Frustrated. Not as bad as it seems?

[mpderksen]

My 150 has been great for several years. Lately, small issues have become bigger issues, and it's sucking the enjoyment out of the hobby.
To a non-hobbyist, the tank is amazing. I need to post up some pictures, but for now, here's the list of things that I can't fix:
Aiptasia in one of the overflows. Now I have a few along the back, bottom, where I can't get to them. I could drain the overflow, but I'm not sure how to scrub them out of there. It has obviously become a breeding ground. My plan, if they really spread to the DT, would be to get a filefish. I did get a CBB, but I never saw it pick at them, and it died a few weeks later.
That brings up dying fish. I tend to rarely get fish, because they seem to live a REALLY long time for me. I've had some losses in the last few months, and that is certainly not fun!
Vermatids everywhere. When I feed or scrape the glass, it's like a Spider-Man convention. They really don't bother anything, and I'm not trying to have a completely sterile ecosystem, but this is the first tank that I've had them, and they just feel like a mess.
Serious issues keeping my Alk stable. Today, it was 6.44! I use BRS dosing pump and Soda Ash from their pharma pouch. Keeping it at 9.0 shouldn't be that difficult, right?
I have a fuge that churns out a 5 gallon bucket of Cheato each month. So my Nitrates are below detection, even with ICP. Too low? My LPS growth is fairly non-existant. In about a year I grew a 2-head blasto to a nice little colony of 30, but in the same time, my torch coral and hammers don't look like they've grown at all. Yet my Montis are all spreading like crazy. Is this the nature of a mixed tank? You just can't have it all?
I'd be willing to get a bunch of pictures, and make an overview of the tank, my hardware, my schedules and test results if that is helpful to anyone. But here are the simple questions to keep me in the hobby:
1. How do I purge Aiptasia from an overflow?
2. Is there ANY way of ridding a tank that is filled with Vermitids? (Don't say Yellow Choris, since that's one of my recent deaths after 3 years, and he never ate a single one)
3. Alk stability - just test daily and get a better feel for the trends and not change anything else, right?
Sad when stuff dies. Makes it less fun. Advice?

Michael

 

[Uncle99]

From an Alk stability side, is your Magnisium level between 1260-1360 ppm.
Without this level it will be difficult to keep Alk stable.

Trace nitrate and phosphate is essential for softies and LPS, not so much with SPS.

I keep nitrate between 2-5ppm and phosphate between 0.03 - .1 max

The only thing that ever worked for me was a pep, (I keep nothing which bothers him) the trade off here is sometimes they will attack Acans as well, rarer side, but possible. It seemed he did a better job after he got bigger.

 

[mpderksen]

Solid question: My Mg runs high, since I use Reef Crystals. I use the Neptune DOS for Auto Water Change. It is set to 6L/day. I have not added Mg in years, and sit about 1500. I will test tonight to provide an accurate number. It's certainly not low.

 

[Uncle99]

Solid question: My Mg runs high, since I use Reef Crystals. I use the Neptune DOS for Auto Water Change. It is set to 6L/day. I have not added Mg in years, and sit about 1500. I will test tonight to provide an accurate number. It’s certainly not low.

Had to check, just in case of easy fix, with low mag, Alk will drop quickly as it comes together to fast with the CA ion. In a 65g, lots of Stoneys and 4 clams, I need to dose 1ml MG everyday to maintain 1360ppm. If you go to high with MG, you may experience slower growth.

I gave up on RC for salt, for me, it seemed each bag mixed different. I gave heard instances of low MG in RC, but this may be a settlement issue.

Forever I use Red Sea Pro, highly consistent, mixes clean and fast, no bucket residue.

 

[mpderksen]

Had to check, just in case of easy fix, with low mag, Alk will drop quickly as it comes together to fast with the CA ion. In a 65g, lots of Stoneys and 4 clams, I need to dose 1ml MG everyday to maintain 1360ppm. If you go to high with MG, you may experience slower growth.

I gave up on RC for salt, for me, it seemed each bag mixed different. I gave heard instances of low MG in RC, but this may be a settlement issue.

Forever I use Red Sea Pro, highly consistent, mixes clean and fast, no bucket residue.

So I get the 200 gal box. I have a 55 gal with a float that tells me when "œit's time". I fill to the next float, add a 50-gal bag, and turn on the mixing pump for 24 hours. I take a SG check before re-engaging the DOS. I go through 1 barrel/month, about.
For the Alk, I have the Apex set to run the pump 1:00 each hour, on the hour. Tonight, the BRS calculator said I needed 12 oz!!! I added 8oz, and will test again tomorrow night. The cure on this one is to stop being lazy with testing. Training for Ironman sucked up a lot of time this summer and my tank suffered.

Any thoughts on the pests I need to conquer?

 

[mpderksen]

Rea Sea test = 1400 Mg

 

[mpderksen]

So I get the 200 gal box. I have a 55 gal with a float that tells me when "œit's time". I fill to the next float, add a 50-gal bag, and turn on the mixing pump for 24 hours. I take a SG check before re-engaging the DOS. I go through 1 barrel/month, about.
For the Alk, I have the Apex set to run the pump 1:00 each hour, on the hour. Tonight, the BRS calculator said I needed 12 oz!!! I added 8oz, and will test again tomorrow night. The cure on this one is to stop being lazy with testing. Training for Ironman sucked up a lot of time this summer and my tank suffered.

Any thoughts on the pests I need to conquer?

Anyone?

 

[Uncle99]

Unfortunately those IMM, are real pests.
Other than nuke, nope, I know of no fixes for vermitid snails, and for aptasia, a pep shrimp did work for me, others say not. Starve them out some have said.

Sorry, maybe someone else has a solution.

 

[mndfreeze]

Supposdly bumblebee snails eat vermetids.

Berghia nudi's will eat all your aiptasia. just get a handful of them since some will inevitably become fish food or powerhead fodder. But in the back chambers where your livestock can't get em they will nom those nemmies quick.

You can also get a high powered laser to zap aiptasia with. I have one and it works anywhere you can get line of sight on the nems. You cook its tentacles first and as it retracts move to its base and it will shrivel and melt.

 

[Kevin Guthrie]

Get a calcium reactor, the kind with aragonite and CO2. Once you have it dialed in you don't need to bother testing alk or Mg anymore, and you can stop buying those supplements.