Sometimes a salt change can occasion alkainity bounces with large water changes. Trace metals in various salts may also vary due to the manufacturing processes.So when a switch is made corals need to adjust . What salt were you using before? I've been thinking about a switch to IO from Coralife because I'd like a little less calcium but I'm wary of making a change after 8+ years of good luck with the Coralife.Metals can effect color. Copper for example suppresses red flouresence. Some with ultra low nutrient systems play with trace metal additions to manipulate colors. I know many switch salts regularly but it's a big change and worrisome to me. On the other hand in an ultra low nutrient system which isn't fed much with 24/7 gac use there may be issues with shortages of iodine( iodate iodide) potassium and perhaps others. None of which are easily measured.
Getting it right is still a good part art. Knowing what is knowable in the science end helps make the brush but we have to paint with it via intuition and personal observation.
BTW are you using a clacium reactor? Corals sink metals and other toxins in their skeltal mass. When it dissolves they release. Depending on the purity of media in a reactor this could cause trouble over time.
I've seen your corals and they look great I hope that pink seriatopora is keeping it's color. Hope to get a chunk of that at some point.
If I were looking at a nutrient deficiency I'd bet on nitrate at 0 vs natural surface water at .2ppm before PO4 at .01 vs natural reef surface water at .005ppm. It's clear the corals use nitrogen to form proteins and things like dna. I don't think they use much PO4 directly. I'd probably try some ammino acids to source bio available nitrogen. From what I have read from Mr Farely aspartic acid .an ammino may be particularly useful to corals.
Getting it right is still a good part art. Knowing what is knowable in the science end helps make the brush but we have to paint with it via intuition and personal observation.
BTW are you using a clacium reactor? Corals sink metals and other toxins in their skeltal mass. When it dissolves they release. Depending on the purity of media in a reactor this could cause trouble over time.
I've seen your corals and they look great I hope that pink seriatopora is keeping it's color. Hope to get a chunk of that at some point.
If I were looking at a nutrient deficiency I'd bet on nitrate at 0 vs natural surface water at .2ppm before PO4 at .01 vs natural reef surface water at .005ppm. It's clear the corals use nitrogen to form proteins and things like dna. I don't think they use much PO4 directly. I'd probably try some ammino acids to source bio available nitrogen. From what I have read from Mr Farely aspartic acid .an ammino may be particularly useful to corals.
