Hi Guys,

I am new to the forum and new to keeping a reef tank. I have had fish only saltwater tanks in the past but this is my first stab at keeping inverts. I am keeping easy stuff right now. I have a 12 gallon nano. So far I have a pulsing xenia, mushrooms, buttons, green star polyp, and a yellow leather coral. I got the leather about a month ago. The leather does not seem to be happy. It has never fully extended its polyps since I got it. :( Everything else seems great. It has been doing alot of shedding. So I dont know if it just takes some time or if there is more that is wrong. It will extend its polyps slightly but has never fully extended. Someone please advise!! I have tested my nitrates etc. and dont know what else to do! Is there something special I need to add to the water???

How much water are you changing and how often? Are your using carbon? I think there might be some chemical warfare going on here. Mushrooms, button polyps and GSP are all pretty noxious, and may be releasing cemicals into the water that are irritating the leather. Also, yellow leathers tend to prefer higher lighting that other leathers. What kind of lighting and flow do you have in your 12 gallon?

Hello coastalaggie! :welcome: to TR!

What are the parameters of your tank? Do you have the sponges and/or bio-balls in the rear chambers?

Hi Thanks for your replies. I am not using carbon and i have an extra power head in the tank to add extra flow. I do water changes 1-2 x a week. Though I think I may have figured it out. I think my salinity has been flunctuating too much. At least this is what I have found on the internet. Are leathers pretty forgiving once you rectify the problem? I figure it hasnt outright died yet..

One other question. Do you think it could just be going thru a growth spurt?

Certainly fluctuating salinity can cause problems. Leathers are very forgiving so hopefully you will be OK. You need an ATO or you must be very faithful in adding fresh water in order to replace the water that has evaporated. (When water evaporates it leaves the salt behind.) What are your ammonia, nitrate, nitrite, SpG, and pH?