How to FEED your reef tank so that your corals will really GROW, instead of ho-hum...

I think the "tests" they did were flawed. Every time they filled the tank with "fresh seawater" it was like giving them more food... so the quantity of food they fed their corals was grater then stated. If they used RO/DI water with salt mix then their study would have had more implications for the average aquarist. As the average aquarist doesn't have the means to get, fresh tropic seawater that hasn't fluctuated in temp, on a daily basis... I think that wiki has more relevant info then the study that they did... although there was a fare amount of useful information. Just the test it's self isn't very relevant.


__________________
My 320g tank build http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1840581
If you don't like what you are looking at you are looking at it the wrong way.
 
I understand that a constant supply of planktonic food is preferable for optimum coral growth. However, this is not possible in an aquarist situation due to waste products and nutrient build up. I am led to believe then that a happy medium must be that once or twice a day heavy feedings are better than no feedings at all, even though they are not optimum.

Would it not be possible then to stop all filtration for say 1 hour, and feed planktonic food heavily with only within display tank circulation such as CL, Power heads, etc. Then restart the sump return and be sure to run all return water through a filter of some type. Weather it's a 5 micron filter such as the 1st stage of an RO system, or a microfiber filter sock. But once you have filtered all the water in the display for say, 15 minutes, then you could remove said filter and return the system to normal operation with the removal of all planktonic life that was not digested.

I know it's not very user friendly, but it makes sense. I believe the hardest part would be to find a 1-5 micron filter that can handle the volume quickly enough to make it worth while. Finding one that's cheap enough to replace on a very frequent basis, and minimizes maintenance is also of paramount importance.

Just my thoughts,
Aaron
 
Possibly, but would something like this work?

MicronFilterSchematic.jpg


With the back flush, you could extend the life of each filter.
 
Possibly, but would something like this work?

MicronFilterSchematic.jpg


With the back flush, you could extend the life of each filter.
[p]
That still does apply to then fact they're adding new sea water from the ocean. It improves water quality yes, but is devoid of the natural nutrients available in sea water.
 
unless you dose it regularly an aquarium has no phytoplankton present.

Nannochloropsis is a common phytoplankton species to raise in cultures.


Really Gary----that is a very all inclusive statement to make---and definetly against what I have read and heard on here. I know my tank is loaded with phtyoplankton--a little overfeeding and I have it showing up on the glass etc.
 
I've been keeping up with this thread, it's very interesting and I love the subtle debate going on. :)

I find the scientific method and the pursuit of truth to be vital and fascinating, and this thread has been nothing but that.

I recently bought my first coral (Euphyllia Divisa) and decided to feed it Mysis directly last night before turning the lights out. It seemed to work very well. I mashed up the Mysis and squirted it into the coral, it immediately clung to the shrimp and slowly dragged it in (shortly after turning lights out). It was done with the powerheads off and skimmer on. :frog:

My reef has lately been surging with life, lots of coraline growing wild and a ton of pods even in my DT. My fish appears to be very happy and my snails seem to have grown healthier and larger since I got them about 3 weeks ago. Also, I have new hitchhikers appearing all the time.

So far I've been keeping up with my water tests and water changes and it seems to be working really well.

I guess I'm just sharing this, to let you know that I've had great success, without the use of many different supplements and tech. I have a refugium/skimmer combo, a sea weed clip, Kent purple tech, and I feed a cube of mysis every other day. For what it's worth, it seems to be working.
 
Really Gary----that is a very all inclusive statement to make---and definetly against what I have read and heard on here. I know my tank is loaded with phtyoplankton--a little overfeeding and I have it showing up on the glass etc.
do you dose phytoplankton?
If so, what species?

(the microalgae that grows on the glass isn't phytoplankton.)
 
in a closed system such a reef aquarium

in a closed system such a reef aquarium

zooplankton is probably easier to supply than phytoplankton (IMO/IME) because all you need is some reproducing critters
spawn_event_3_2010.jpg
 
do you dose phytoplankton?
If so, what species?

(the microalgae that grows on the glass isn't phytoplankton.)

All of my corals are lps and softies so I do not dose phyto--only zooplankton in the form of cyclopeeze and rotifers.

I know pods eat phyto and with the numbers of pods I have I am assuming they have a phyto food source?

BTW
beautful sps tank you have there
 
thanks for the kind words cap.

if you don't dose phytoplankton regularly it's highly unlikely that you have it in your system. Sure, something like Nannochloropsis can exist in a typical reef system (after being introduced) for a few days (at the most!) but after that time period it's gone (either filtered out or eaten).
 
The feed-for-one-hour thing... I thought the coral stomachs filled up and could not eat again until digested several hours later ??
 
my attempt at continuos feeding

my attempt at continuos feeding

i too have done a crap ton of research. in fact i read everyday for the last 7 months. i dont work so i have alot of time to do that. i just started my 50gal in the wall tank with a diy 30gal refugium. i have a 400 watt mh hamilton 14k suspended 14 inches above my tank pendant style with a diy reflector. i use a dsb in my fuge and activated charcoal. on the return side of my system i employ a diy algea turf scrubber. i plan on only having 4-5 fish and small ones at that: benggi cardnal, manderan, dottyback, lawnmower blenny, and a harliquin shrimp. also i plan on the fish being the last additions to my tank added over a 6 mo period. i have just added my clean up crew consisting of mini brittle stars, astarine stars, worms sand sifting snails turbo snails and pods. i added these to my ssb dt and my dsb fuge. i will let the algea bloom happen without trying to stop it so my critters will have plenty to eat and multiply without any predation for 3 months. now my ats is above my tank so i can have the live pods that are feeding on my ats flow into my tank at a constant rate. my thoughts are that if i let the pod population grow before adding any corals or fish that when i do start slowly adding corals and fish the pod poulation will grow to balance with the predators. now i shouldnt need a protien skimmer because of my light bioload and my weekly 10% wc so i wont be taking any food out of the tank and with my ats employed from the start up cycle i am at NH3-0 no2-0 no3-0 po4-0. i will also do a daily phyto dose. i wont add any hermits or preditory sand siffters ect. i think it can be done if i can stick to my 2 yr plan here. have i missed any thing?
 
All of my corals are lps and softies so I do not dose phyto--only zooplankton in the form of cyclopeeze and rotifers.

I know pods eat phyto and with the numbers of pods I have I am assuming they have a phyto food source?

BTW
beautful sps tank you have there

Where did you purchase your cyclopeeze and rotifers from? Did you do the freeze dried cyclopeeze or the forzen cyclopeeze?

Gary, your tank is beautiful.
 
Capn,

Your pods are probably eating benthic (ie growing on glass, sand, rock) microalgae. I doubt the pods we see in our tanks do much filter feeding (ie eating phyto). Plankonic pods (floating around in the water) would eat phytoplankton, but I've never seen them in tanks. With the amount of turnover and filtration the average tank has these days not much can exist in the water column, especially at self sustaining reproductive populations.
 
Bump....keeping this one near the front. I would love to hear more opinions on the bacterial effects on coral growth.
 
Ok more fish poop!...


"Here is a nice frag-feeding study that you can repeat at home if you want to. It was originally done in an aquarium, with very tiny frags, to help people who grow corals as a business:"

"Influence of different food sources on the initial development of sexual recruits of reefbuilding corals in aquaculture. Publication: Aquaculture, 2008"

"In order to test food supply as a controlling factor in coral aquaculture using sexual reproduction, we compared the influence of three different food sources (Artemia nauplii, phytoplankton, and a commercially available algal suspension) on the growth and survival of early recruits of two scleractinian reef corals for 5 months."

"The brooding coral Favia fragum, and the broadcast spawner Acropora tenuis, were used as model species in the present study."

"Three food sources that are commonly used in aquaculture were tested: (1) Freshly hatched nauplii of the brine shrimp (Artemia salina; size: 600 µm; Select Brine Shrimp Eggs; Salt Creek, Inc., USA) are the most commonly applied live food organisms in aquaculture. (2) Phaeodactylum tricornutum is a pelagic diatom which is routinely cultured at the Rotterdam Zoo. (3) Nori Micro (Zoolife, U.K.) is a commercially available dry food for aquatic invertebrates which can be applied directly when suspended in water. [...] The food was added once everyday for a duration of 5 months. Besides considering their relevance in aquaculture, the different food sources were chosen in regard to their application at Rotterdam Zoo. The three food types had been routinely added to the multi-species coral exhibits on a daily basis to supply non-selectively fish, corals, and filter feeders with nutrients. The present study used these given food types to evaluate their importance for early [reproduction] recruits of both coral species."

"Primary polyps [of Acropora tenuis, and Favia fragum], kept in 2-liter aquaria, were daily fed with freshly hatched Artemia salina [brine shrimp], micro algae Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and a commercially available dry food (Nori Micro, Zoolife), respectively, at various concentrations. Growth rates in both species were significantly higher in the Artemia (pods) treatment, with maximum rates of 9.4 square mm/month for Favia fragum, and 26.8 square mm/month for Acropora tenuis, compared to all other treatments and the control (no additional food)."

"Highest growth rates of 9.4 square mm/month were attained under the highest Artemia concentration, whereas growth in the control was 1.8 square mm/month. Corals grew faster under the highest Artemia concentration during the entire period of the experiment, compared to the control."

"Growth differed highly between the treatments during the entire experiment. Highest rates were attained with 26.8 square mm/month under the highest Artemia concentration, compared to a mean colony size of 3.2 square mm/month in the control. Corals under the highest Artemia concentration grew faster than the control from the beginning of the experiment; growth under the highest Artemia concentration increased relatively faster compared to all other regimes until the end of the experiment."

"Regarding the Nori feeding regimes, [...] Nori did not have any concentration-dependent effect on coral growth."

"The present study clearly shows that Artemia nauplii (pods) increased the growth of sexual recruits in the chosen scleractinian coral species. Growth rates increased with food concentration, leading to colonies sizes that were more than eight times higher in Acropora tenuis, and more than five times higher in Favia fragum, compared to the controls. [...] We worked with relatively low light levels in the present study."

"The present study shows that similar growth rates can be obtained on horizontal and vertical surfaces if additional food sources are supplied. Therefore, in a less favorable environment with higher algal growth and sedimentation, overall coral recruitment success (growth and survival) might be enhanced in vertically settled corals providing that additional food is supplied."

"The alternative food sources, the unicellular algae Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and the commercial algal powder (Nori Micro), showed overall no influence on the growth of the tested corals compared to the control. Our results confirm previous observations that adult scleractinians [corals with stinging polyps] are usually not herbivorous. As a consequence, the application of such food sources in multi-species coral exhibits in public aquaria was to be well considered. In future studies, alternative zooplankton food sources such as rotifers or copepods should be compared with Artemia nauplii."

"Besides other factors, such as light and water movement, planktonic food plays an important role in the development of adult corals."

Video of zooplankton; you can see their faces (turn off HD if it skips):
http://www.vimeo.com/5380457

Many more closeups:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIFiWrGwAZY

Catching plankton with nets:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dRrn2gDrAA
 

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