Need some advice

[vlim13]

I have been setting up a FOWLR for a few months now, and couldn't resist the urge to take some really nice live rock that I recently got and put into a 14 gal nano. Now I just got a zooanthids frag along with some euphyllia (torch coral, I believe).

But the problem is that tekknoschtev's "Sticky: Zoanthid Information Draft" has tons of broken links. Mods: is there any chance of easily fixing them?

I always see pics of people's tanks, and the colors just pop out. I look at my tank, and it looks quite a bit dull in comparison. I've got the stock 14W 10k PC and 14W actinic PC in it. Don't really have any room or desire to put in MH. What can I do to get more color in my zoos? I see glimmers of possibilities when just the actinics are on, but when the whites come one, the fluorescence get washed out quite a bit. The euphyllia seems to have a little better color. But the tank is only about 20" deep, so I don't think that placement's a huge issue.

I run it skimmerless, and practically filterless. I yanked out the bioballs, filled it with LR rubble, and brought the water level up for a mini-fuge. The thin sponge filters are washed every couple of weeks. Although crystal clear water is nice to look at, I believe that the particles floating around help keep me from overfeeding and give the filter feeders lots of food. I've never seen ocean water crystal clear, so I'm not too concerned about a little cloudiness.

Any ideas on how I can get more color to show up?

On a tangent... As previously stated in other threads, people think that LPS or zoos are beginner's corals. I really don't care - I just like the color, and don't have the time nor desire to spend adding tons of equipment, and messing with the tanks 24x7. I'm a big believer of less is more.

My 400 g FOWLR currently only has 3 4" fish that one day will get to over 12 inches long. But I have 400 lbs of LR in it, run an underpowered skimmer on it, run 2 T5s, and have decent flow. The sponges in there have tons of color, and have taken the place of colorful coral. Again, this is more for ease of maintenance, and not having to worry what happens when I can't tend to the tank every single day. I have enough trouble scraping coralline off the front of the tank as it is.

This tank is huge, but it's also why I think it's forgiving. 5 gal of evaporation or 3 days of neglect isn't going to do much to it. Critters are lightly fed 3x a day, with a couple times a week of squid, shrimp, and DT Coral Frenzy. There are some hitchhiker zoos and little polyps in this tank that are brown, but I don't mind, as long as they're reproducing and otherwise seem to thrive.

Thanks in advance for any help you can give this newbie!

 

[MUCHO REEF]

vlim13, great question, I would dump the PC's and go with T5, the bulb is smaller in diameter and depending on the dimensions of your tank, you might be able to get more bulbs in there. Bulb selection will be key, I've been out of the loop for a while so can someone share which T5 bulbs and combination and brand which yeild great coloration to help this reefer out?

I was working on the Zoa Info Draft before I left and an annoucement will be forthcoming on it next week.


Mucho Reef

 

[Marchingbandjs]

I would also be interested in the light brand that would work... So someone please shed some light.. no pun intended

 

[SIR PATRICK]

Geisman and ati bulbs are where its at. They put out very good par compared to alot of other brands- especially their actinics. Good individual reflectors are a must.

What kind of water parameters do you have going on the tank? Using ro water? What method are you using to "wash" your sponges every couple weeks? More info would be very helpful in figuring this one out.

I hope when you clean the sponges, you are just rinsing them very lightly in saltwater, and not completely cleaning them with fresh water. Cleaning with fresh water could cause negative affects on your tank, and could be affecting the color (and health) of your zoas.

 

[vlim13]

Geisman and ati bulbs are where its at. They put out very good par compared to alot of other brands- especially their actinics. Good individual reflectors are a must.

What kind of water parameters do you have going on the tank? Using ro water? What method are you using to "wash" your sponges every couple weeks? More info would be very helpful in figuring this one out.

I hope when you clean the sponges, you are just rinsing them very lightly in saltwater, and not completely cleaning them with fresh water. Cleaning with fresh water could cause negative affects on your tank, and could be affecting the color (and health) of your zoas.

Actually, the zoas that I'm trying to get color on are in a different tank from the sponges. Sorry if I confused you, but here are the setups:

Tank 1: 400 g hexagonal FOWLR tank, with the front being lit with 2 T5 (I only remember that they're a German brand), one 50/50, and the other 10k. The zoas in here are brown, but are reproducing, and seem to be doing just fine. I may upgrade the 50/50 to actinic to get some more color effect in a couple months when its life is near an end. I would have to make an entirely new light fixture to house any more bulbs. Previously had T8 bulbs, but they weren't very good at growing anything. The sponges in here are primarily in direct flow of some circulation pumps. I've only had them about 2 months, but haven't had much of an issue of them getting dirty. There are two sponges that are shaped such that they do collect detritus. However, for those, I create a bit of "turbulance" by waving a glass cleaner back and forth. I wouldn't think of rising with fresh water, but have to add about 5 gal every day or 2 due to evaporation. This is done in the sump, which itself is probably 30 gal or so.

Tank 2: A Biocube 14 gal nano, with the stock PC bulbs in the lid. There are no large sponges in here, just encrusting ones on the rock. This is where I'm intentionally try to grow zoas and get color in them. I don't know about being able to get T5s on this (do they come in 12" lengths?), but I can probably figure out a better reflector than what's built-in. They are noticeably green, orange, or purple, but not with the intense color that I see in lots of the photos on this and other sites. Perhaps I just don't have enough actinics light to make them glow? Your point on a good reflector is well taken!

On both tanks, I use RO water, and Instant Ocean salt. pH on both are approx 8.4, calcium 450 ppm, ammonia 0, nitrites 0, nitrates between 0 and 5 ppm, salinity 1.026, temp 79.5-81. Bio load via fish are low, but I do go about 1 pound LR per 1 gal. Macro algae is growing just great.

There's lots of coralline, which gives a nice purple. The sponges have nice yellows, reds, and blues, and browns in tank 1. Tank 2 is where I'm learning how to care for a tiny euphyllia and the zoas, both of which I hope to frag one day and put in tank 1.

One thing that I haven't gotten a lot of verification with lighting is whether or not actinics are required. Is using them more for our visual benefit than it is for the photosynthetic life?

I had seen an article on Advanced Aquarist on pigments in corals, but it was quite technical and seemed too complex for something that's more FOWLR than reef.

Thanks to all for the quick replies!

 

[SIR PATRICK]

Actinics arent esential, but are beneficial for synthesis of light. The blue spectrum is used.

Have a po4 (phosphate) test kit? Elevated po4 can cause dull colors. Everything else looks good, other than light intensity.

Not sure what the smallest t5ho light is....

When you mentioned sponges, I was thinking you were refering to filter sponges. Oops!

 

[vlim13]

Haha! I don't really use any filter material, choosing to vacuum every now and then instead.

I do have a weird hybrid sponge/filter pad. I got some pods, and they came on a small piece of filter material. I tucked it away near a yellow sponge that looks like crab legs. I forgot about the filter pad for a month, and now the two have fused together, creating a low-tech cyborg of sorts.

BTW, I got a great tip from another member on lots of custom mods for nano tanks. I'm already planning out another purchase.