I've decided to go back to GFO and take the Vertex pellets out at least for now. Some combination of their use and my tank getting a little bit too warm (83ºF to 84ºF) for a week around the beginning of the month has caused all of my soft coral to bleach. I'm mostly blaming the pellets as my nano where I keep the mother colonies of my soft coral has been sitting at those high temperatures (and perhaps higher) for longer and the coral in there are coping much better. Also, I've found several posts from others using these products who have experienced the same. Apart from the bleaching and some slightly increased skimmer production I didn't notice any change in my system for better or worse during my month long trial.
Heres how my toadstool frags look at the moment. A sinularia and capnella look similar.
