How do you know when your water is too prestine.

[OzoneParkGuy]

I mean we are always stripping our water of nutrients with filter socks(to capture particles), aggressive skimming(for organic compounds), constant water changes(for inorganic compounds) and to help replace suppliments lost through coral absortion but when or how do you realize you are over doing it. What happens when you have done this and there is no more that you can do. What is or are the effects of this besides lack of growth.
Can you actually start starving your corals(color loss), unexplained bleaching issue with SPS and softies to start closing up and withering away even though all parameter's are perfectly in check.

 

[diverrad]

To be honest and this may sound way to non scientific but i go by 1 rule if i need to clean my glass more than once in 6 days, water is too dirty if i can go for 7 to 9 days before i see a slight green film on the glass then the water is too clean. from my experience for the last 12 years i find the 6 days to be a sweet spot for sps. softies tend not to like this and will grow a bit slower but stll do fine. plus with the amounts i feed my sps i really never get past the 6 day rule.

 

[MIKE NY]

x2..I use the same rule..if I need to clean the glass more than once a week my nutriants are to high..I never had the problem of too low nutraints ....LOL but yes you can starve your corals even though they do recieve the nutriants from lighting.

 

[xclusive252]

ohhh ohhh I clean my glass 2-3 times a week

 

[DrHarryLopez]

Ima once per weeker reef guy

 

[bigdog1428]

i clean my glass once every 2 days

 

[OzoneParkGuy]

Thank You for the replies.. you hit it partially Konrad. Despite all the trouble we go through removing, we must put back in by feeding.. more like controled feedings so as to not create that imbalance of excess nutrients. Something that I recently found out that I was guilty of doing by feeding only once monthly.

So yes as MikeNY answered. I was begining to starve my corals, so that may explain why after some time my digi's(lost color)and some species of Acropora would eventually lose that purple or blue color, then die off over night unexpectedly. (NO AEFW / NO ALK SWING) Params in check(signature), although the RB issue did not help.

A little about corals.. Zooxanthellae is the name given to a wide array of different algae of the genus Symbiodinium. These zooxanthellae are all very different, but share the same spherical form that enables them to live within corals and many other tropical marine creatures in mutually beneficial relationships. The zooxanthellae fix the sun's light energy, benefiting both themselves and the animals in which they live, receiving, in turn, safe harbor and exchanging metabolic products in a remarkably efficient mutual relationship.

In other words... This algae is absorbed, then attaches themselves to the inside walls of the coral and becomes one with it. Providing suncreen & food to the coral... in colors of blues purples green reds pinks and browns.

So if we are removing almost everything... and we do not feed, you risk starving it. So what we remove, we must put back in at a controlled level by feedings.

As far as glass cleaning, not exactly the answer I was looking for to be honnest but once I thought about it, it makes some sense because when I started the tank I was cleaning the glass twice a week, and everything was looking so colorfull, and i did have a slight nitrate & phosphate issue. Then I upgraded, transferred, and all did fine. Then as soon as the SPS fever kicked in.. it was zero time for me. Time to get my param's in check..started feeding less and only flake for fish and once monthly feeding of oysterfeast, phyto , tiger and cyclopeeze(minimally) for SPS and other corals. . Then my issue as stated in the OP.

So thus this thread and consulting with and having someone come over and look and test my tank on Thursday to find out this may be the biggest reason.

 

[nl146]

I run carbon and biopellets in reactors, along with a skimmer. After a few weeks on pellets my chaeto practically disintegrated. I clean the glass maybe once a week. In the past few weeks my cloves have been opening less. I don't know if it's related.

 

[THEDLO]

lol the old catch-22 to clean everything dies to dirty everything dies. so the trick is to be in the middle--only problem is that the middle point is about the size of a pea lol

 

[OzoneParkGuy]

I run carbon and biopellets in reactors, along with a skimmer. After a few weeks on pellets my chaeto practically disintegrated. I clean the glass maybe once a week. In the past few weeks my cloves have been opening less. I don't know if it's related.

I would associate the disintegration of the Cheato with magnesium levels. Have you tested for mag levels to see where they are at?

As for your cloves... my clove polyps did the same. Glad you mentioned that. Related to the thread... more on the yes side.

As of lately I've been feeding 2X a week with bi-weekly 42gallon w/c's and monthly change outs of Carbon (Black Dia) and GFO.
I am starting to see corals(sps & zoa's including papaya cloves) come back and become colorfull.... coincidence? Hmmmm.