Can't keep SPS
- Thread starter coral_addict
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Chrissypoo
New member
This is a misconception that needs to change very quickly if you intend on keeping SPS alive.
SOS
New member
I'd have to agree that it is not the light. I've over turned rock with encrusted montis and acro bits left in the complete shade, almost in the dark, and seen them continue to encrust around the rock until they finally reach the light once again and then they take off with growth. I still have a couple patches of old m. Cap that live on the underside of some lr and they live completely in the shade.
IME the most important things are stable alk and good skimming/nutrient removal. Overall system stability is also key.
SPS can be done in a nanocube or biocube. BUT YOU NEED TO TEST!
With SPS your alk can drop as much as 2dKH in one day. Your water parameters need to be spot on. I dose about 40ml of 2-part solution daily through 2 BRS dosers. Using dosers keeps Alk stable. I also do 4 gal water changes every friday.
SPS are the pinnacle of reefkeeping. It takes a lot of work. After about 8 years I think I've figured it out.
Here is a shot of my tank. I have a variety of brightly colored Acropora, Montipora and Birdnest. I also have a huge Acan colony, Blastos and zoas.
With SPS your alk can drop as much as 2dKH in one day. Your water parameters need to be spot on. I dose about 40ml of 2-part solution daily through 2 BRS dosers. Using dosers keeps Alk stable. I also do 4 gal water changes every friday.
SPS are the pinnacle of reefkeeping. It takes a lot of work. After about 8 years I think I've figured it out.
Here is a shot of my tank. I have a variety of brightly colored Acropora, Montipora and Birdnest. I also have a huge Acan colony, Blastos and zoas.
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Why not just use a good SPS salt? If you do weekly water changes you shouldn't need to dose - or am I wrong?
What are the ideal perimeters for SPS?
REEF SMAC
New member
Of course you should use good salt. I am really not aware of too many bad ones though really.
Only if this was the fish only forum would you be right.
If your corals use up the Alk and Ca enough to drop your levels too low in the first 12 hours, even after that water change with "good salt", that would mean that your corals are pretty much dying the rest of the week until the next water change.
Making your water livable for your SPS once a week for 12 hours is not really an option.
You have to test enough to know what your parameters are all the time. That way you can add Alk and Ca back to your water at the same rate it is being used up. As close as you can anyway. This is way you keep your parameters STABLE.
You don't want to dose your Alk up to 12 on Monday and then dose it again on Wednesday when it drops back down to 6.
You don't want to dose your Alk up to 10 everyday at noon and have it drop back down to 7 by the next day at noon.
For SPS this will not likely work out to well.
There are many different ideas about what "ideal" is.
"Ideal" is NOT chasing a certain number. It is keeping whatever number from changing too much throughout the day and night.
For myself personally I have seem the have the best results with:
Alk 8 - 9
Ca 400 - 480
Mg 1300 - 1450
rovster
New member
It can be done. I have a 14 gal biocube with retro LEDs and I grow SPS just fine. Started with easy ones like montis and pocci, those grew like wildfire. Then went to an assortment of birdsnest, those grew like crazy too. Have had some acros for a few months that have encrusted well, and recentl add some more acro and Mille frags that also seem to be going great.
I do weekly 2-3 gallon waterchanes, and manually dose cal and Alk daily. If I don't dose, my kh plummets fast! I know because I test routinely. No dosers, skimmer, ATO......just a consistent routine. Good luck!
I do weekly 2-3 gallon waterchanes, and manually dose cal and Alk daily. If I don't dose, my kh plummets fast! I know because I test routinely. No dosers, skimmer, ATO......just a consistent routine. Good luck!
coral_addict
New member
Thank you everyone for your replies. After reading through all your responses and doing some of my own research, here is what I think the problems are.
1)Stability with calcium and salinity.
2)Phosphate
3)A large leather and other large soft corals.
The leather was not attached to anything and was decaying from the bottom. It has since been removed. In addition, two of the largest colts were also removed. I think they killed the birdsnest. It was doing all right for about three days, then I noticed that one of its branch tips was touching a colt. Within a day that tip RTN'd and the rest of the frag followed in about two days. As for alkalinity, I have not done a water change in ~three weeks. The alkalinity as of yesterday was 10 dkh. Phosphates were 0, but I believe that is because they were tied up in some hair algae that I have (I'm getting a sea hare to take care of the algae but need to get something to take care of the root source). Stocking levels are lowish moderate, with two clownfish.
I am running Algone and carbon right now, as well as a phosphate absorbing pad. I think I'm going to invest in a phosphate media next, possibly a reactor if I can get it to fit in the tank. Any thoughts on changing the media basket to a refugium, to prevent day to night swings in alk? Oh, and the montipora has stopped dying, but there is virtually no PE and it is totally browned out. The birdsnest is totally dead.
1)Stability with calcium and salinity.
2)Phosphate
3)A large leather and other large soft corals.
The leather was not attached to anything and was decaying from the bottom. It has since been removed. In addition, two of the largest colts were also removed. I think they killed the birdsnest. It was doing all right for about three days, then I noticed that one of its branch tips was touching a colt. Within a day that tip RTN'd and the rest of the frag followed in about two days. As for alkalinity, I have not done a water change in ~three weeks. The alkalinity as of yesterday was 10 dkh. Phosphates were 0, but I believe that is because they were tied up in some hair algae that I have (I'm getting a sea hare to take care of the algae but need to get something to take care of the root source). Stocking levels are lowish moderate, with two clownfish.
I am running Algone and carbon right now, as well as a phosphate absorbing pad. I think I'm going to invest in a phosphate media next, possibly a reactor if I can get it to fit in the tank. Any thoughts on changing the media basket to a refugium, to prevent day to night swings in alk? Oh, and the montipora has stopped dying, but there is virtually no PE and it is totally browned out. The birdsnest is totally dead.
