank might have 4x maxijet 1200s in it for flow. Tricolor has been around as long as I can remember.
Sorry for more questions, but what other SPS do you have that are doing great? Can you list them out? I want to see if the difference is in shallower vs. deeper water stonies. I imagine that all of the non-stonies are doing great?
Does that kessil allow you to set the white different from the blue? If so, what are the percentages? Does anybody have a good spectrum chart? The ones that I found online are too smooth and are probably leaving out key peaks that might explain some of this.
Lastly, there are lots of different kinds of tricolor valida, so one that you might see on the net could be a different coral than yours... they are hard to compare.
I would not sweat the flow. There were awesome SPS tank that had all kinds of valida 15+ years ago when a 180G tank might have 4x maxijet 1200s in it for flow. Tricolor has been around as long as I can remember.
Sorry for more questions, but what other SPS do you have that are doing great? Can you list them out? I want to see if the difference is in shallower vs. deeper water stonies. I imagine that all of the non-stonies are doing great?
Does that kessil allow you to set the white different from the blue? If so, what are the percentages? Does anybody have a good spectrum chart? The ones that I found online are too smooth and are probably leaving out key peaks that might explain some of this.
Lastly, there are lots of different kinds of tricolor valida, so one that you might see on the net could be a different coral than yours... they are hard to compare.
A far as other sps I have a few millis, green slimer, a few birdnests, pocillopora, monti stellata, monti capricornis, monti digitata, a few encrusting montis, and some other acros. They have all shown growth and great color. The valida is the only one showing any negative signs.
The kessil does have separate controls for the white and blue but it's hard to get an accurate percentage since the dials don't have numbers to go by. If I had to make a guess id say blue is at about 65% and the white is 50-55%. It looks like a 20k spectrum to me.
The kessil does have separate controls for the white and blue but it's hard to get an accurate percentage since the dials don't have numbers to go by. If I had to make a guess id say blue is at about 65% and the white is 50-55%. It looks like a 20k spectrum to me.
White spots, and the fact that its a tri color, concerned aefw is a possibility. Turn off the tank flow and squirt it with a turkey baster, see small transparent specks coming off that isn't just sentiment? Look up aefw on google images first. Also look at it at night, with a flashlight, are you seeing white bit marks all over? Eggs on the under side? Hope it's flow or parameters as mentioned.... And not aefw.