Help with my test kit reading

[Chelo's Big Sis]

I got a sun coral from Bambalam at the swap. It still hasn't opened so I PM'd him to get some suggestions from him on what to do. He sent me the following water guidlines:

Temp-79-82
ph-8.0-8.2
Alkalinity- 8.0
nitrate- 0

Well, all I have is the Reef Lab Master test kit from Red Sea. I just bought it and thought it had all of the necessary tests in it, but apparently it doesn't. I did a test for nitrate and it was a 20. From the instructions, it seemed like it would be ok, but then I checked the return PM and it said the nitrate should be at 0. Now what do I do?? Not to mention, what about the ph and Alkalinity? Obviously, I will need to get the tests for those but is there anything I can do in the mean time?

Any help is appreciated.
Cindy

 

[bennyd]

Nitrates are best removed through water changes. I have been told 0-10 is acceptable, else you need to work on lowering it. Other than that... Don't have too much advice, sorry.

 

[camaro5026spd]

i got a sun coral from him too and mine haven't opened yet either, im sure both of ours will open here shortly they just have to get used to the water or if they were just fraged might take a couple days. i had a leather finger take almost a week before it decided to pop open. i would just give it a little more time. ill keep you posted if mine pop open

 

[laskopyre]

Cindy, if you are looking for a PH test kit, RMS has those. I believe they sell the alkalinity test kit as well. Look for the ALK/KH kit.

 

[Tonycip]

I have 1 and it opens mostly at night or for feeding. Sometimes chumming the water a little (like with rods food. something it can sense in the water column) will get it to open. Then I spot feed with a turkey bester. They have to be feed to survive.hope thats helpfull..

 

[Chelo's Big Sis]

Thanks for the info!

Tony, what is chumming the water with rods food? and what is the water column? Sorry for the ignorance. I am a reeftard! He told me to feed with cyclopese. I'm not exactly sure what that is either. And he said that he fed the night before.

Thanks.
Cindy

 

[Tonycip]

sorry rods food is just a prepared frozen food that has a lot of different size particles, water column is just let if float around in the water and the sun coral will sense its there and open up..
cyclopese is another frozen food ..I feed mine mystis shrimps ..also a frozen. when bought

 

[Murphs205]

That one in Tony's tank is kick butt ,,very nice

 

[Chelo's Big Sis]

camaro,
I just wanted to let you know that I got my sun polyps to open the other night. I still haven't made it to the store to get the rod food or cyclopese, but I did have a frozen krill that I was feeding my anenome and I put it by the sun polyps with tweezers. I kept squeezing the krill and I could see some juice or whatever going in the water and the sun polyps started to open up. :rollface: :dance:

Cindy

 

[chuggy]

cindy i have a ph alk kit i would trade for a frag

 

[camaro5026spd]

mine haven't fully come out yet. they start to come out when i have squirted a mix of phytoplankton and some frozen brine shrimp and kind of stay halfway out but not all the way. then the rest of the time they are just closed up. i also tried moving them around in my tank for different water flow and light but still the same thing. thats cool you getting yours to pop out, least we know they both are alive

 

[Chelo's Big Sis]

That sounds great Chuggy! I don't know if I have anything that you would want though. I have some toadstools, hairy mushrooms (I think), Kenya tree, anthelia, some pink star polyps (I think that's what their called). Let me know.

I still have the flower anenome for you.

camaro, mine didn't come all of the way out. They were probably like yours. And like you said, at least we know they're still alive. The guy I got them from said that they are non-photosynthic (sp?) so the light isn't supposed to matter. ??? Tonycip has some in the post of his tank. Check out his pic. They look great!! Maybe ours will become like that some day.

Cindy