Monti's not looking so good-need advice

[hawkfish21]

All of my monti's look awful while my acros couldn't look any better. I haven't added anything for a while and my water parameters are fine. Don't see any nudis either. Anyone have any ideas? Thanks.

[crazedreefer]

I am willing to bet your potassium is low...You can either buy some potassium and a test kit, or I would get something like Kent's Essential Elements and start dosing that, it has potassium in it but not in huge concentrations like if you got potassium, so you would be ok not testing for it...

[hawkfish21]

Shouldn't Potassium be replaced with water changes or is salt mix low in potassium?

[northbay-reefer]

how is your temp ? monti is very sensitive to temp changes

[hawkfish21]

Not a problem. It's usually a constant 80 degrees.

[The Shan Man]

How is your Alk???

[hawkfish21]

Between 8 & 9dkh.

[crazedreefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10765068#post10765068 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hawkfish21
Shouldn't Potassium be replaced with water changes or is salt mix low in potassium?
Some may be replaced with water changes...but if there is a heavy draw on it, then it will not bring it up to the levels that the monti's may want...Think about it like this, calcium is replaced with water changes, but yet we still add calcium to the tank on top of the water changes...same scenario...I mean your looking for options here...buy a 10 dollar bottle at your LFS and see if it helps...or see if you can borrow a pot. test kit...

just trying to help...

[hawkfish21]

I appreciate the help everyone. I will try a bottle of potassium.

[northbay-reefer]

Hawkfish21, if you are doing frequent water changes atleast once every two weeks then you dont have to add anything except stuff to maintain your magnesium, alk and calcium ... check for other problems first before spending more money. I have a 210 with tons of montis and I never have to add postassium.

Do you have alot of softies in your tank also ?

[hawkfish21]

I do 25% water changes monthly & have never had a problem with it. The only thing I have dosed is calcium, alk & mag. I use Red Sea Pro Coral Salt, don't know if this is the problem?

[northbay-reefer]

Your tank is a mixed reef correct ? if yes then I think chemical warfare might be the problem, have you been fragging and cutting softies inside the tank ?

I used to do this and bleached my montis

As for water change, I've found that frequent small water change works the best for sps, I only do big water change when after I treat my tank with something. 25% water change can shock your system if the parameter doesnt match(make sure alk,cal,mag is equivalent to your tank)

Also what are you using to check your salinity ? if you are using the swing arm then you might have high salinity. The swing arm / floating type are not accurate. Montis doesnt like high salinity especially higher than 1.026. Isued to have one and though my salinity was 1.023, but after buying the refractometer, I notice my salinity is 1.028 yikeee ... no wonder why my montis turned white ...

[hawkfish21]

I need to update my profile. It's mostly SPS now with a few zoanthids.

Salinity is checked with a refractometer (1.025).

I don't think I have them, but when is the best time to inspect for nudis? Are they nocturnal?

[drock59]

Barebottom?

You can get really cheap potassium at Home Depot. Its water softener. I think its potassium chloride by Morton.

Also, whenever my montis start turning pale I start feeding more.

[prsouthfl]

Also, whenever my montis start turning pale I start feeding more
feeding more of what?

[drock59]

fish food. Forumula 1,2,cyclopeeze, mysis, rotifers, etc.

[HBtank]

FWIW I have many very large colonies of montis (encrusting and caps) and dose over 150 ml a day of two-part, but have never had to add any potassium beyond water changes. All my montis look great.

[crazedreefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10767060#post10767060 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by northbay-reefer
Hawkfish21, if you are doing frequent water changes atleast once every two weeks then you dont have to add anything except stuff to maintain your magnesium, alk and calcium ... check for other problems first before spending more money. I have a 210 with tons of montis and I never have to add postassium.

Do you have alot of softies in your tank also ?

just because you do not have to do something does not mean other people do not have to do anything...if you are so smart and knowledgeable like it seems like you think you are, you would consider that every single persons tank is different and requires different things, we still do not know enough about this hobby to make judgment calls like this one...more then likely he may not need ca. but what would adding a little hurt? Nothing and who knows it could work...I just do not think that because your system does not need something means that is the case for everyone else's system...

[crazedreefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10771724#post10771724 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by HBtank
FWIW I have many very large colonies of montis (encrusting and caps) and dose over 150 ml a day of two-part, but have never had to add any potassium beyond water changes. All my montis look great.

Most do not have potassium issues...but some do have this problem with their monti's...again everyones tank is different, I just offered a suggestion, because from the original post it seemed to me that this guy is on top of the common things, alk, mag., ca. and most people do water changes fairly often at least monthly...so I was going a little deeper here...I suggested kent's EE, because you can get it fairly cheap and it might be worth a shot instead of buying a test kit for pot.

[crazedreefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10768205#post10768205 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hawkfish21
I need to update my profile. It's mostly SPS now with a few zoanthids.

Salinity is checked with a refractometer (1.025).

I don't think I have them, but when is the best time to inspect for nudis? Are they nocturnal?

Nudis kind of are on their own time schedule, I have seen them out during the day and night...The ones I have seen are white and you can tell where they are if you look close enough on the monti...A tell tale sign is random white dead spots on the monti and they will only really effect those spots not the entire monti...

[crazedreefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10769226#post10769226 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by drock59
Barebottom?

You can get really cheap potassium at Home Depot. Its water softener. I think its potassium chloride by Morton.

Also, whenever my montis start turning pale I start feeding more.

Very true Drock...

I warn to be very careful with straight potassium, my mistake for not being clearer...the reason I suggested Kent Essential Elements, was because it is not a strong dosage of potassium, if you start dosing straight potassium...you might run into issues if you can not monitor it, but if you do just dose the EE, you might add enough to your tank to notice the difference but not over do it...

[drock59]

Ya, i never use the potassium chloride but I tried it a while back....about a year or so when everything in my tank was looking pale.

Anecdotally, I think I saw more blue show up in my corals but overall not much a change.

Feed more and do water changes....along with stable params.

[hawkfish21]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I pulled every monti out last night and found no traces of nudis. I will do water changes and see if that helps. A guy at the LFS suggested that one of them might have passed a viral infection to the others. I've never heard of that before.

[northbay-reefer]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10771985#post10771985 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by crazedreefer
just because you do not have to do something does not mean other people do not have to do anything...if you are so smart and knowledgeable like it seems like you think you are, you would consider that every single persons tank is different and requires different things, we still do not know enough about this hobby to make judgment calls like this one...more then likely he may not need ca. but what would adding a little hurt? Nothing and who knows it could work...I just do not think that because your system does not need something means that is the case for everyone else's system...

I guess you are smarter than all of us :lol: get a life !!!!, their's no need to get excited over nothing. Adding postassium was your judment call too .. what a joke .

[wentreefgirl]

What did you say your mag was?

[hawkfish21]

It usually stays 1400ppm.

[wentreefgirl]

Ok, thats good. Also just fyi. I had these tiny worms that seem to burrow through monti encrusting species a couple of times. Thought that to be the demise of the coral. If you have that, its a loosing battle. However Id try the potassium first. And then go to the magnifier.