2 Questions from an admirer...

[ws6kid]

Good afternoon!

I have been floating around this forum for years wishing my tank could look as nice and full of SPS as some of these aquariums posted here do.

My water parameters have always been stable enough to keep LPS and softies happy, but my SPS success is very short term.

So, I have 2 questions...

A) Outside of parameter stability, what 1 thing did you learn or do that made a huge difference in the animals that you were able to keep successfully?

B) Where do you get most of your sps? Local reefers? Cherry? Aqua cultured or maricultured?

Thank you for your time!

 

[Prochef176]

A. Take your time, nothing good happens fast. Make only minor adjustments and then wait.

B. I have swapped and traded a few really nice corals from local people. Haven't done any online ordering yet though.

 

[jda]

Patience is huge, as suggested above.

A. Don't do too much. To much flow, skimming, media, etc can turn out bad. To little is bad too. Balance is the key. Knowing what the balance is is paramount.
B. Stable tank... like 1+ year really helps.
C. Most of the rest of what I usually suggest doesn't really apply to you like lots of volume (120G is great), stable calcium and alk (GEO reactor is great) - most of the "biocube generation" already fail here with. I would recommend a lot more light - I am not a LED believer for ultimate SPS tanks, but I don't want to start an argument.
D. QT and/or dip your stuff - years and years of patience can unravel in a few weeks with a acro flatworm infestation.
E. Most importantly is the reefer - you... which i think is the genesis of the question that you posted.. A good, solid reefer can use tap water, lights, skimmer and pumps from 10 years ago and have an awesome tank. They are patient with a depth and breath of knowledge that their skill can overcome nearly every obstacle and do very well. The super skilled reefer has learned their lessons from experience and can think for themselves and troubleshoot. Unfortunately, not too many of these post anymore IMO, but those that do are awesome.

I get my stuff from trading local reefers or from high quality online sellers that usually cost a bit more, but are worth it with no pests and guaranteed to get what is advertised. If you live anywhere near a large metro area, there is probably a guy or shop that will have really nice tank-grown acros that the locals have traded in. Look around at some of the large acro suppliers that sell limited edition stuff and make a list of what you want - then go searching. Most sellers who have one of your desired corals will have more, or will know how to get more. I am lucky that there are several who are very good around me.

Some of the best tanks that I have seen in the last year are very simple, yet very effective.

 

[ws6kid]

Thank you both for the replies. I would say my patience level over the last 8 years is much better with my reef. I never really had the want to try sps until this new setup that has been running for one year August 1. I have always had success with fish, inverts, softies, and lps. I also see that so many have gorgeous tanks over the years with thousands of dollars in equipment and with hundreds. It obvious it is practice. I have had a solid year with parameters in check and am still nervous to buy any nice sps. My experience tells me that I can handle it. But, even though I can effectively install plumbing and electrical, every time I meet someone with experience they have learned a tip that would have saved me hours of time or some amount of cash. Which is why I asked the pros

 

[rovster]

It's not that difficult, just have to be religious with your routine. I come from the biocube generation, LOL! 14 gal SPS dominant

 

[Sparkpaul]

It's like raising a child.

+1 on making slow changes
+1 religiously with your routines

This is my second tank and I'm doing much than my first one and my sps are thriving.

 

[jda]

Additionally, I am really dogmatic about automation and points of failure. I use mechanical wall times for lights, no controller and no auto top off. I have never heard a good way that a Calcium Reactor can crash a tank, so I don't trust dosing pumps. I also use mechanical heaters (Eheim) but also on a temp controller, so both would have to stick on to melt my tank.

To me, stuff like sunrise/sunset, moon cycles and all of that is neat, but points of failure that offer no real accomplishment. I want stuff as stable as possible.

A long time "reefer with a 15+ year old tank who had to frag basketball sized SPS 5-6 times over the years to start over again with frags" once told me that there are two kinds of auto top-off and mechanical dosing systems - those that have failed and those that will. While this is mostly hyperbole, my bucket of water and calcium reactor have never done me wrong, and you do see a lot of posts about ATOs and dosing pumps malfunctioning... just have to get a friend to carry some buckets if I go on vacation. ...so I won't use them. Too much risk for not enough reward IMO.

One last thing. If you want an exceptional tank, you need exceptional best-of-breed type stuff. This does not have to be expensive. I run what I consider one of the top-three best of breed lights, heaters, calcium reactor, etc. Even a small bit of stray current from a cheap component can bleach and kill your SPS that you spent years growing. I don't run a best of breed skimmer since I am a clam addict and I let all of the clean the water, but I would have a better skimmer if I needed it. Just one tank crash could pay for that good return pump rather than the Chinese knockoff, or whatever.

My apologies for my ramblings.

 

[stevedola]

A:
1. having a good sump with autotop off to keep a consistant water level for good skimming.
2. a controller to automate the everyday mechanics of the reef tank.
3. a good doser thats reliable.
4. great lighting
B:
most (*80%) have come from local reefers but some have come from local reef shops. join your local forum and search out the sps gurus in your area. they will have great tips and corals to sell. manytimes you can create a good relationship with them and they become friends.

 

[Fishypapa]

Slow and sure beautifies the tank.

Re dosing pumps: I use an aqualifter with one tube in the tank and one in a container of stuff I'm dosing and that works fine with my stuff.