Parameters, flow, and lights

[asid61]

I am about to get corals for my 44 gallon pentagon reef, but I have a couple fo questions:
-My Alk is usually 13. Is this too high? How do I bring it down?
-My calcium never seems to drop below 500 ppm, and is usually around 540 ppm. Is this too high?
-My magnesium stays around 1400. Is this good?
-I have a 250 watt 10000k MH fixture. Is this good for most sps? What kinds should I avoid? I was hoping for montipora.
-My flow never seems to be good as I have 2 400gph circulation pumps by Marineland. The flow is either pointing directly at the rocks or causing sand to form pits by blowing on the glass. About how much flow is good? Should I aim them at the corals, above them, below them, etc.?
Thanks!

 

[reefereef]

Alk & ca are high, mag is good. Check your salt to see what it is mixing at for those parameters. Maybe change salt if they are that high, are you dosing anything to the tank that could be bringing those levels up that much.

Flow is too low, i take it you have something like a 402 powerhead? I on a budget grab a couple or hydor koralias, they work very well and wont break the bank. for that size tank i would think you would want around 2 1000gph pumps for circulation, your sand may blow around at first but it will settle where it wants to.

Lighting seems good, depends on what kind of fixture it is in to tell you what kind of footprint the light will cover. you may want to switch to a higher kelvin bulb to enjoy some of the blues and green that the sps have, lots of people like the 14K bulbs.

As or sps, start off with some cheaper frags until you get the feel for sps, they can be tricky. Montis are pretty hardy sps and dont demand a crazy amount of light.

How long has your tank been setup, new tanks can cause sps to have poor health and discourage people from keeping them. Also remember that stability is key for sps, find a level for your parameters that you can maintain the best and keep them there.

Best of luck and keep reading and gathering knowledge it will pay of in the end.