Bubble coral not so bubbly

[coralmadness]

Hello everyone. A new member here. Just signed on a day ago. I have tried to search the archives on bubble coral, but result was too extensive to sieve through. Basically, I want to know what can cause a bubble coral to NOT be so bubbly, yet still expanding in volume in its main body section.

All the parameters in my tank are in the normal ranges, as shown below:
- pH = 8.2
- salinity = 1.023
- ammonia = 0
- nitrate = 20 ppm (tried to lower this, but this is the lowest I can get so far)
- alkalinity = 10 dKH or 179 ppm
- calcium = 400 ppm
- temperature = 78F or 25C
- light = compact fluorescent (2 bulbs of 96W each)
- tank size = 33 gallons
- light exposure = 8 hrs per day
- water change = 1/5 of the tank twice a month

The reef fish and critters I have in the tank are not bothering the bubble coral. I have this coral for almost 10 years now, and it is only with the last move, which was about a year ago, that the coral started to shrink its bubbles. All in all, the coral is still healthy. Its main body part is still inflating when the lights come on. I feed it some silver slides once or twice a week, and it eagerly takes in the food. The only problem is that it is looking less and less like a bubble coral as time progresses.

Any idea what is happening, anyone? Any suggestion for improvement or what is going on is greatly appreciated!

(Sorry, for some reason, the forum's system will not attach my pic properly. Instead, I have managed to upload the image in my album. Please click on my Personal Gallery to view it.)

 

[Amphiprion]

Has the lighting or the coral's position relative to the light changed in that time frame? That's usually the most common possibility. Otherwise, if the coral is doing well, growing, etc., I wouldn't be terribly concerned. A few pics might help, though. One other suggestion is to start feeding it--it will greedily accept any meaty food, like chopped silversides, mysids, etc.

 

[coralmadness]

No, the relative distance of the coral from the light has not changed, and it is being fed with silver slides once or twice a week. Sorry, for some reason I could not attach the pic to my original post, but there is a pic located in my Personal Gallery.

 

[Amphiprion]

It looks like it is ballooning upward. When was the last time you changed your lamps and what kind of lamps are you using?

 

[coralmadness]

The lighting consists of two compact fluorescent bulbs of 96W each. One bulb is 10,000K, and the other is half 10,000K and half actinic. The light bulbs were changed about 6 months ago. The coral is placed relatively close to the top, so about 1/3 from the top of the tank.

(How about that... the pic got attached the second time around. Cool!)

 

[Amphiprion]

Hmm. Well, you've covered all your bases. One last question, though. What are you using to measure salinity and have you calibrated it recently? Just trying to cross off any possibilities. It wouldn't hurt to raise the salinity a bit, but only if what you are using is accurate. Other than that, I wouldn't worry, unless you see any obvious decline, recession, etc. All things said, these are ultra-hardy corals. I know mine has been through any number of nightmares over the years. It is also my second-oldest coral, so that says something about its resilience.

 

[coralmadness]

I am using Coralife's Deep Six hydrometer to set my salinity. The hydrometer was initially off till I calibrated it with a popular pet store in my vicinity. Currently, the salinity is set at 1.023.

A lucky google search last night brought me to the attention of a pic posted by a random saltwater hobbyist, who claims that as the coral gets older, the bubbles get smaller. This hobbyist's bubble coral is currently 11 years old, and mine is about 10 years old.

How old is yours currently, and is it still retaining its full brilliant bubbles?

 

[SubRosa]

Ime if a Bubble won't open it's either too brightly lit or getting too much flow. Find a lower spot for it that's relatively calm and see what happens in a few days.

 

[coralmadness]

Thanks, SubRosa. The coral is actually placed in a rather calm area, and I have tried to placed it in various places, but no definite result so far, but I can always try again.

Amphiprion, thanks for all your input. I guess you are right about the hardiness of this coral. I should not be overly concerned as long as it is healthy.

Thanks, everyone!

 

[Amphiprion]

I am using Coralife's Deep Six hydrometer to set my salinity. The hydrometer was initially off till I calibrated it with a popular pet store in my vicinity. Currently, the salinity is set at 1.023.

A lucky google search last night brought me to the attention of a pic posted by a random saltwater hobbyist, who claims that as the coral gets older, the bubbles get smaller. This hobbyist's bubble coral is currently 11 years old, and mine is about 10 years old.

How old is yours currently, and is it still retaining its full brilliant bubbles?

Mine doesn't have the same reduced bubbles. They are small, but that is for a different reason--a large part of it died off during a crash. What's left of it is about 15 years old. Here's a pic of it from 2007, so only 3 years ago: