Acros

[ShesEasy]

Hey everyone, I'm here looking for some advice. I'm new to the reef game but I'm highly intrested on growing acros. I would love to hear from the veterans what you feel are good preameters to have my tank at before even starting, additives to...well add, so on and so forth

Right now I'm having great success with an encrusting Monti, a pink birdsnest and some unknown sps along with various othee coral I have

Hoping to learn before I lose lol

Thanks

 

[ShesEasy]

Anyone? Any tips?

 

[jayball]

Post your existing parameters, you will probably get more comments that way.

The only big difference is that you need better stability than other sps. An ALK swing can cause a lot more damage to most acros than your montipora cap (... ask me how I know:hmm3

Shoot for something along the lines of:
1.025-1.026
9DkH (anywhere 8-10 is good and success is documented outside this range but staying right in the middle should minimize damage if the worst occurs)
420 Cal
1200-1300 Mag

 

[Wazzel]

I would go with 400-450 range on the Ca. As long as you are in the acceptable range and stable things will go well. High light and good flow help too.

 

[acrohead500ppm]

Biggest thing to be concerned about is stable alk and flow variation, its not about the amount of flow as it is the right type of flow. Most other SPS will do fine with laminar flow as long as its broad, Acropora however tend to be a bit more picky.
Having a powerhead/ wave maker really helps (TUNZE, vortech, jebo)
However, you can get away with using regular uncontrollable propeller style pumps on opposite sides of the tank angled slightly upward towards the waters surface.

This is a 120 oceanic tech tank I built and maintained for a sales firm a while back, other than the returns (mag 9) all water motion was provided by a regular old Koralia 4' and Koralia 3 fighting at the surface.
I had the receptionist trained to dose two part every feeding, sticks grew like weeds! Its the system that made me realize how bad *** AB10000 bulbs are if run on M80
So it can be done without expensive wavemakers,

 

[ShesEasy]

Awesome thanks guys

Right now my tank sits at

Salinity: 1.025
Calc: 430-440
Alk: 7-8
Mag:1200-1250
Phos: 0
Am: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 0

Running three Radion XR30w on a high growth graph at 40%
Two tunze power heads but am aiming for two mp30 vortecs before I get any acros

 

[ShesEasy]

One thing that has always confused me a bit is how do I determine what flow I have?

I can't program my heads in anyways really other then the silly dials that are useless but do pulse rate and flow rate on each alternate pulse...

 

[acrohead500ppm]

One thing that has always confused me a bit is how do I determine what flow I have?

I can't program my heads in anyways really other then the silly dials that are useless but do pulse rate and flow rate on each alternate pulse...

Useless??? Uhm, no.

If you have two tunzes on a controller that are properly sized for the tank/ aquascape, you shouldn't need to go buy vortechs.

I could shut down my vortech and be fine with just my tunze, however, wouldn't work the otherway around, the vortech alone would starve the far side of my tank of flow.

What model of tunzes you have? display measurements?

Like I said, I was able to make Acros grow like weeds with a few non controllable koralias in the 120gaql tank I posted before.

If you have controllable tunzes already, you probably have flow covered.

 

[ShesEasy]

Well my last name is bliss....so ignorance is bliss?

My tunzes are 7091

My tank is a 180gal 6x2x2

 

[acrohead500ppm]

Looks like you have 6101's, with the way your aquascape is, I see no reason to add more flow for now at least.
I would say go for it.

If you are really concerned, purchase ORA frags or Frags of ORA lineage from other hobbyists.

Try Scripps or stuber, both are extremely fast growing stags that are really easy.

 

[ShesEasy]

oh okay i dunno i bought them along with the tank, so i dont know the model, iam assuming fairly old though as they are worn out on there hangers, had to use electrical tape to stop them from flying around

what is ORA?

how about a hawkins, are they difficult?

also how are they with amonia and nitrites, as my tank has not cycled and dosnt apear to want to

i had alge growth for a while but i guess my excessive addition of microbacter and reef biofuel have made it low in nutrients as all the alge that was once, is no more, only a tiny bit of hair and diatomes and coraline


tank is 2.5-3 months old now and has showed absolutely no signs of any of the bad three

 

[acrohead500ppm]

By the looks of your power supplys, yes they are old, but that doesn't mean they are bad.
Get new mounts and take care of them, give them vinegar baths regularly and they oywill probably last another 20 years.

Hawkins is Acropora echinata and it tends to be more demanding, stick with stags as your first few, then graduate to cluster acros.

 

[Reef Bass]

...
what is ORA?
...
also how are they with amonia and nitrites, as my tank has not cycled and dosnt apear to want to

i had alge growth for a while but i guess my excessive addition of microbacter and reef biofuel have made it low in nutrients as all the alge that was once, is no more, only a tiny bit of hair and diatomes and coraline

tank is 2.5-3 months old now and has showed absolutely no signs of any of the bad three

ORA is Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums, a firm which propagates and sells corals, fish and inverts.

Either your tank has already cycled or your corals are going to die soon. Ammonia is very toxic to them. I would strongly advise against adding corals to a tank until it has cycled.

FYI, unlike hair algae and diatoms, coraline is a good thing. That you only have small amounts could be cause for concern. If you can't grow coraline, it's unlikely stony corals will thrive.

 

[acrohead500ppm]

ORA is Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums, a firm which propagates and sells corals, fish and inverts.

Either your tank has already cycled or your corals are going to die soon. Ammonia is very toxic to them. I would strongly advise against adding corals to a tank until it has cycled.

FYI, unlike hair algae and diatoms, coraline is a good thing. That you only have small amounts could be cause for concern. If you can't grow coraline, it's unlikely stony corals will thrive.

He has already stated he has been having luck with montis and other sps, Im assuming his tank is cycled.

 

[ShesEasy]

ORA is Oceans, Reefs and Aquariums, a firm which propagates and sells corals, fish and inverts.

Either your tank has already cycled or your corals are going to die soon. Ammonia is very toxic to them. I would strongly advise against adding corals to a tank until it has cycled.

FYI, unlike hair algae and diatoms, coraline is a good thing. That you only have small amounts could be cause for concern. If you can't grow coraline, it's unlikely stony corals will thrive.

K I dunno where that fact came from but as far as I know and have been told by veterans...coral is the only thing you should ad if the tank hasn't cycled cause they aren't affected by the bad three like fish and inverts are...

Further more I have a tone of green coraline (yes I know it's good) all over my live rock not just small amount
And I've got a Monti that in one to two week has had several fingers grow about an 1/8"
A doughnut I have has doubled in size since I bought it two months ago as well

My coral are growing quite well

Thus my interest in acros

But I'm still not sure my tank has cycled as I have tested for ammonia nitrites and nitrates since starting the tank up and seen none

I mean none...

What's the chances I missed it when I test almost every other day for them?

 

[ShesEasy]

To add to the adding coral part I mean that the coral won't die as quickly as a fish will in high ammonia... Least so I've been told and I trust who I've been told this by

 

[urbanrat84]

...coral is the only thing you should ad if the tank hasn't cycled

I'm confused as to whether or not you are saying you are still getting ammonia and nitrite readings but I just wanted to say I hope no one has recommended to you that you should start adding corals before the tank has finished cycling - that's not the norm. Corals are always added AFTER the cycle, not during.

Best of luck with the SPS, you have a lovely set up.

 

[ViktorVaughn]

K I dunno where that fact came from but as far as I know and have been told by veterans...coral is the only thing you should ad if the tank hasn't cycled cause they aren't affected by the bad three like fish and inverts are...

Further more I have a tone of green coraline (yes I know it's good) all over my live rock not just small amount
And I've got a Monti that in one to two week has had several fingers grow about an 1/8"
A doughnut I have has doubled in size since I bought it two months ago as well

My coral are growing quite well

Thus my interest in acros

But I'm still not sure my tank has cycled as I have tested for ammonia nitrites and nitrates since starting the tank up and seen none

I mean none...

What's the chances I missed it when I test almost every other day for them?

If you were testing from day one or shortly after filling your tank, you wouldn't have missed the rising and dropping levels of Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate. How did you kick off your cycle? Your initial ammonia reading will come from something that you added to the tank whether it be from something like Dr. Tim's ammonium chloride (any NH4Cl should do) or a piece of frozen shrimp. You should see the level rise to 2-5 ppm and hang there for a while until it drops and a similar process takes place with nitrite then nitrate.

As for the veterans you talked to about corals not being effected, they don't happen to be employees where you bought the coral do they? I kid because I've never heard that before, nothing likes ammonia.

 

[ShesEasy]

The guy I talked to is reputable and is not in it for money he's retired and I trust him cause if he was trying to make money he'd have sold me many of the products and fish I've been wanting...

In terms of my cycle I have from day one not seen any ammonia....or anything spike what so ever

I added a green clown goby in hopes to start but I've had him 3 weeks and nothing still I even over feed when I feed him brine to add to the situation....nothing

I dunno how I could have missed it but yeah

 

[ShesEasy]

Let me ask this

When I started my tank I saw a blame of diatoms (still there) blame of hair and film and then cyano. I used cemi clean for the cyano....slowly all alge Has gone away in place for green coraline and only diatoms are left

Could that be a representation of my cycle or no....