new tank

[BigRedsReefs10]

Originally Posted by ms705jk

I've reeled off for now on the gorg. Instead I got a new test kit for phos. kh, and cal. I did a full test and do really now what it all means. I haven't been able to get the growth on my zoas duncan and rics I thought I should. From reading older posts I think with the current lights I have I'm only about 3 Watts away from the recommends minimum so I'll be upgrading soon

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The whole wats per gallon thing is old and useless IMHO.

Originally Posted by ms705jk

Salinity .026
Nitrate 10-4ppm
Nitrite 0ppm
Am 0ppm
Phos.25
Kh. 179ppm
Cal. 440
Ph 7.8
Not really sure what it all means

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If nitrate is 10-40 and phosphate is .25 (assuming your using an api kit, which are terrible and shouldn't be trusted for reefs) get ready for algae. Even for softies I keep my params at nitrate <5ppm and phosphate <.05 ppm

[ms705jk]

So how do I lower my phos? I'm doing a wc tomorrow then test again

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[BigRedsReefs10]

Originally Posted by ms705jk

So how do I lower my phos? I'm doing a wc tomorrow then test again

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Need some info from you for that. Maintenance schedule/routine, are you using ro/di water, what/how much do you feed, filtration?

[ms705jk]

I do a water change at least once every other week. I try to do it every week but that's hard for are routine. I do top off with ro/di. My feeding is frozen food once a day. One little frozen cubes makes 4 days of food

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[ms705jk]

Oh sorry my filtration system is a 3stage ehiem submersible. Which I'm not sure how often the clean out the first stage sponge

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[BigRedsReefs10]

Your putting more nutrients in than your taking out. Decrease the feeding and increase the wc's. Weekly wc's are really not that hard, and make a world of difference. I'd also cut back the feeding to 3x a week. On the filter, I'd just dump the sponge all together, if you need some sort of mechanical filtration pick up some poly fill from Walmart (no chemical additives) and use a little for a week and throw it away and replace it during your weekly wc, the it bag is only $10 and lasts forever

[ms705jk]

Thanks for the info. I'll make the changes you've suggested. Perfect timing my wife is on her way to Wal-Mart now.

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[BigRedsReefs10]

Make sure there's no additives or chemicals.

[ms705jk]

10-4 . Thats how I wrote it on her list. Thanks

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[ms705jk]

I have some sump sox can I cut a piece to fit the chamber? That should work the same

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[BigRedsReefs10]

It could, but it would have to be cleaned frequently. I'm lazy and that's why I use the poly fill, $10 lasts over 6 months and I just throw away the used stuff weekly.

[ms705jk]

Thats what I mean. The piece I cut today was only 4" dia. So one sox would last a while

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[ms705jk]

Wc done. Filter sponge replaced with poly fill. Lights coming soon "nano60". I replaced the koralia 240 with a 750. Maybe to much flow for a 18 gallon tank. All inhabitants are open but the frogspawn is only extended half of what he was before. Also something weird with one of my zoas. Have a look

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[ms705jk]

The new power head as been in the tank for a week now and it seems the only one that's happy about it are the fish. How long will it take for the corals to open back up in all their glory

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[ms705jk]

So I changed the power head back to the 240 and increased the out full from the filter. Seems to be working much better, even the duncan is starting to stay out longer. This weekend I picked up some coral food and was wondering if any of you have used it. Its called coral vibrancy. Its a power that needs to be hydrated with tank water and spot feed 2-3 times weekly. Just seeing if y'all are using something like this tia

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[ms705jk]

Got a couple of new items in the tank this weekend

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[ms705jk]

I'm not to sure what the first frag pic is but they had one in the grow out tank and it was beautiful. I wish my lfs had some shrooms, I'd like to add 4,5 and a few more corals. Then this long stocking process can be over. I'm thinking about a green duncan, a trumpet, and hammer. Ive already purchased a sun poly coral just waiting for it to be fraged. How many color variations does the hammer coral come in. I'd like something other than green

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[bribo12]

That first coral is galaxea. Has quite the stinging reach. Hammers come in a bunch of colors. Just type in multicolored hammer on google and a ton of varieties will pop up.


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[ms705jk]

Thanks bribo

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[ms705jk]

So today I snuck out of work a bit early and headed to a reef store I've never been to before. The name of the store is elite marine life in pampano beach. I would definitely recommend this store if your in the south Florida area. One of the members here works there and you can tell all the staff live for this hobby. All the tanks are in pristine condition. They were feeding while I was in the store and it was so cool to see the Bristle worms in the fishes display tanks coming out of the rocks. They really thrive to have a complete eco system in each one of the sale tanks. Elite has something there for everyone. From high designer frags to your run of the mill ploys. I will take some pics of my 2 purchases tomorrow if they open up. I got a 2 polyp Rasta and a small rock with 3 blue shrooms and 1 red shroom for $50. Blah blah blah....... If you're in the area check them out

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