What do you dose?

[Snowsrfr]

I know there was a thread recently about feeding an SPS tank, but I'm curious what people dose their tanks. Of course we all do the Ca, Alk, Mag, but am curious if anybody goes above and beyond that? What about things like Zeovit, Ecobak, Biopellets etc.

My LFS carries a full line of SPS supplements from Germany. (I need to run and check the brand) Most are for bringing out colors, rather than achieving growth. They even have their products broken down into what colors you want to enchance, species (acro, stylo, etc.) These particular supplements are far from cheap, and if it were for some free sample bottles I wouldn't even give it a second though. Plus, he doses his 300 gallon display tank with there full line of 10 or 15 supplements, and he does have colors on some of the more common high end corals than I have ever seen.

Just like to see what people are dosing, if people think this hearkens back to the days of snake oil, etc. This being my first SPS dominate tank, I'm amazed at the things people do and don't do to achieve amazing results.

 

[Alex T.]

I dose fish poop. Fish get happy, corals get fed too. Everybody wins.:bounce3:

 

[preef]

New saltwater once a week.

 

[Snowsrfr]

So for all those SPS dominate tank folks that dose the fish poo, what size tank you run, how many fish you keep, and how heavily do you skim?

 

[Snowsrfr]

New saltwater once a week.

What salt mix you use?

 

[preef]

What salt mix you use?

Coralife

 

[Snowsrfr]

Haven't tried that one yet.

 

[allsps40]

Salt mix I use now is RC and I dont recommend it. I like Tropic Marin Pro Reef or Hw Reefer. I dose 2 part, iodine, potassium, strontium and AAs.

 

[divewsharks]

I don't add anything i'm not testing for. So just CA/ALK/Mag, and whatever the fish contribute.
I do run biopellets in a reactor, not sure they are doing much for me.
water changes every 3-4 weeks, currently using Aquavitro Salinity -- can't yet say i'm a fan, don't really like the way it mixes.

 

[gnashty]

I don't add anything i'm not testing for. So just CA/ALK/Mag, and whatever the fish contribute.
I do run biopellets in a reactor, not sure they are doing much for me.
water changes every 3-4 weeks, currently using Aquavitro Salinity -- can't yet say i'm a fan, don't really like the way it mixes.

+1 here except swap the bio pellets for gfo..

I too use the Salinity, for about a year now. We get $199 barrel deals (4.5 buckets) around here about once a year so I load up. key is to mix it slowly, it wont cloud up as much and wont completely cake your mixing container.

 

[divewsharks]

not to hijack...
what do you mean by mix slowly? i normally put about 30Gal of RO/DI in a brute container with a large powerhead and heater and add the salt.

 

[gnashty]

not to hijack...
what do you mean by mix slowly? i normally put about 30Gal of RO/DI in a brute container with a large powerhead and heater and add the salt.

I mix 40 gal at a time and use about 16-17 cups of Salinity, if I poured it all in my brute at once (even going slow) still cakes my brute all up. when I sprinkle in about 2-3 cups in over several hours the water stays clear and doesnt get film all over the bucket quite as bad.


and to the OP, I also dose Aquavotro Fuel every few days as well

 

[Photo_John]

I use Oceans Blends 2 part

 

[Alex T.]

snowsrfr,

To answer your question,

I have the following in my 72x18x27 sps/clam reef tank:

Achilles Tang,Yellow Tang, 2 Lyretail Anthias, 4 Blue/Green Chromis, Coral Beauty, Orange Tail Blue Devil Damsel, Maroon Clownfish, Pink Skunk Clownfish, and Sixline Wrasse.

The tank is skimmed with a 4 foot tall ETSS 900xr powered by a Blueline 55 HD. My sump volume is roughly 35 gallons, and I run a BRS Dual GFO/Carbon Reactor. I change 25 gallons of water per week using Reef Crystals salt mix and feed the following:

Morning before work: 1 cube Mysis, 1 cube Bloodworms, pinch of pellet
Night: 1 cube Mysis, 1 Cube Rotifers or Cyclopeez, Nori

NO3: currently .2 Salifert
Phosphate: .02 Hanna Checker
Calcium: 420 - 450
Magnesium: 1360
Alkalinity: 9-10
SG: 1.026
PH: 8.0 - 8.2

 

[Alex T.]

On a side note...this is my second go at this tank (see above post). Before, I was a carbon doser (vodka/vinegar). I had undetectable nitrate and phosphate and was running a barebottom tank. The tank, for the most part was ULNS. My sps started to pale and recede from the base. I thought this was high phosphates when in actuality corals were starving to death. I added a phosphate reactor (for the phosphates I couldn't detect, lol) and started feeding Oyster Feast and amino acids below the recommended dosage. My tank took a turn for the worst into a downward spiral in which I lost some very valuable colonies and 2 beautiful ultra grade Maxima clams. Hair algae took over the tank from the additives I was dosing "well below" recommended. I immediately stopped and did massive water changes. My fish survived the ordeal, but all that was left in the wake of this quest for the ultimate coloration was a pink birdsnest, some monti digitata and 1 crocea clam.

I'm not saying don't dose additives and supplements, but I will never dose these things again. I simply feed my fish more than normal, stay up on water changes and keep the tank slightly dirty to leave a food source for my sps. In my experience, as corals grow they get more colorful. I can wait, and my wallet thanks me too.

 

[29reef]

Big skimmer, lots of light, lots of fish, and crank up the flow. These things combined with proper stable conditions will result in success and colorful corals.

 

[Snowsrfr]

Thanks for all the input, and keep it coming.

This is my first SPS dominate tank, and needless to say I've bought nothing but high end ORA, AT, etc. frags so I want to do whats best.

Equipment wise, I've cut no corners (at least I don't think :lmao, running APEX controller, SWC cone skimmer, MP10's, custom built Ca reactor, etc. and with all the automation we put into our tanks today, it's hard to wrap your head around the keep it simple stupid approach when it comes to the overwhelming amount of supplements, foods, etc.

This is a great community, and I appreciate everybody's input.

 

[Snowsrfr]

snowsrfr,

To answer your question,

I have the following in my 72x18x27 sps/clam reef tank:

Achilles Tang,Yellow Tang, 2 Lyretail Anthias, 4 Blue/Green Chromis, Coral Beauty, Orange Tail Blue Devil Damsel, Maroon Clownfish, Pink Skunk Clownfish, and Sixline Wrasse.

The tank is skimmed with a 4 foot tall ETSS 900xr powered by a Blueline 55 HD. My sump volume is roughly 35 gallons, and I run a BRS Dual GFO/Carbon Reactor. I change 25 gallons of water per week using Reef Crystals salt mix and feed the following:

Morning before work: 1 cube Mysis, 1 cube Bloodworms, pinch of pellet
Night: 1 cube Mysis, 1 Cube Rotifers or Cyclopeez, Nori

NO3: currently .2 Salifert
Phosphate: .02 Hanna Checker
Calcium: 420 - 450
Magnesium: 1360
Alkalinity: 9-10
SG: 1.026
PH: 8.0 - 8.2

Alex,
Can you tell me more about what a Hanna checker is? Something a reefer should have or one of those really cool things that people like me just wanna have cuz it's "cool".

 

[Alex T.]

Snowsfr,

Ask and ye shall receive....

http://glassbox-design.com/2010/hanna-checker-po4-colorimeter/

 

[nbsdsailor]

Only things I dose are BRS Ca, Alk, and Mg.