Skimming?

[bmccormick77]

I have a 125 MegaFlow tank with a model 4 megaflow sump. This tank has been setup for 6 months and is doing very well for my fish, which include:

4 Clownfish
1 Yellow Tang
1 Blue Hippo Tang
2 Cleaner Shrimp
8 Blue legged Crabs
1 Banded Starfish

My problem is everytime I try to introduce a coral to my system is dies in a few days... I have tested all my water parm. and they are all great. I use RO water and Coralife Marine Salt.

I am thinking maybe I could be skimming to much out of the water??? I am also using a filter pad in my megaflow sump to filter the big stuff, should I be using that? Is there such a thing of too much skimming?

Please help

 

[Fish_wiz2]

How do you acclimate them and is there any flow in your tank? how about lights?

 

[bmccormick77]

I float the bag for about 20 minutues then do the cup method for about another 40 minutes.

I have 2 ecotech marine pumps.

My saltiny is 1.025

Coralife Lunar Aqualights Compact Fluorescent Strip Lights which give out great light.

 

[KRASHPD]

Did you buy the tank new? If the tank was ever treated with copper, the fish will be fine but the residual in the silicone could kill the corals.

 

[bmccormick77]

Tank and skimmer was brand new in the box.

 

[AquaReeferMan]

Can you list all of your water params? You cant skim too much. The skimmer in only going to pull junk out of the water. What kind of skimmer do you have? Are you getting the corals from the same source? Whats the total wattage of the PC fixture? Something isnt right here.

 

[bmccormick77]

Skimmer: Turboflotor Multi 1000

Tested Last Night with API liquid test kit:

Temperature 79 °F
Specific Gravity (SG) 1.025
pH 8
Alkalinity 6ppm
Ammonia (NH3) 0 ppm
Nitrite (NO2) 0 ppm
Nitrate (NO3) 0 ppm
Phosphate (PO4-3) .05 ppm
Calcium (Ca+2) 350 mg/l
Chlorine / Chloramine 0 ppm

 

[bmccormick77]

Also Corals from different suppliers in my area...

And Lighting total wattage is 384 watt.

 

[RyanMcLaughlin]

Your calcium and alkalinity look low. Try using a buffer or dosing more. Also I would invest in a phosban reactor to get rid of those phosphates.

 

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13251678#post13251678 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bmccormick77
Coralife Lunar Aqualights Compact Fluorescent Strip Lights which give out great light.

Not to whack you here... but they don't. Maybe for viewing fish, but for providing adequate light for corals, they fall well short.

Do you have a link for the lighting unit?

You may get away with some shrooms or zoanthids, but beyond that, it will be tough.

Also:

As stated above your Ca & Alk look low... and what's you Mag?

More importantly... what type of corals have you tried to add?

Acclimation isn't a big deal with corals... some people just match temp and toss them in. (I personally do the bag/cup method).

 

[bmccormick77]

Here is the link for my lightning:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+12109&pcatid=12109

Also I have only tried Soft Corals, do you think I may have better luck with Hard Corals?

 

[Tswifty]

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php

 

[Tswifty]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=13252474#post13252474 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bmccormick77
Here is the link for my lightning:

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3733+12109&pcatid=12109

Also I have only tried Soft Corals, do you think I may have better luck with Hard Corals?

Hard corals will require more intense lighting, and much stricter water parameters.

Unfortunately that lighting unit won't do much for you in terms of corals. One of the bulbs are actinic, which won't do anything to support growth, so you basically only have one bulb supplying light for your corals.

In my honest opinion that a lighting unit that would be fine for a FOWLR tank, but if you want corals you're going to have to upgrade.

That being said, you should be able to house some mushrooms and lower light demanding zoanthids under that unit.

 

[adunne]

A good question to answer is what type of corals are you trying to keep.

Bad lighting, imo, is not going to kill a coral in a couple of days.

I think there is somthing else going on in your tank. Granted i agree with swifty that you will ned new lights to go beyond the basic softys.

Have you ever treated your tank to cure a fish disease?

 

[Rae C.]

What about live rock? Live sand? Maybe there's a coral-ivore hiding in the rock work.