milsaltnewbie07
New member
Jesus Mark.. that thing keeps getting better and better. Do you feel that having your alk that low is helping with colors ?
Mark's 150 gallon
- Thread starter markalot
- Start date
markalot
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Corals are looking very nice Mark! :thumbsup:
I'm loving this one:
Is this Red Dragon??? - I ask because I was sold something similar and I've never seen any red on mine... :worried2:
Thanks Sahin. That peach one was labeled as a Red Dragon but it's not and may not even be the same species. I had a Red Dragon in the tank and when my ALK dropped to low it RTN'ed overnight while this one continues to be healthy AND it's encrusted well.
markalot
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Thanks. I have no idea if the low Alk helps with colors but it sure does help with health IMO. Down near natural levels it seems one can drift up and down a bit without major effects. Get up near 8 or above, for me anyway, and a small spike has major negative consequences.
biggles
Premium Member
Wonderful to see the display blooming again Mark, after you go through something like that and come out the other side you come to realize just how much your acros want to live even though we stress the hell out of them at one time or another many of them hang in there. 
I love that peachy dragony looking colony, the other piece is a stunner but that peachy acro is my fav.
Feel free to take more pics of the same stuff, they're all yummy mate :thumbsup:
I love that peachy dragony looking colony, the other piece is a stunner but that peachy acro is my fav.
Feel free to take more pics of the same stuff, they're all yummy mate :thumbsup:
markalot
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Hi Alfra,
IMO major factor is steady Alk and using daily drops of PhosphateRX (Lanthanum chloride) to manage PO4 rather than media. I've also learned to moderate everything I do, recognizing acros don't tolerate rapid change very well.
My daily dosing is:
3 drops PhosphateRx
2 drops Micro E (AquaForest)
2 drops Kalum (AquaForest)
5 drops SpongePower
I do think my T5/LED hybrid lights work very well but it's the T5's that do most of the magic.
Frankly none of this but stability may be responsible.
I am also a big fan of sponges, especially since they sloth off a lot of particulates (food!). I have a few sponge covered rocks I added when the tank was hurting that may or may not have aided in the turnaround.Wonderful to see the display blooming again Mark, after you go through something like that and come out the other side you come to realize just how much your acros want to live even though we stress the hell out of them at one time or another many of them hang in there.
I love that peachy dragony looking colony, the other piece is a stunner but that peachy acro is my fav.
Feel free to take more pics of the same stuff, they're all yummy mate :thumbsup:
Thanks Andrew! I have to admit the peach dragon does look better the bigger it gets. If it was red though ....
Alfrareef
New member
Tanks Mark.
I've always run away from PhosphateRX, NOPOX because the bad stories I've read but perhaps it's time to rethink that.
Agree regarding T5. For 2 years I'm using led and haven't still gained good grow and colors.
Accordingly to AF you should be dosing more drops daily. Why have you decided to go with such dosage?
I've always run away from PhosphateRX, NOPOX because the bad stories I've read but perhaps it's time to rethink that.
Agree regarding T5. For 2 years I'm using led and haven't still gained good grow and colors.
Accordingly to AF you should be dosing more drops daily. Why have you decided to go with such dosage?
markalot
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I don't believe in adding too much copper to the tank, so I go way under the standard dose. If I see corals decline for no apparent reason then I'll do a big water change and continue my regular routine rather than try to guess the correct dose.
I'm using LED on a smaller tank, the same Nanobox arrays, but no T5. I have to dose CaNO3 and feed heavily to keep decent colors. My guess is the LED's put too much usable light into the tank so the acros require more food to thrive. T5 has that spikey spectrum that while it seems just as bright a lot of energy is missing which the acros apparently love.
I'm putting more reef roids into my 40 gallon than I am this tank. :lolspin:
I'm using LED on a smaller tank, the same Nanobox arrays, but no T5. I have to dose CaNO3 and feed heavily to keep decent colors. My guess is the LED's put too much usable light into the tank so the acros require more food to thrive. T5 has that spikey spectrum that while it seems just as bright a lot of energy is missing which the acros apparently love.
I'm putting more reef roids into my 40 gallon than I am this tank. :lolspin:[/QUOTE]
This is an important observation that you are citing. It makes sense as to my experience.
I have all leds. When I try to run low nitrate [1-3] like others, my corals pale out very quickly and growth comes to a halt. I am feeding fish like mad and back to feeding powder coral food to the point of being uncomfortable. This tank seems to like being around 10 nitrates and .05 phos. When trates have spiked to 20 colors haved looked even better.
Maybe the difference is the LEDs. I have thought for a while that when people say that the LEDs cooked their coral that maybe the problem is that they did not have sufficient food available for the light that is being received.
Thanks for posting this. It brings some reassurance to what I am seeing and thinking.
Your corals are looking awesome keep up the great work.
I'm putting more reef roids into my 40 gallon than I am this tank. :lolspin:[/QUOTE]
This is an important observation that you are citing. It makes sense as to my experience.
I have all leds. When I try to run low nitrate [1-3] like others, my corals pale out very quickly and growth comes to a halt. I am feeding fish like mad and back to feeding powder coral food to the point of being uncomfortable. This tank seems to like being around 10 nitrates and .05 phos. When trates have spiked to 20 colors haved looked even better.
Maybe the difference is the LEDs. I have thought for a while that when people say that the LEDs cooked their coral that maybe the problem is that they did not have sufficient food available for the light that is being received.
Thanks for posting this. It brings some reassurance to what I am seeing and thinking.
Your corals are looking awesome keep up the great work.
markalot
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Hey Mark,
Your tank is looking amazing man, great come back indeed! The colors you are pulling look awesome
Thanks Perry.
I made a few moves this weekend. I had to move my Goniopora back to this tank due to the beast outgrowing my smaller tank and since I was in there I decided to give my pink acro more room to grow, demoting the iffy milli down near the sandbed.
I take a bunch of macros just to see how things are doing up close. Here's some of the better ones.
This is a branch of the milli I moved down. Will have to see what it does at 275 PAR vs 350 that it was getting. I am very tempted to make some space for it high up ... but where.
Cousin It.
markalot
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Thanks Matt, we've all been there and back again, right? I sure appreciate the compliment, I know you can turn it around as well.
So I measured PO4, NO3, and KH today. KH 6.7, NO3 1 to 2, PO4 .06
Hmmm.
I may increase PhosphateRx from 3 to 4 drops a day, or a may stick with 3 and re-test next weekend.
DiscusHeckel
Acropora Gardener
This is lovely Mark. What camera are you using?
markalot
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It's a Nikon D3100 with a cheap macro lens (90mm Tamron). I'm not a big fan of the camera but I don't have anything to compare it too and won't be buying another.
Holy smokes Mark :inlove: the acro's are looking absolutely gorgeous mate!! Tank is pumping
Thanks Dom.
Thanks Sahin.
markalot
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Slimer is hitting it's stride now. I always forget how fast this thing can grow.
18 days!
Pinky is more pink but perhaps faded a bit. I had increased PhosphateRx to 4 drops a day but
cutting back to 3 for a while, will test today or tomorrow, or I will
be too lazy and not test. KH continues to hold at 6.7.
The Lokani browned a little and then recovered but I believe it's due to me bumping it pretty hard with my hand
while moving a few rocks around. It did not break, delicate flower this is not.
Next on my watch list is this little guy. Was on the side not getting enough light, moved up under a lot of light and
it has responded well. Infested with some kind of filter feeder but starting to add new branches from the base.
This is another survivor from the crash and has taken a while to recover.
18 days!
Pinky is more pink but perhaps faded a bit. I had increased PhosphateRx to 4 drops a day but
cutting back to 3 for a while, will test today or tomorrow, or I will
be too lazy and not test.
KH continues to hold at 6.7.
The Lokani browned a little and then recovered but I believe it's due to me bumping it pretty hard with my hand
while moving a few rocks around. It did not break, delicate flower this is not.
Next on my watch list is this little guy. Was on the side not getting enough light, moved up under a lot of light and
it has responded well. Infested with some kind of filter feeder but starting to add new branches from the base.
This is another survivor from the crash and has taken a while to recover.
reefmutt
Active member
The most amazing thing about that 18 day progression gif is the little pink coral at the base of the green stag.. crazy growth!!
Mark, I've been dosing kalk for several weeks from a static mixture that I make every other day, however, I just found a kalk mixer in my collection of reef detritus in the closet. I'm going to set it up. Should allow me to go longer than two bloody days..
Anyways, how are you dosing kalk, right now?
Mark, I've been dosing kalk for several weeks from a static mixture that I make every other day, however, I just found a kalk mixer in my collection of reef detritus in the closet. I'm going to set it up. Should allow me to go longer than two bloody days..
Anyways, how are you dosing kalk, right now?
