Problem with Candy Cane? - pic

[dileggi]

Hey everyone. I'm not 100% sure if my candy cane/trumpet looks healthy or not. For some reason, I've been thinking it looks like it has lost some of its color. Maybe it hasn't and it looks fine. I just don't have enough experience to really tell. Or, maybe it's lighting or placement or whatever???

I have a biocube 29. My lighting is 1 36w PC 10,000k coralife and 1 36w actinic PC.

My param's are:

Ph 8.2
Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
Phosphate 0
CA 400
dKH 10
Salinity 1.023 ( a little low, I know).

Here are the two best pic's I could get, along with a tank pic so you guys can see the exact placement. Please excuse the hair & bubble algae problem! LOL!

 

[SMOOTHIE]

Check your water quality. Bubble algae and looks like some hair algae. May be overfeeding. If you don't have a test kit take some water to your local fish store and let them check it. Your brain looks like it is suffering to.

 

[dileggi]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11678872#post11678872 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by SMOOTHIE
Check your water quality. Bubble algae and looks like some hair algae. May be overfeeding. If you don't have a test kit take some water to your local fish store and let them check it. Your brain looks like it is suffering to.

I know about the bubble and hair algae. I stated that in my post along with my water param's, which are all fine.

My question was regarding the candy cane. But, since you mentioned the brain, what's wrong with it??

 

[Justin74]

I see a few things that need/could be addressed. By the look of the Calaustrea aka candy cane, my first guesses would be either a phospate or magnesium issue, and or just as commonly both compounded. When giving perameters on an established system ammonia and nitrite are really not needed. If it was under 3 months old these measurements are very usefull, but moreso just to tell you the stage of cycle it's in. Nitrate on the other hand is usefull as it can be a reflection of the bioload and also an insight to how well your tank processes the traces of ammonia and nitrite it encounters which should be miniscule.

I noticed no Mg measurement, great tool to ensure that your dialed in for a healthy trifecta(Ca, dkH, and Mg) for calcification.

Another note, dont trust your phosphate test! It will only show you measurements suspended in the water column, NOT which is bound to algaes, which no offense, is clearly an issue. Noting that micro and macro algaes take in phosphates to grow and the fact that they are growing should tell you that indeed phosphates are in the system, which is one of the major inhibitors to the calcification process to all corals which we as a collective are in constant battle with as hobbyists, that along with Nitrates are the major 2 evils

Phosphates can be managed successfully with some form of granular ferric iron hydroxide( or GFO) whether its named rowaphos, phosban, etc. Unless you have a super uber skimmer, or a refugium bigger than your tank you may want to consider GFO as an export alternative.

Another point, not so much particulary for the candy cane, as the one you have does fine under low light, but overall your corals would highly benefit from having more intense lighting. Thier health/vigor/ and coloration would increase exponentially.

And from someone who has had 10X more bubble algae then I see in that photo, manual removal is the best. Unless you have a miracle foxface or other algae eater that would be more than likely to big for your sized tank. And try your best not to rupture the bubbles, which sometimes is virtually impossible. After a major removal session and with rumors of that algae carrying spores I like to follow the pick and pull with a large water change. This will help reduce the spores if any released into the water column as well as any detritus that Ive stirred up in the process. All this has cut my bubble count by, Id say, around 70% or so. But it is an ongoing process, and the work of the hobbyist is never done, right?

Good luck!

-Justin

 

[jadeguppy]

There is a crab that is reef safe and will eat the bubble algae. I have one, but can't remember what it is called. How is the flow around the candycane?

 

[Justin74]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11679610#post11679610 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by jadeguppy
There is a crab that is reef safe and will eat the bubble algae. I have one, but can't remember what it is called. How is the flow around the candycane?

I believe your speaking of a mithrax crab aka emerald crab. Some have noted that they've witnessed them feeding on it. So like I said I had a problem that was 10x bigger, so I heard this about the emerald. So I buy 6. Have I yet to witness them eating, or reducing the pop. No Notta one. Kinda like peppermint shrimp to aiptasia, or Copperband butterfly fish to aiptaisia. Some eat it, some dont. Total flip of the coin and can not be banked on as a sure thing :/


-Justin

 

[jadeguppy]

Yep, that is what I have. Thanks for jogging my brain.

 

[SMOOTHIE]

Oops on not reading the param's.
Try spot feeding them some mysis or cyclops. For the brain you could try the same or some carnivore sinking pellets. Definitely keep up with the water changes to keep all the needed elements for recovery and getting your waste level down. Blue legs are the only thing I have seen to really take out hair algae. The bubble as stated I have only seen taken out manually. Hope anything helps and nice aquascape by the way.

 

[dileggi]

Justin - Thank you greatly for all your input. You're right, I never mentioned my mag levels. I wasn't even checking for it. Maybe that's the reason I'm struggling with my calcium level? It seems to be between 420 at it's highest and 380 at it's lowest. I can't seem to keep it level. I'll pick up a mag kit tomorrow and also grab whatever I need to dose it? I had a feeling that my phosphates were high. I've been running a GFO bag for about a month and a half now. I originally purchased the reactor, but I had no way to hook it up in the cube. I was also having a major nitrate problem...around 20. I finally removed all the bio balls and replaced with live rock in that chamber of cube..all live rock submerged. No cheato or anything because I have no way of getting light into that chamber. It now seems to be dropping. It's down to 10.

As for my lighting, I've just ordered the PC upgrage kit for the cube, which will double my light output. Hopefully, this will help because there are no retro kits available for me to switch to MH or T5's and still use my hood. I can't go with the open top....3 year olds! LOL!

I've been manually removing them little by little and trying my hardest not to break them.

Thanks again for helping to point me in the right direction as I'm starting to feel like I'm getting overwhelmed and doing more wheel spinning!

 

[dileggi]

Hey Smoothie - thank you as well for the info. I've been target feeding the brain with cyclop-eeze. Usually every 3rd day or so. I was not doing that with the canes. I can surely try that as well. Is every 3 days OK?

I've got about 10 blue legs in there and 3 scarlet's. I always see them around the algae (hair), but if they're eating it, it most only be a light snack! LOL!

Thanks for the compliment on the aquascape. Until reading that, I've been driving myself crazy with the feeling that it was poorly done.

I guess the other main problem, besides lack of knowledge from a newbie is that I've been micro managing the tank so closely, that I seem to messing with things that don't need it, or I just too quickly to fix a level with some "powder" or something and wind up with a worse mess than I started out! I burnt all my zoa's, gsp, button's and the cane back in Nov. I checked my PH and it was low. So, I dumped proper PH right into the tank, undiluted. I never even thought it would have those consequences...I have to keep remembering it's not my cichlid tank. Stuff is just now starting to come back little by little! And, the topper was, I didn't know by checking my PH in the morning, as I did, that it would be lower. Plus, it was only reading 8 at the time. So, I basically needlessly did what I did to boot!

Thank you again....I really appreciate all the help and feedback.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

don't forget to bring your specific gravity up to at least 1.025 before you check Mg!
Doubling light ouput will increase nuisance algae growth unless you get a handle on your PO4/nitrate issues beforehand...

 

[dileggi]

OH, OK! Thanks Gary. I had no idea I had to do that first. I'll pick up the kit tomorrow, but I'll get the SG up first.

I'll also make sure everything else is in check....(hopefully I get there), before installing the new lights.

Thank you!

 

[Justin74]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11681155#post11681155 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Gary Majchrzak
don't forget to bring your specific gravity up to at least 1.025 before you check Mg!
Doubling light ouput will increase nuisance algae growth unless you get a handle on your PO4/nitrate issues beforehand...

Excellent advice.

dileggi: My pleasure, I see many resemblances between my tank starting out and yours right now, we all get overwhelmed sometimes just take things one at a time and spread it out so your messin with it once a day rather than 3-4x a day. I am just as guilty, I mean cmon, if were here we got addictions, or at the very least issues..Right?

Also to add, 380-420 is a good range to be in w/ Ca and is a reflection of a healthy consumption rate of the trifecta I was talking about earlier. Since your not heavily stocked with stonies, it may be the coraline algae that is the culprit. I would highly recommend doing some reading and skimming through the equipment people are running with tanks your size w/ your desired stock/bioload and emulate it before picking a Mg supplement and any equipment you may think you may need. Im finding a lil Mg goes a long way, and some over the counter Mg supplements contain borates which gives false readings when testing unless you buy their proprietary kit, and on, and on, and....Theres alot of information regarding it, many people are finding the best method to be Randy's 2 and 3 part formulas for supplementing these elements, and can be found throughout Reefkeeping Mag when you do a seach.

Stand by... I got some pictures I think you will really appreciate, give me about 10 min, and check back..

-Justin

 

[Justin74]

My 50g in 1-2005, notice the resemblance? Even down to the palys up top :lol:

7-7-07 Shortly before I took this system down and replaced the tank and equipment.

So if I can do it, I know you can :thumbsup:

-Justin

 

[dileggi]

That's a great tank you have their Justin! I appreciate you sharing those pic's. I guess in all, patience is really what I'm lacking. I see all these tanks that people post and I guess after 4 mos or so, I expected to look like those instead of looking at what I have.

Thank you agian. It helps to know that I'm not a lost cause!