Hollywood stunner chalice retracting

[ShepBReefin]

So I got this Hollywood stunner as a bonus frag off an order. This is the 3rd I've gotten as a freebie and for some reason can't keep them alive/happy.. the other 2 died.

It currently is placed mid way up with moderate/high flow.

Nano 29gal with 10gal sump/refuge
1.025
78deg
7.3 all (currently increasing to 8)
Mag 1050 (going to increase once my alk gets to 8)
Nitrates/phos 0 (
Calcium 420

Does it look like it's bleaching? Or do you think my parameters being off are what's affecting it? Everything else in the tank is super happy. Have a variety of LPS

Appreciate the help!

 

[dr_vinnie_boombatz]

I have an LPS only system, I target 75-100 PAR for my chalices, 10 nitrate and .10 for phosphate, and medium flow.

Your nutrients are super low and probably too much PAR + flow in my opinion.

 

[ShepBReefin]

I have an LPS only system, I target 75-100 PAR for my chalices, 10 nitrate and .10 for phosphate, and medium flow.

Your nutrients are super low and probably too much PAR + flow in my opinion.

I'll try moving it to a lower light level and flow and see what happens. I have never been able to keep my nitrates above 0. Any tips on increasing them? I've thought about running my skimmer less.

 

[dr_vinnie_boombatz]

I'll try moving it to a lower light level and flow and see what happens. I have never been able to keep my nitrates above 0. Any tips on increasing them? I've thought about running my skimmer less.

I ended up dosing NeoNitro and NeoPhos as needed. For me it was a game changer.

To back up the par suggestion, Tidal Gardens recommends 100 par, Cherry Corals recommended 50-60 par, and WWC recommends between 50-100 par for Chalices.

Proper Chalice Coral Care & Maintenance

Proper Chalice coral care is necessary for maintaining a vibrant and colorful tank. Discover the secrets of these vibrant corals at World Wide Corals.

worldwidecorals.com

Tidal Gardens - Chalice Coral Care

Chalice corals represent a large group of wildly disparate corals that share little in common past their flat, plate-forming appearance. There are over ten Genera of corals that are all grouped together and described as Chalices. Coming up with general care tips is tough for chalices because of...

tidalgardens.com

 

[nereefpat]

Welcome to R2R!

It's not bleaching. It's dying on the edges. When mine gets dead spots, it always happens on the inside instead of the edges, so that's different.

The low Mg makes me wonder about the salinity. Are you measuring that with a refractometer calibrated with saltwater?

I believe that I see coraline spots on the back wall, so if you can grow that, you should be able to grow a Hollywood stunner. Mine takes high light just fine, at the top of my tank under 6 bulb T5.

 

[ShepBReefin]

Welcome to R2R!

It's not bleaching. It's dying on the edges. When mine gets dead spots, it always happens on the inside instead of the edges, so that's different.

The low Mg makes me wonder about the salinity. Are you measuring that with a refractometer calibrated with saltwater?

I believe that I see coraline spots on the back wall, so if you can grow that, you should be able to grow a Hollywood stunner. Mine takes high light just fine, at the top of my tank under 6 bulb T5.

Appreciate your input!

So I recalibrated my refractometer with RODI and checked again and got 1.024.

Any suggestions for saving it? Yeah the entire back wall is coraline.
I have Mg coming in the mail and will dose once it gets here. I've got my alk to 7.7 will dose a little more tonight to get into the 8s.

Or should I add a little saltwater to up the salinity and then recheck all/mg and see where it's at first?

 

[nereefpat]

Or should I add a little saltwater to up the salinity and then recheck all/mg and see where it's at first?

I agree with you there. For example, if your salinity is 10% low, Mg could be 100+ ppm too, assuming the saltwater is supposed to mix up in the 1200ppm range.

And really, there are only two ways that Mg of a tank can be 1050 ppm.
1. Error in measurement
2. Or low salinity

 

[nereefpat]

My 1st part, I must have deleted.

I would not calibrate with RO water. I would calibrate with saltwater, since that's what you're measuring.

You can buy calibration fluid. I make my own, using 36.5 grams of table salt and filling to 1000 mL with RODI.

 

[ShepBReefin]

My 1st part, I must have deleted.

I would not calibrate with RO water. I would calibrate with saltwater, since that's what you're measuring.

You can buy calibration fluid. I make my own, using 36.5 grams of table salt and filling to 1000 mL with RODI.

Just for clarification.... By calibrating that way you are creating exactly 1.025 salinity and setting the refractometer to 1.025 correct?

 

[nereefpat]

Just for clarification.... By calibrating that way you are creating exactly 1.025 salinity and setting the refractometer to 1.025 correct?

Right. You are using saltwater at a known salinity, and adjusting the screw on the refractometer to match.

 

[ShepBReefin]

Right. You are using saltwater at a known salinity, and adjusting the screw on the refractometer to match.

I, my friend, owe you serious appreciation. I did exactly what you said to recalibrate and my salinity was measuring 1.020!

You may have found the answer to all my headaches. What a simple and quite "stupid" error for me to make.

I'm going to raise the salinity up slowly and then recheck everything. I've probably been running with low salinity the entire time I've had this tank!

Cheers bro!