Help on keeping a successful sps tank

[SnRFishies]

Hi RC,

I currently have a 75 with 20L sump. Equipment is as follows
-mag9.5 return (full blast)
-bubble magus nac7
-Cree LED's 24 (12 RB 12 CW) no optics but sitting right on top of tank
-filter sock (changed every 3 days)
-a couple of random powerheads (enough flow for a 75 though)
-dual BRS reactors (GFO and Carbon)
--I use kalk in my top off water
--20% water changes every month using reef crystals

dkh - 11
magnesium - 1280
calcium - 480
phos - 0
nitrates - 0
temp - 79.7f - 81.5f

i have been able to keep zoas and lps alive for months but not much growth at all and all seem like they have slightly bleached in time but still have bright colors under just RB LEDs

i just am starting to get sps to try it out. I have a misc green acro which has already slightly lightened in color and have a minto cap frag and a small millepora frag. i have had all about a month and a half and have seen 0 growth or improvement.

Am I doing something wrong or is there something i should be doing or adding?

 

[chrishayes]

If the corals come from non led tanks, they can take quite awhile to acclimate. If you arent starting them on the bottom then moving them up slowly you couldve shocked them which causing bleaching and tissue loss. The healing process along with ongoing stress from not acclimating takes up all the energy the coral can produce. This leads to no growth, survival is the number one priority to the coral at that point. Try to lower them or give some slight shade til they start to color back up. Then you can start the acclimation process over again and take it slow. Some would suggest trying to feed them while in this state to help give extra energy for healing but thats your call. If the food will add to your nutrient issues in a neagtive way then it would do more harm than good. Just try to keep things stable and lower the light they are getting if they are lightening noticably. Be patient and try to not move them around too much right now as handling them adds to the stress. Also be sure they are getting good flow without being blasted but no sediment should be allowed to settle on them either.

 

[SnRFishies]

If the corals come from non led tanks, they can take quite awhile to acclimate. If you arent starting them on the bottom then moving them up slowly you couldve shocked them which causing bleaching and tissue loss. The healing process along with ongoing stress from not acclimating takes up all the energy the coral can produce. This leads to no growth, survival is the number one priority to the coral at that point. Try to lower them or give some slight shade til they start to color back up. Then you can start the acclimation process over again and take it slow. Some would suggest trying to feed them while in this state to help give extra energy for healing but thats your call. If the food will add to your nutrient issues in a neagtive way then it would do more harm than good. Just try to keep things stable and lower the light they are getting if they are lightening noticably. Be patient and try to not move them around too much right now as handling them adds to the stress. Also be sure they are getting good flow without being blasted but no sediment should be allowed to settle on them either.

That may just be my problem. I was so concerned they wouldn't have bright enough light as i thought they needed intense lighting so I did put them on the higher spot on my rock. I'll try moving them down today and see if it helps. Are there any signs for me to look for to see if they are doing better or worse when i move them down, or will it take a few weeks.

 

[Dre59]

Do you have one unit or two for LEDS?

 

[SnRFishies]

Do you have one unit or two for LEDS?

do you mean one or two sets of 24? I have only one set of 24. 12 on each half of the tank being that i have two piles as my aquascape so theyre right over the piles. My blues and CW each have their own drivers though

 

[Dre59]

Ok, you should be fine if you follow as indicated by Chrishayes. I also had the same issues with corals. Had to raise my MH to 10" above water.

 

[SnRFishies]

i just went home and raised my lights 3" which greatly reduced the lighting without optics. so i'll see how they do with that. should the acro polyps be fully extended during the day? oh, and is it normal to no be able to see any polyps on the monti cap? or are they just that small?

 

[topn0tchlefty]

Stable Parameters = Success

 

[scionreefing]

That may just be my problem. I was so concerned they wouldn't have bright enough light as i thought they needed intense lighting so I did put them on the higher spot on my rock. I'll try moving them down today and see if it helps. Are there any signs for me to look for to see if they are doing better or worse when i move them down, or will it take a few weeks.

Start them in a little shade then out on the bed then slowly up the rock work.

Raffle grabber

 

[twiggyb]

Monti caps have really small polyps. If you have polyp extension on your corals during the day it's not a bad thing. If there is PE then that's a good sign that there's enough flow I think.

 

[edsreef]

You don't have enough lights to keep most SPS corals! With only 24 total and no optics, your lighting is spread way too thin.

 

[SnRFishies]

You don't have enough lights to keep most SPS corals! With only 24 total and no optics, your lighting is spread way too thin.

i have the optics but when i have the lights sitting right on top of the tank with no optics on it actually lights the tank up more. I'm going to have 24 more LED's very soon though but imagine if i had them already, I would have bleached this sps completely already

 

[Useful_Idiot]

Your phosphates might be too low. What are you testing with? any algae growth?

 

[edsreef]

edit; nevermind, have at it.:wave:

 

[BowieReefer84]

Yea, I agree with edsreef. I run 24 led's on a 29gal biocube. I DID bleach soft corals, but it is good for sps. I run them at about 80% or so.

Your mag is kind of low imo. I like 1350-1400.

Also, what test are you using for phosphates? I reccomend the hanna ultra low phosphorus and coverting the result to phosphate. Much more accurate than any other hobby grade test from what I have heard.

Any pictures?

 

[chrishayes]

yeah, more leds could be great for his coral but starting them out as he did wouldve resulted in bleaching even if he were using a maglite...after proper acclimation, most sps can handle a fair to stupid amount of light. doesnt mean itd be best for the corals though. I mean youre dealing with coral that dont need much light to thrive. I feel the opposite. With my big red monticap, the lower I keep it the nicer it looks. The scrolling pattern is much nicer and the color richer.

Also, its tough to see PE on caps that have the same color polyps as the body but I see PE on mine. It gets more pronounce after a waterchange. Good luck. Just go slowly with your changes but lowering light level right now has to be the first step whether you move the coral or the light. doesnt matter.