I Need Help!!! SALTWATER GURU????

[FirstTimeReef]

Ok...I've "inherited" a 50 Gallon aquarium....it's been set up in my house for 3 weeks...seems to be doing ok. I have a Fluval 404 filter...two emporer bio filters....125 lbs live rock....a coralife 48 in light strip...1 leather....and three corals...I'm gonna include some photos. I got the rock out of an aquarium that had been completely mishandled...it looked like a lake with all the green algae..but the rocks are in magnificent shape....AMAZING color and live growth. I've cleaned most of the algae off but am having a recurrence problem...I have plenty of snails and hermits which seem to be keeping things down a little, and also a lawnmower bleeny I rarely see hide nor hair of. (he has plenty of places to hide..) 1st major concern: My corals seem to not be doing so well....they change everyday, one day they look great, the next on the verge of death....PLEASE HELP!!! How should I be timing my lights....????? should it always be the same??? Chemically I'm using PURPLEUP every few days for calcium and some liquid food for the corals...but I think they are hating me.... [/i]

 

[Sadielynn]

What is the wattage of your lighting what kind of bulbs NO PC VHO ? How long are you running your lights how old are the bulbs the spectrum can shift after a period , how much and often are you doing water changes . What are your tests showing
Ammonia
NitrIte
NitrAte
PH
Calcium
Phosphates
Iodine
Iodine and calcium should be tested before adding it
Be aware that purple up contains diffrent compounds such as Iodine , these can be overdosed if too much is used .
Coral food what foods are you using ?
Corals have "moods" the contract and expand we have ones that close and stay closed for a few days then open , shrooms that shrink and expand daily when they eat ect .
What are your inhibitants fish ect ?

 

[lando]

Moved to apropriate forum
Welcome to AquariumAdvice.com!!!

My corals seem to not be doing so well....they change everyday, one day they look great, the next on the verge of death....PLEASE HELP!!!

First things first...water parameters. We need NH3, NO2, NO3, SG, PO4,Ph and temp.

How should I be timing my lights....?????

Most use a photo period of 10-12hrs/day.

should it always be the same???

Yes

Chemically I'm using PURPLEUP every few days for calcium

Do you know what your current CA level is? What are you trying to acheive with the purple up?

liquid food for the corals

What type? What type of corals?

 

[FishFrik]

You have alot of LR in that 50 0.o

 

[roka64]

WELCOME TO AA!!!

Did your tank finish it's cycle?

 

[Hara]

Does the fluval have filter media in it? If it does, you are better off removing all the media and letting it act as a water circulator only. The media in it would produce foods for the nuisance algaes. You have sufficient live rock for filtration, so you do not need the fluval for that. The same applies to the emporer filters. If you decide to do this. Do not remove all of them at one time. Remove the media from one on one week, wait two weeks and remove the other. I would leave them running as I said for added water circulation and also as a way to run carbon one week of the month.

Foods are not necessary for your corals at all if your lighting is sufficient. This too, can be adding to your algae problems.

As requested by others, please post the water chemistry parameters.

 

[melosu58]

Let us know about your lighting. Type and wattage