SPS feeding and filter bag

[King-Kong]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8035631#post8035631 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Horace
Tons of us run filter bags and SPS. The simple fact is, if you dont, you will have particulate in the water column. You NEED some sort of mechanical filtration or your water quality will suffer greatly.

I'm curious; do you group protein skimming into this category?

 

[fijiblue]

Also show me where it states that corals get 60-70 of their nutrition from other source other than themselfs

Let's Take your quote from Borneman...

"It has been shown that many species of corals, especially Acropora, Stylophora, etc., may meet up to 150% of their energy requirements by their zooxanthellae alone. Yet, it has also been found that Acropora are vigorous consumers of zooplankton, nanoplankton, bacteria and other organisms which meet up to 70% of their daily energy needs."

...Break it down...

Yet, it has also been found that Acropora are vigorous consumers of zooplankton, nanoplankton, bacteria and other organisms which meet up to 70% of their daily energy needs."[/

...A little more...

consumers of zooplankton, nanoplankton, bacteria and other organisms...70% of their daily energy needs."

Bingo!

Zooplankton (from Greek zoon, or animal), small protozoans or metazoans (e.g. crustaceans and other animals) that feed on other plankton. Some of the eggs and larvae of larger animals, such as fish, crustaceans, and annelids, are included here.

Bacterioplankton, bacteria and archaea, which play an important role in remineralising organic material down the water column (note that many phytoplankton are also bacterioplankton).

jay24k-

The low light tanks you haven't seen are called T5 SPS tanks. Since the intensity is not there in full that is required, other methods, whether it is Zeovit or Prodibio to supply food to the corals. Just like an anemone, even though an invert, can be kept in the dark by feeding. It expells most of it's zooxanthellae and feeds for energy.

johnnstacy - sorry this has strayed so far from your original question. My opinion once again is to leave the sock off and scrub your water with the sock twice a week. King-Kong is getting to a good point, the protein skimmer should take enough out of the water to keep it clean. JMHO.

 

[johnnstacy]

This has been an excellent thread. Great reading. I don't see that feeding will hurt my tank at all. This goes along with another thread I was working on here:

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=914924

So I will quote Eric again from another thread in which he is asked, "Would you recommend your food for an SPS dominated tank?"

His response:

"sure, but I would probably stick to smaller foods and/or puree the mix more completely (Artemia nauplii, oyster eggs, rotifers, cyclop-eze, etc.)"

Based on the many quotes reefers have included from Eric just in this thread, I would consider him an authority right? Well, then I will stick to his opinion and suggestions on feeding.

The size of the food is really the only question in my mind. I haven't found anything yet on what size most SPS will eat. Many say that cyclopeeze are to large. I personally don't feed it because if it gets caught in my filter sock then it is at least, larger then 100 microns. (Btw, I do feed it to the fish though) What I may do, is take all of the food that I mentioned in that other thread and put it in a strainer of some type. At the same time, while a filter sock may allow passage of 100 micron particles, If the bag already has detritus, etc in it, it may catch particles smaller then 100 microns. The filter sock would have to be clean before each feeding. This is something that I would not likely take the time to do. The point of the thread was attmpting to justify to myself that I needn't remove the filter sock every other night when I want to feed the corals.

 

[King-Kong]

Ive been told 50 microns is a sweet spot for SPS, but the range can get as high as 200.

Cyclop-eeze is closer to 700 microns, I beleive. It's stated on one of their packages.

 

[jay24k]

T5 lit tanks doesn't require additional nutrients. They are just as intense in lighting. I've seen several tanks with T5 and they do very well as long as you have a good amount of light.

 

[fijiblue]

Im sorry, but T5's are a flourescent tube, no where near the penetration of a halide. SPS are not suppossed to look "pastely" like most T5 tanks yield. That is a sign of expelling their zooxanthellae just like the corals that are bleaching on the reefs. A sucessful, long term T5 SPS tank uses another form of nutrients...not to bring him into this, but just like Iwan's tank.

[/URL]http://www.hausriff.ch/[/URL]

Looks great and and I think he uses Zeo and Pro.

 

[jay24k]

There have been several tanks posted on here over the last couple years that have been purely lit by T5 without any additions of zeovit. Are you saying you have to do the same with VHO? Because I kept corals the same in a VHO only tank for over 2 years without ever dosing anything and just feeding enough for the fish.

 

[fijiblue]

We could go all day on this because of our difference of opinions.
I pretty much look at it like this...which of the following types of lights best simulates the sun intensity?

a. T5's
b. VHO's
c. MH

So which one would you want to use on your system? Why give a coral only a fraction of what it needs and say that is ok for them? Would you feed a baby once a day instead of three or more times cause tyhe could survive off of it? That's how I look at it.

 

[REEF-DADDY]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8040011#post8040011 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clkwrk
yup

Me too

This quote has me thinking

Bacterioplankton, bacteria and archaea, which play an important role in remineralising organic material down the water column (note that many phytoplankton are also bacterioplankton).

When I dosed phtyo my sps had a much richer color. I've since stopped and made a few other changes to find my corals are lighter. I wonder if its the reduction in bacterioplankton?