[fishguy_8]

Well I have been recently making the modifications to my 65g to start trying out some sps corals but I have been reading up on RTN and remember seeing it on some pieces when Id go to the lfs....ive read a few links in this forum about rtn and how to go about preventing getting it but what is the most common way to go about doing it. I saw one person used a UV sterilizer but from what I know, which is very little, doesnt a UV remove beneficial things from the water column? What is the best way to prevent your tank from getting it and if one does get it how would you go about fixing it so you dont lose a nice frag or show piece? Thanks for your time.
Jon

[Reefland]

Wow, there are really no "exact" ways to prevent RTN and bleaching in SPS corals; these events can happen out of the blue and have been known to effect single frags or multiple colonies over night. What can you do to attempt to avoid it?
Buy captive grown frags.
Give them a quick iodine dip before introducing them.
Make sure there are no significant overnight water quality changes (i.e. salinity, temp, etc.).
Adjust corals to new conditions slowly (new introductions, lighting changes, etc.)

These are just some of the precautions you can take but I assure you once you get into the world of SPS you can do all of these things and other things but you will eventually experience a coral bleaching or RTN of a coral.

Scott Z.

[JB NY]

That's the $1,000,000 question. There is no real answer, even the best tanks can have a coral RTN on them. Steve's advice is sound and it would be good to follow.

[fishguy_8]

I thought that was a unanswerable question but wanted to make sure because throughout the posts i have read there was no real consensus on how to prevent it. Scott you mentioned the iodine dip....what kind of iodine do you use to do this and how long does the "dip" last? thanks guys.
Jon

[reefkeep]

i know one way to prevent "rtn" dont place a coral right infront of a power head =)

[montepora]

IMHO..... STABILITY!

[Tank]

Jon,
Hey man how's things been? As stated before, stability is a HUGE factor in preventing RTN. I normaly find that if an SPS, whether it be wild or cultered, last for more than 3 weeks it will generaly live forever in my tank. Barring some bad events. You still in the same place? If your doing SPS now maybe we should hook up and sell/trade some frags. I'm in a 350G system now that is loaded with some choice pieces.
Chris

[saltjunkie]

****, i had a candy coral in my tank for years..............
i woke up one day and 2 or the 16 heads had turned brown and dissolved.........
i broke them off quick,
it didnt help.....i ended up with 2 small frags after all was said and done.....
now they are making a comeback after about a year of the initial outbreak.........
i think if it happens, it just happens.....

[LazyReef]

I'm with saltjunkie. I think they call it NATURE and its just as unpredictable in our tanks as it is in the wild. Though I personaly side on bacteria leading natures charge.