Author Topic: STOP! READ THIS NOW!!! (Read 9406 times)

MechanicalEngineer · « **on:** February 12, 2009, 19:52:45 »

A while back I posted about my Sunset Montipora having weird white spots on it...and ever since then, things have been getting worse daily for my tank. My frag tank has now developed the same problem, and the only link between my main tank and my frag tank is the water and the salt. To make things more interesting, this problem started about the same time I started a new bucket of Red Sea Coral Pro salt. I've been using RSCP for about the past year and a half with no problems.

Problem: Most SPS have turned dirt brown (even my green slimer). Corals have NO polyp extension and look like they are starving (tissue is tight around the skeleton.) Tissue loss has started. Even my LPS are losing tissue, and my few softies are closed. (Even my green star polyps aren't extending polyps to tell you the seriousness of the problem.) The tank is 2 years old, and has been very successful up until now.

Tank specs:

40g SPS dominant
20g sump with macroalgae and RDSB
90# LR
40# LS
2x150W MH
Tunze 9002 skimmer
Mag 12 return pump
2 x Koralia 4's
1 x Koralia 3

Fish:

Mated pair of hi-fin gobies with a pistol shrimp

Chemicals (tested with Salifert where applicable):

Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
pH: 8.2
Salinity: 1.026
Alk: 9 dkh
Mag: 1350
Ca: 400
Temp: 80
Phosphates: 0 (done with a Salifert test kit...other than that, I don't know.)

Desperate, I tried searching and doing everything possible. I finally found one guy that was seeing metal flakes in the bottom of his water mixing bucket after using Red Sea Coral Pro salt.

Scared to death, I ran to the utility room to look in my buckets...

I found metal flakes in the residue, some magnetic, some not. CHECK YOUR SALT!!!

aquavista99 · « **Reply #1 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:01:24 »

I would contact Red Sea ASAP and save a sample. So sorry to hear about your corals. Hopefully the problem will go away by using a different brand of salt mix for now.

MechanicalEngineer · « **Reply #2 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:03:35 »

Unfortunately, I used the last of the salt trying to fix the problem by doing water changes.

I'm going to get the metal out of the bucket & take some pictures.

aquavista99 · « **Reply #3 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:06:34 »

Quote from: Reef'd Up on February 12, 2009, 20:03:35

Unfortunately, I used the last of the salt trying to fix the problem by doing water changes. I'm going to get the metal out of the bucket & take some pictures.

I can donate enough good /cycled water to replace your existing water, if needed.

UDJustin · « **Reply #4 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:07:47 »

all buckets of RSCP salt have batch numbers on them so you should be able to report it quite easily

UDJustin · « **Reply #5 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:15:49 »

Hey Nikki just curious how did you happen to determine these flakes are metal? Are they magnetic? How big are they? Not doubting what your saying, but I'm sure all salts have quite a fair amount of metal in them(I.E. potassium) a lot of the trace elements are metals. So not doubting that this could be something wrong with the salt mix(maybe it didn't get batched right, or mixed right), but are you positive it is metal in the bottom of the bucket?

verper · « **Reply #6 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:45:10 »

I ran a mag float around inside the bag of about a quarter bucket and the top third of a second bucket. It came out clean.

MechanicalEngineer · « **Reply #7 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:47:54 »

I ran a magnet over the bottom of the bucket, and got a few flakes. The other flakes are still metallic...and bendable. I did see a bunch of mica flakes, but the metal flakes were different. I took some pictures...I'm loading them now. We'll see. I know salt has metals in it, but there shouldn't be pieces this size (at least in my opinion.)

verper · « **Reply #8 on:** February 12, 2009, 20:58:36 »

I wouldn't think there would be metal flakes at all. This is natural sea water that has been dried by evaporation, cleaned and sterilized, and packaged according to the Red Sea rep.

slandis3 · « **Reply #9 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:00:23 »

Nikki, what are you using to get the salt out of the bucket?

UDJustin · « **Reply #10 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:03:55 »

well if it claims to have trace elements in it then it has metal in it. Look on the make up it has metal if there are those elements in it, natural sea water has metal in it.

aquavista99 · « **Reply #11 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:06:47 »

Quote from: verper on February 12, 2009, 20:45:10

I ran a mag float around inside the bag of about a quarter bucket and the top third of a second bucket. It came out clean.

I went through 4 buckets of RSCP over the past few months with no problems. Most of my buckets came from the North Dixie Reef power buy and some others are from Just Coral purchased through Premium Aquatics. I did a sample test on one of my new buckets of salt with a mag float and it came out clean as well.

verper · « **Reply #12 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:08:46 »

OH yeah, it has trace metal in it. The Red Sea rep said it even has traces of gold. That was one of his selling points - what synthetic salt manufacturer would put gold in their salt even though ocean water has gold in it. But it should not have flakes of metal. Seems more like something off of a piece of machinery in the cleaning process.

UDJustin · « **Reply #13 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:11:31 »

Quote from: verper on February 12, 2009, 21:08:46

OH yeah, it has trace metal in it. The Red Sea rep said it even has traces of gold. That was one of his selling points - what synthetic salt manufacturer would put gold in their salt even though ocean water has gold in it. But it should not have flakes of metal. Seems more like something off of a piece of machinery in the cleaning process.

I can see that but a lot of times elements react with each other, which i can imagine could create the flakes also though.

MechanicalEngineer · « **Reply #14 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:14:15 »

Yes, there should be metals...as in small amounts of iron, potassium, and such, but there shouldn't be metal FLAKES. Maybe I wasn't looking for it before, but I definitely haven't seen metal pieces in my water before.

I can't find any sort of identifying writing on the bucket...what should I be looking for?

MechanicalEngineer · « **Reply #15 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:15:38 »

Those were the two biggest pieces...definitely varied in luster. The dull black one was bendable.

aquavista99 · « **Reply #16 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:18:16 »

Quote from: verper on February 12, 2009, 21:08:46

OH yeah, it has trace metal in it. The Red Sea rep said it even has traces of gold. That was one of his selling points - what synthetic salt manufacturer would put gold in their salt even though ocean water has gold in it. But it should not have flakes of metal. Seems more like something off of a piece of machinery in the cleaning process.

I have been checking my RSCP salt for gold for months with no luck.

Riderc82 · « **Reply #17 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:20:03 »

My bucket has two labels on the lid I'm guessing that is how they know the batch number

slandis3 · « **Reply #18 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:20:38 »

put all that you can find in some salt water over night then try and remove just the water letting the pieces air dry. If they start to crode (sp?) or rust then yes deffenatlly a problem.

UDJustin · « **Reply #19 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:20:57 »

if only i could find gold in mine as well

verper · « **Reply #20 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:21:38 »

Those are from somethng like a bearing. The bendable one wouldn't be black plastic? I'd definitely contact Red Sea

verper · « **Reply #21 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:23:03 »

Quote from: aquavista99 on February 12, 2009, 21:18:16

I have been checking my RSCP salt for gold for months with no luck.

You have to dig a little deeper!

UDJustin · « **Reply #22 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:23:39 »

just curious scott how did you come up with that it was from a bearing?

aquavista99 · « **Reply #23 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:23:47 »

Nikki, do you think replacing all your water ASAP with established water from another reef would help your corals? You could save the existing water and perhaps send some of the large flakes to a lab for testing.

MechanicalEngineer · « **Reply #24 on:** February 12, 2009, 21:32:41 »

I don't know...I just...arrrgh...don't really care at this point. I'm so beyond frustrated. No, that bendable piece was very malleable, definitely not plastic.

Oh, if you're looking for gold, you may have better luck with your toenails. They contain gold.

2024 Ohio Reef Frag Swap

Author Topic: STOP! READ THIS NOW!!! (Read 9406 times)

MechanicalEngineer

MechanicalEngineer

MechanicalEngineer

slandis3

MechanicalEngineer

MechanicalEngineer

slandis3

MechanicalEngineer