Help, Acro is losing tissue

[Jonathan Chia]

The acros in my tank always seem to lose tissue, starting from the bottom edges of encrustation after a few weeks in the tank.

Nitrates - ~10PPM
Phospates - Between 0-0.04PPM (can get as high as 0.08)
Alk - 8-8.6
Calc - 450
Don't check Mag since I use RSCP

Any ideas as to what could be causing this? It's weird that I see growth from the acro for a month then it just starts to fade away like this

 

[tankguy]

Had the same proble. Mine I believe came from a salinity spike. Thankfully things are getting better but there were so em losses

 

[Bruce Spiegelman]

When you first place the acros are you immediately placing them high and close to the lights? And what lights are you using?

 

[Jonathan Chia]

Yes I place them in their permanent spot. I am running 2 kessil a160s on a nuvo 20.

Intensity is maxed out at 40%

 

[Bruce Spiegelman]

My guess then since they seem to lose tissue after the first few weeks is they haven't been acclimated to LED's Especially Kessil's) properly.

 

[Jonathan Chia]

This frag came from Neptune which I believe also runs Kessil's in their frag tanks.

Seems to be affecting this one more, which is higher up in the tank compared to another acro...so maybe the light acclimation makes sense. Should I move this one down, or would that end up stressing it more

 

[Bruce Spiegelman]

I'd move it down. Then from here on out I'd place new acro frags in a spot about midway in the tank for a couple of months before moving it up.

 

[Coral reefer]

Do you make your own rodi? Might have chlorine/chloramine.

 

[Jonathan Chia]

Yes I make my own RODI but have 0 tds and purchased air water ices filters for chloramines

 

[Coral reefer]

Tds doesn't show chlorine. How many gal have you run through said filter?

 

[Jonathan Chia]

I’ve probably run 50 gals or less through the filter

 

[rygh]

So many possibilities....

So mine did the exact same thing for a long time.
Would do OK for a month or so, then slowly die from bottom up.
Water parameters were good.

I changed quite a few things, so no definitive fix.
But really 3 key things:
1) Reduced and tweaked lighting, adding UV.
2) Stopped aggressively reducing Nitrates.
3) Fancier RODI with more carbon for chloramines.

 

[Jonathan Chia]

I think #1 and 2 might do the trick for me. I've raised my kessils a bit and I was carbon dosing / nopoxing...guessing I should reduce the dose of the nopox

 

[Bruce Spiegelman]

Nitratres around 10 is kind of the perfect sweet spot for Acros. By reducing Nopox and changing the lighting you're not going to have any idea which if any is the issue and it may lead to not identifying the real issue. Check your nitrates every other day for a few weeks before you reduce nopox. If they hover around 10 all the time that's not the issue.