Corals turning almost white

[reefwars]

Originally Posted by CandyCane

The kenya's have been white since I first put them in the tank in July. The zenia and the frog spawn turned white about a week after I put them in the tank.

Salt: 1.023
Temp.:78F
pH:Unknown- I dont have a test kit
Lighting: Actinics 7:30am to 7:30pm
Day lights 8am to 6pm
I have no cyano or byropsis

On a side note my acropora died even though it had high water flow and top of the tank for lighting. My RBA has only its red colouring left when it used to have some green at the base, it now has a white base.

Last water change about 2 weeks ago nothing at all changed, everything stayed white or colourful

if i had to guess which is all i can due is i would bet your lights arent strong enough for a anemone or sps so i wouldnt bother with those, 18w t5's arent all that strong unless your tank isnt very high,better suited for softies and lower light demanding corals..another guess would be excess nutrients in the way of nitrates. a few things to remember is when it comes to saltwater aquariums its be3st to spend as much as you can on good lights,skimmer and media reactors.water changes are great but they wont fix everything its more of a good way to replenish certain elements and lower things that happen or things that get built up that we dont want in our tanks.water isnt a source of food for most inhabitants, most rely on photosynthesis others require target feedings or microscopic foods. since the ones at the top of the tank are doing better i would think more on getting a better light if you want to keep corals.sps,anemones and frogspawn all like light and do better with stronger lighting while kenyas are a good way of telling if nutrients are high or when a water change is needed.wouldnt hurt to do water changes every week of at least 10% and buy test kits if you plan to keep corals.most important would be cal,mg,alk,nitrates,phosphates other important one would be amonia, these are a must have in a reeftank and when any of the above mentioned arent where they are supposed to be its your corals who feel it first.cheers and good luck