Just a few tips and tricks for those new to SPS and reefing....

[Paulca916]

Awesome topic.
I always take off my filter sock for like 5 hours when feeding any type of Filter foods Phyto Feats Oyster Feast ect.
As I feel it catches it in the bag so its wasting money and food.
Im going to try the power head in the sump even thou after 15 months my sump bottom is really clean but this wouldnt hurt.
I run a NEXT REEF MR-1 reactor with 100 ml of Rowaphos its fed by a small power head about 160 GPH this has kept my PO4 almost undetectable I change it every 2 months when I change my carbon.
I use RO/DI water should I continue this metheod ?

 

[KDDG]

I am not sure if anyone said this or not: In your experience, how long would you guys recommend waiting before adding SPS corals to a system? Great thread, by the way!

 

[PowermanKW]

I don't get the benifit of a PH in the sump for a SPS tank. I realize detrius falls out, but isn't that a good place to remove it?

Also, any good tips on mechanical filters. I don't have any. I figure it was defeating the purpose of fuge food and micro fauna. I run .8 rox carbon in a reactor, and from time to time if I stir up the tank I will fill it with floss and filter for a bit. Are mechanial filters a no no?

 

[burnah]

from what i remember, the denitrifying bacteria need low flow areas, wouldnt the PH in the fuge be conraproductive? i also siphon out the detrious from my fuge which accumulates down there, is this not an easier way of removing it?

 

[David - Miami]

I was hoping hoping to see if Sunny had an opinion on the K rating of the bulbs. Does anyone know if 10K is not as beneficial as 20K for example?

 

[unseen_clone]

bump.
because im only on page 4 and its a good read.
time for bed now.

 

[boret]

After the thread made it to thread of the month it completely died. Too bad. A lot of great advice.

 

[SunnyX]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15018764#post15018764 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by KDDG
I am not sure if anyone said this or not: In your experience, how long would you guys recommend waiting before adding SPS corals to a system? Great thread, by the way!

I would wait about 6 months before adding SPS to a new system. You could speed up the process a bit by dosing bacteria which should help mature the tank quicker.

Generally, if you still have problem algae in your tank you are not ready for SPS. Im not saying it cant be done, but not optimally.

 

[SunnyX]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15068495#post15068495 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by PowermanKW
I don't get the benifit of a PH in the sump for a SPS tank. I realize detrius falls out, but isn't that a good place to remove it?

Also, any good tips on mechanical filters. I don't have any. I figure it was defeating the purpose of fuge food and micro fauna. I run .8 rox carbon in a reactor, and from time to time if I stir up the tank I will fill it with floss and filter for a bit. Are mechanial filters a no no?

The power head in the sump help keep the detritus in suspension. The detritus stays in the water and is eaten my the corals or filtered out by the skimmer. If you let it sit around in your sump it will breakdown and release PO4 back into your system. Some people just siphon it out of there sump weekly but sometimes they dont get around to doing so and it becomes a problem.

Mechanical filtration can be used if you are diligent about keeping the filters clean. If you have a large skimmer than you really should have much particles floating around. Personally, I dont bother with mechanical filters or filter socks as I believe they create more problems then they are worth. Feeding in moderation, a large skimmer, lots of flow, and you should be good to go.

 

[SunnyX]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15099215#post15099215 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by David - Miami
I was hoping hoping to see if Sunny had an opinion on the K rating of the bulbs. Does anyone know if 10K is not as beneficial as 20K for example?

I know that in the past some corals react differently to certain lighting. Your best bet to hit all color spectrum's of light when growing SPS.

The best MH combo I ever ran was XM10K's and VHO actinic bulbs. This hit across the entire spectrum and my corals loved it. When I went to XM20K and actinics I found that my corals lacked the growth and variety of colors they had with 10K. I replaced the actinics with daylight bulbs and it eventually evened out.

On my newest setup with T5's I have 4 blue and 3 white bulbs. This setup as proven to be the most appealing to my eyes and to the colors of my corals. I am now getting colors I never got with MH.

If you are still running MH I would suggest you look into some T5 ATI Blue+ supplementation. This combo would give you the best of both worlds and great color.

If you decide to go full T5 that would be great as well.

 

[SunnyX]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15264907#post15264907 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by boret
After the thread made it to thread of the month it completely died. Too bad. A lot of great advice.

Well, I am back now!

I am been busy on other threads and answering the barrage of PM's and emails I receive daily. Sometimes I forget about threads but thanks for posting and reminding me.

Here is a tip for you, dont know if someone already posted it or not....

Keep frozen 2 liter bottles full of water in your freezer. In the summertime the tank can get hot and tossing one of these 2 liters into your sump can be great in an emergency situation.

Ok, what else have you guys got! We need some juicy tips! :smokin:

 

[boret]

Alright!! Thank you Sonny!!

 

[David - Miami]

Yes. Thank you Sunny for the light tips as well.

 

[Paulca916]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15265464#post15265464 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SunnyX


Here is a tip for you, dont know if someone already posted it or not....


Keep frozen 2 liter bottles full of water in your freezer. In the summertime the tank can get hot and tossing one of these 2 liters into your sump can be great in an emergency situation.

Ok, what else have you guys got! We need some juicy tips! :smokin:

In smaller tanks like my 30 gallon the sump is only a 10 gallon sump.
For this I use Zip Lock Freezer quart bags I keep 4 of them filled with water in the freezer.
After they defrost I put them back in and reuse them next time

 

[Theomi]

Sunny sorry if this has been asked but with the powerhead in the sump idea, where to place it if you have 3 compartments like me?

 

[reefsic]

Great Thread by-the-way!

I would just like to add that, less is more! Be patient and take your time when it comes to anything related to reefkeeping, i.e. increasing/decreasing photoperiod, dosing, adding substrate, LR, LS, fish. Too much of anything, too quickly creates a higher risk of crashing IMO!!!

 

[naldopr]

love this Thread
what about to determinate what cause corals to get brown if your phosphate nitrates are reading 0. do we need to feed more?or to much light, way over rated skimmers?etc

 

[mike332211]

I use filter socks changed regularly and wet skim. I blow the rock off with a powerhead once a week and the sock polishes water.

+1 on battery backup.

 

[hypersonic85]

I do not know if they said this already but cleaning all your power heads. I just clean mine and what a difference. I think last time I had done this was several months ago and what an improvement it made on water movement in the tank.

 

[DheereCrossing]

Sunny sorry if this has been asked but with the powerhead in the sump idea, where to place it if you have 3 compartments like me?

I would guess the best place to put it would be where the most potential for settling of ditritus would be. Off the top of my head, I'd say put it in the first compartment where the water enters. If that is the skimmer section, it would stir up anything that the skimmer initially misses and give it another shot before the flow carries it to the next section of the sump.