bleaching or growing?

[glarior]

I have a SPS that is either bleaching or growing. I can't remember the exact name and don't have a photo of it at this time. However, I have been out of town for two weeks and my father claims its getting bigger. I can't tell but can see the branching is becoming white. In my opinoin its bleaching but he insists its growing. This was my first try at some hard corals vs the ones I have thriving now. I am reading more about them but unsure on this part.

Question is, when SPS grows should it be white or maintain the purple color?

[frefal13]

White in any type of photosynthetic marine animal is not a good sign. What are the lights it is under? How far from the light? Tank parameters? Flow?
We really need to know these details to be able to help you if there is no photo
Just because other corals are thriving does not mean SPS will, SPS require pristine water conditions while softies and even LPS benefit from a "dirtier" tank, with more nutrients available.

[Cliff]

+1 to the above

Also, is the whole coral white, or just parts of it

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

If it is just the tips of the "branches" that are white, then I'd bet on growth, however if the white starts at the base, or any place in the middle, then it's bleaching.

[glarior]

I think they are bleaching. Water parameters are perfect except for calcium, KH and GH. The GH is off the scale and I don't know why. I will do a different post about that later.

The lights are a 2x 250w mh 14k bulbs, with 4 64w pc ancetic bulbs. Its about 8" under the water and 12-14" from the light. Flow is good with a powerhead pushing across one way and a rio 3100 pump pushing the other.

Today, I saw it and I think its bleaching... :14:

[frefal13]

How long have you had it? Has their been a significant temperature swing or did you move it closer to the light suddenly?

[glarior]

How long have you had it? Has their been a significant temperature swing or did you move it closer to the light suddenly?
About 3 weeks. As for temp swing, it would be within the normal temp change in the house which would be 75-80 for min and max

[frefal13]

Just from what I have read about SPS and bleaching 5 degrees is a pretty big swing for them to handle, so that could possibly have something to do with it. Or if you bought them from a tank that only had t5ho bulbs and didnt acclimate them to your halides that could be something too.

[Rollins4Miles]

A picture would be worth a thousand words right about now thumbs2:

It's not uncommon to have white growth areas on sps coral. I have a few different pieces that somewhat regularly have white edges/tips on them, especially my digis. But to clarify, the white areas are only millimeters in size and soon color up and continue growing. It's just an endless cycle with this.

I do think your temp swings are too much, especially for sps corals. I try and limit mine to about three degrees max. You can keep sps in a variety of parameters, but everything must be stable/consistent. A five degree swing in the temp could be stressing out your coral.

[glarior]

Here is a pic. My dad still says its growing I have no idea.

http://www.ttsresearch.com/charlesRF/bleach.jpg

[Cliff]

Looks like bleaching to me The bottom tips might be growing but I would guess the top / white part may not make it

Your temp swings might have something to do with . Swings that large are not natural in the reefs in the ocean and can sometimes cause stress in SPS. Likely your current stock of SPS are more resilient than the new pc you just added. Just my $0.02 tho

www.reef.crc.org.au/publications/brochures/temperaturetolerance.htm

[glarior]

How the bottom tips look is what the top looked like at first.

Would my extremely high GH have anything to do with it? The temp part I can't change at this time because I don't have a chiller.

[labnjab]

That looks like bleaching to me. We just had 2 colonies bleach due to adding much brighter lighting and not properly acclimating the tank to it. New growth white is only a few millimeters. The temp swings are the most likely culprit in you situation. That much of a temp swing can stress your fish as well. I would do anything to get that under control. A chiller is not needed to control temp. I used a fan when we had metal halides and it worked perfect. A high KH can cause bleaching, but I'm unsure if a high GH will

[glarior]

That looks like bleaching to me. We just had 2 colonies bleach due to adding much brighter lighting and not properly acclimating the tank to it. New growth white is only a few millimeters. The temp swings are the most likely culprit in you situation. That much of a temp swing can stress your fish as well. I would do anything to get that under control. A chiller is not needed to control temp. I used a fan when we had metal halides and it worked perfect. A high KH can cause bleaching, but I'm unsure if a high GH will

Maybe its the lights. I hav MH and they had t5 or something like that. The fish are doing very well and so is the other coral. I know I need a chiller but $600 right now during the height of racing season is out of the question. I have been using the fan for the summer months.

Oh well, on the bright side I have learned from this experience and will apply it to the next time I try SPS. I really hate things dying in the tank but live and learn. I will do loads more research before I build a tank next year. I am going to continue to see what I can do in the meantime.

Thanks everyone!