Who's has high Trates and still keep colors?

shlap said:
Yeah.. your params all look fine. Some other things to check:

Salinity -- if you haven't already, use another method to measure your salinity.
Bulbs? -- maybe the bulbs could use replacing. Have you ever measured your PAR?
Fish -- Could you use some more? I have a really messy blue tang and moorish idol that crap whenever they see a bubble. The acros love the crap.
Light intensity/spectrum -- How long do you keep all T5s on? Which lights do you use?
Carbon -- if you're not running it, definitely do; removes anything bad that might be in the water

Maybe iodine or strontium deficiency but if you're doing water changes once in awhile you should be good.

Or maybe you're right and you just need to drop the nitrates. There's some weird chemistry going on in our tanks and what works for one reefer doesn't always work for others (dirty water) . Good luck John!
Click to expand...

Great looking MI. Care to give me a crash course how to keep one? Did you QT yours? How long have you had it for? Thanks
 
Johnjohn713 said:
Man I don't know anymore. We're all been told high nitrate &po4 are not very helpful when it comes to colors but these days I keep hearing/seeing nice tank with off the chart phosphate .1+ and nitrate anywhere from 10-20ppm...sigh
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check the source??? the internet allows for "some" exaggeration! any book, reef i've seen, personal experience, or coral expert will all lead to the same advice: feed your fish and keep no3 and po4 as low as possible.
 
CHSUB said:
check the source??? the internet allows for "some" exaggeration! any book, reef i've seen, personal experience, or coral expert will all lead to the same advice: feed your fish and keep no3 and po4 as low as possible.
Click to expand...


Countless peeps have been running high numbers with some degree of success.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2366953


Others on R2R reported the same outcomes. But what am I to say I'm nothing but an average reefer that can keep corals alive but not the colors I wanted.
 
Something doesn't add up. With what you've described as your fish load and feeding you should have very low po4 and nitrate. It's almost like you have no bacteria.

1. How long has your tank been setup and do you have coraline algae in your tank.
2. What are you using for circulation?
 
Johnjohn713 said:
Countless peeps have been running high numbers with some degree of success.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2366953


Others on clay-boa reported the same outcomes. But what am I to say I'm nothing but an average reefer that can keep corals alive but not the colors I wanted.
Click to expand...

Why waste your time and effort trying to duplicate one reefers technique when the overwhelming majority, with proven results, tells you to do it another way? Make it simpler not harder, no one can argue that is an impressive reef; however, it is the exception not the rule.
 
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Deadcalm said:
Something doesn't add up. With what you've described as your fish load and feeding you should have very low po4 and nitrate. It's almost like you have no bacteria.

1. How long has your tank been setup and do you have coraline algae in your tank.
2. What are you using for circulation?
Click to expand...


I know, right? It's a 10 months old system with some coralline, just here and there. Is coralline an indication of success? I, too, suspect lack of bacteria but how could you tell?

Got a 600 gph return pump, 2 wp25 + a wp10.

@Chsub I'm not replicate others' high po4 levels. Just simply perplexed as to how they manage to pull it off with such high nutrient. Thanks!
 
Johnjohn713 said:
I know, right? It's a 10 months old system with some coralline, just here and there. Is coralline an indication of success? I, too, suspect lack of bacteria but how could you tell?
Click to expand...

Yeah typically if you don't have coraline then your system is still to young to be successful with sps coral.

Your nutrient situation is strange unless you've introduced anti-bacterial medication or something.

In comparison to my tank feeding and bio load:

2 tangs, 2 wrasses, 5 chromis, 2 clowns, 3 damsels and 3 cardinals
I feed my fish twice early in the day with an auto feeder
Again when I get home from work with 2 cubes ( 1 brine shrimp and 1 mysis)
And again before the lights go out with flakes and pellets

My nitrates are 1 and po4 .03 and I don't use GFO. I just rely on my bacteria and skimmer. I dose a little Microbacter7 daily.
 
No meds ever touched my system, none whatsoever. I thinks it's either insufficient LR or bacteria thus causing high trates in return. Added ceramic rings a few days ago for more surface area so that's probably a few weeks away to see any results.
 
Johnjohn713 said:
Great looking MI. Care to give me a crash course how to keep one? Did you QT yours? How long have you had it for? Thanks
Click to expand...

Thanks! I've had him just 2 weeks shy of a year. I got him from another local reefer in HORRIBLE shape. He was literally ripped to shreds but he's doing awesome now; check out this post: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showpost.php?p=21593366&postcount=2301

He only eats New Life Spectrum pellets, Ocean Formula 1 pellets, and about 3 sheets of nori a day. He's a fatty. It seems people have a lot better luck with Idols that come out of Hawaii (mine is) so make sure yours is sourced from there if you decide to get one. And many people including myself swear by NLS pellets.
 
Johnjohn713 said:
Countless peeps have been running high numbers with some degree of success.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2366953
Click to expand...

You should realize the guy with that tank is an aquarium professional with an absolute ton of experience. Read his signature. He states he has a 212,000 gallon tank at work, and he lives in the SF Bay Area, so that means he works at the Steinhart Aquarium. He is not your typical Reefer, and his tank is the exception, not the rule.
 
And he won't show any close up pictures of his sps so we can determine the health of his coral. I asked him and 3 others did as well and he won't show any close ups. What's he hiding?
 
Yea close up pics, anywhere near macro like of his corals would be awesome for the thread, i stopped viewing it once i realized none would be provided.

OP if you want help post some pics. Much easier for people to help with pics of the subject, otherwise its sometimes a lot of guessing and assuming.

I have seen lots of tanks with high nutrient levels that are spectacular. And the whole "gotta have levels at or near zero for good colors" is rediculous.

Personally i wouldnt be expecting great colors on a tank 10 months old, but have seen a good number. So many ways to keep a reef, and to me its all about keeping it simple and stable.
 
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