Need some reefing advice...

[Shooter7]

Kinda long, sorry...

I'm trying to do some fine tuning here. I got my 120 going the first of this year and things have gone pretty well with it overall. I have a wide assortment of softies, LPS, and a monti cap in there. Back in May I decided I finally wanted to give it a go with some SPS corals. I got an Aquacontroller Jr to monitor temp and pH, as well as time my lights and such. I am dripping kalk (mrs. wages pickling lime) as topoff right now. I acquired an acro frag from Fade, and a mille frag from Mr. Farmer. I also got in on sales of frags from a couple of guys with beautiful tanks in the SPS forum. So, for now I've got a good collection of acros and milles. So now, the issues I would like some feedback on:

1. One of my milles was described as a "super hairy" one and it was, indeed, just that when I first got it. However, lately I've noticed that it and the 3 other milles I have in there are not extending their polyps like they were when they first went in. All seem to be doing a very good job of encrusting their bases though. Just wondering about this less than spectacular PE.

2. I have recently had a bit of an algae bloom. It occurred on my back glass and on my pumps. Nothing on my rocks. It covered like a thin moss, green...but then very quickly looked like it wasn't very happy anymore, turned somewhat brownish green, and the snails are mowing it down right now and it isn't growing back. Additionally, I am getting a daily very very thin growth of some algae on some areas of my sandbed. Mostly on the larger granules of sand, as I have a mix of sugar fine and some larger aragonite. I'm also getting some cyano in my sump/fuge. Not sure why I'm getting this now.

3. Most of the rest of my corals have remained pretty happy, although one bunch of zoas has faded a bit and don't expand like they used to. Had been wondering about them not liking the flow I have in there now, or perhaps the addition of the kalk drip...not sure.

So those are some issues I'm looking at, here are some tank facts and specs:

For flow, I have the Mag 12 return, 2 Seio 1500's - one open full, the other about a third and I need to get a magnet mount for it too so I can position it better to open it up full. Also have 2 MJ 900's behind my rocks to help blow stuff out of there.

Lighting is two Reeflux 250w 12k's on a 9 hour light cycle, mounted about 6 inches above the water surface - highest coral in the tank is about 12 inches below the water surface.

Fish get fed once a day with formula one flakes, Nori for the veggie guys, sometimes they get treats of frozen (strained) spirulina enriched brine or cyclopeeze too. Fish stock is one foxface, two small ocellaris, one chromis, 3 lyretail anthias, one scopas tang.

For tonight, values are (btw, these are without the kalk drip for over 24 hours due to other circumstances not tank related):

Temp. 80.5
pH 8.15
Ca 400
Alk 9.0 dKH
Mg 1110
PO4 is undetectable
NO3 is almost undetectable, maybe 1

Additionally, I'm considering revamping my sump area. My sump has 3 compartments - a very narrow intake area that I have my skimmer jammed into, a large area that houses my refugium, and a narrow return pump area. I am concerned that the water flow through my refugium is not optimal. I feel that it buzzes across the top of the refugium and doesn't really get the full function of a refugium this way - probably why my mandarin is starving. I am considering doing something like adding a small tank slightly above my sump for use as a fuge and pumping water up to it and letting it gravity drain into my return area. Would move my skimmer to the larger area currently housing my fuge, allowing my skimmer more room and allowing me to perhaps get a larger pump for it, or maybe a larger skimmer altogether eventually. Would also help with the splashing I'm getting from the skimmer now that is getting alot of salt creep on the wall near that part of the fuge.

So anyway, I would really, really appreciate any and all feedback on the above issues, tank parameters, and possible revamping ideas. I'm trying to make this tank as good an enviroment as I can for these SPS corals as these are a primary reason I got into this hobby. Thanks in advance.

 

[Fade]

Dave your mag is low you need to shot for 1200-1450 and where is your alge blome coming from what po4 test kit are you using. It is feeding off of somthing how is your cheto growing.
Is it polyping out at night?
Also is your fish or any inverts picking on your sps?
Try moving your sps around they just might not like where there at.

 

[Sk8r]

Yes, this sounds a lot like what I could describe in my own tank---previously good, to a sneaky decline, also involving some of the same species. I got zip phosphate readings off the test, but I had just a little too much algae. So I put some Phosban into the system, and all of a sudden, and I mean within 1 hour, acros started extending polyps and some of the lps came out with sweepers as if they were likewise anxious to get some of what was being passed out---like phosphate-free water. Seems I had a lot of phosphate bound up where it wasn't showing in a test. I don't say it's a magic bullet, but it might help.

 

[Shooter7]

Phosphate test is Salifert, tested my tank water twice...then tested another source that I knew would have PO4 in it and it registered there, so the test kit appears to be good and my results reliable.

I am wondering if some of this rock that I got is perhaps leaching something. I mean, this is the same rock that had the stuff that looked like dinos on it before. It was only certain rocks that had it. Then this algae bloom on the glass and the pumps flared up suddenly, and just as quickly seemed to run out of steam.

Is it polyping out at night? Are you talking about the SPS? If so, the milles don't so much, but the other corals do. Actually, I get great PE from most of the other corals I have in there, which include that one I got from you, a Michael Paletta blue acro, cali tort, a. valida, and others.

I have not seen any picking by my fish at all.

thanks

 

[Shooter7]

Thanks Sk8r, and possible additions or subtractions to my system are the kinds of things I'm looking for, but I don't want to be willy nilly about it either. That's why I'm asking for input both here and in the SPS forum - although unfortunately I haven't heard anything there yet.

 

[Markk96]

I had some millis that were doing great, then they stopped coming out, finally I found the issue.

 

[Goalie66]

Mark, was this at night or during the day?

 

[Markk96]

It only would come out at night, that was with a flash.

 

[Shooter7]

What is that?

 

[spongebobby]

Starve the tank of nutrients/nitrate and your algae problem should disappear. So long as your P04 is undetectable. I had the same problem with my 120. I had hair algae growing in my overflows real bad but no where else. I started to run a Phosban reactor with rowaphos and it really started to disappear fast. Corals started to look alot better but PE was nill except at night. So just recently I was talking to a fellow reefer on here and he suggested I try AAHC by zeovit and Pohls Coral Vitalizer. I now have no P04 or Nitrates and the colors have really popped and have gotten about 2 shades deeper and richer. All in about 3 weeks time. Now for the bad news.....These two items are extremely expensive but they last for awhile on a 120.

After about 2 wks with this stuff all algea had dissappeared hopefully never to come back. Good luck

 

[Shooter7]

Well, large or even medium expenses are not very feasible for me, so I don't see myself going down that zeovit road. Besides, my nitrates are maybe 1 now, if that, and phospates undetectable, I'd say that's pretty nutrient starved looking. However, I understand the concept of having phosphates built up in the tank and that's why I am toying with the idea of using some sort of phospate remover. Also why I'm trying to think of ways of using my chaeto more efficiently than it's being used now, because I don't think it's really getting the flow through it I would like. Still, alot of the folks in the SPS forum are feeding more and adding more fish to their systems as they seem to be "too nutrient starved"? Just wish I could've gotten some answers in that forum too, but apparently I didn't kiss the right line of butts over there to even have my post noticed. :rolleye1:

btw....anyone know if you can drill a 10 gal without it disintegrating?

Oh, and recommendations on phosphate remover setups would be appreciated. thanks

 

[mpcart]

For phosphate removal I use a Phosban Reactor w/Phosban. It seems to work well - phosphates test 0.

I think you can also put the phosban in the included filter bag and dump it in the sump. That would probably be your cheapest route.

-Mike

 

[Shooter7]

Thanks for the info. Anyone else second the use of phosban and the reactor? What about Rowaphos?

 

[spongebobby]

I have used both phosban and rowaphos. I am now using rowaphos because it appears to last longer than phosban. Although they both achieved the same result. It seems that the rowaphos works a bit faster at removing PO4.

How much flow do you have in your sump? About the zeovit additives... Basically on a nutrient starved tank the corals require nutrients that are not there due to no nitrates. Those two additives give the corals the nutrients they need without adding nitrates to the tank.

Also on the PO4 remover.....Start slow and ramp up your use, just don't add a whole can of phosban in to a reactor and start running it. It can remove the po4 to fast and make your SPS bleach. I would not run it passively in the sump. Also make sure to run the first gallon through the reactor in to a bucket so you don't get any of the dust in the tank.....not good.

Keep an eye on the RC classifieds and ebay for a phosban reactor. They are very nice and work good. Don't get the one with the thumb screws get the one with a twist off lid.

Rob

 

[Shooter7]

Here is a pic of my sump when I first set the system up. This was a pre-made acrylic job that was done for me at cost for the materials. However, at the time, I did not know exactly what skimmer I would be using, and the intake compartment was made rather small and significantly limited my skimmer choices when it came time to set up.

As for flow, I have a mag 12 in there. What appears to me to happen is that the water flows into that intake compartment and then seems to zip over the first divider, skim across the top of the refugium compartment at high speed, and then exit over the 2nd divider into the return area. With the speed that the water travels over the refugium area, it's amazing at how little water movement there is a couple inches below the surface. I've added B-ionic to this tank in that area before to see what the little cloud did that it creates upon adding to the water. For a long time that cloud hardly moved at all in there. Thus, this is why I am doubting the effectiveness of this refugium setup and would like to try something else. Also, would like to move that skimmer into the center area for more room and so I could create something in the intake area so that water coming in would be forced through some carbon or whatever else I wanted to run in there.

 

[Shooter7]

Anyone else? I'd think that I'd have tons of opinions on this stuff.

And what about water changes. I've been doing about 30 gallons once a month. Should I be doing changes more often? How often and what amount of water?