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Unread 01/23/2010, 11:16 PM   #1
DC_40gallon
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Anyone heard/use seachem Reef Plus?

I seen this stuff surfing around drsfostersmith and it seemed to be promising. I do a 10% water change weekly with red sea coral pro so my calcium stays above 450 all the time. This stuff doesn't have calcium but appears to have all the vitamins and minerals to boost my chalice, sps and frags.

Just wanted thoughts about this and/or any other coral boost supplement that I should start adding to my tank.

The only thing I do to my tank is the 10% water change and feed my fish mysis. I don't even feed my corals anything yet.

Also what do you all think about kent coral accel?



Last edited by DC_40gallon; 01/23/2010 at 11:37 PM. Reason: Added info
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Unread 01/24/2010, 09:44 AM   #2
DC_40gallon
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Bump


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Unread 01/24/2010, 11:56 AM   #3
Randy Holmes-Farley
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It has a lot of stuff in it with no demonstrated benefit as a tank additive (vitamins, iodide, many of the metals, for example), but some of the ingredients maybe useful (iron if you grow macroalgae, amino acids, although it does not include the ones I'd want to dose, such as aspartic acid, for example).


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Unread 01/24/2010, 04:46 PM   #4
DC_40gallon
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Randy - thank you for replying.

For someone in my case who only does 10-15% water changes weekly (which keeps up my alk and calc) what else should I be doing to give my frags and other corals the boost they need to thrive and have good growth rates?

I'm running t5's (new bulbs) with a wave point fixture.

I'm trying to get a bulb combo advice from the lighting forum but so far no good feedback.


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Unread 01/24/2010, 06:45 PM   #5
mfinn
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I use it in my zoanthid only tank.


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Unread 01/24/2010, 10:14 PM   #6
DC_40gallon
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Are you a fan of it?


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Unread 01/24/2010, 10:53 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DC_40gallon View Post
Are you a fan of it?


not really.



But I do have nice growth with my zoanthids.


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Unread 01/24/2010, 11:10 PM   #8
DC_40gallon
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Might you elaborate? What trends you from not liking it?


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Unread 01/25/2010, 07:06 AM   #9
mfinn
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A person I know who does very well with zoanthids recommended it to me, so I thought I'd give it a try. Have been using it ever since. I haven't seen any down side.
Upside is my zoanthids are doing well.


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Unread 01/25/2010, 07:38 AM   #10
Randy Holmes-Farley
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For someone in my case who only does 10-15% water changes weekly (which keeps up my alk and calc) what else should I be doing to give my frags and other corals the boost they need to thrive and have good growth rates?


That’s pretty extensive water changes. As long as you are using a decent salt mix and alkalinity is OK (it may not be adequate to maintain alkalinity), then there's little else I'd do except possibly occasional iron if you grow macroalgae.

You might try a pure amino acid supplement, if you are into experimenting.


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Unread 01/25/2010, 09:09 AM   #11
DC_40gallon
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Randy - my question is finally answered! Thank you very much. You have no idea how many times I have asked "is this enough (10-15% water change) and no one will ever give me a response.

I just got into the habit from an old reefer who recommended me the formula. He said, "if you do a 10-15% water change weekly, in your case a 5 gallon water change every 4-7 days (40 gallon tank) then you won't need to do anything. Hell, you probably will find yourself after 4-6 months of not even testing the water!"

I found he was right, my params always stay at 450-500 for calcium, 8-10 for alk and obviously my ammonia and nitrates are always at zero.

The root of my concern was I don't feed my corals ANYTHING. My fish all get mysis shrimp and I haven't lost a coral yet, but being a newbie in the saltwater tank world, I've never had anything tell me that I am supposed to feed corals anything.

Thus my original question - am I supposed to feed my acros, frogspawn, chalice, etc anything? Or is the food and nutrients they all need in my Red Sea Coral Pro and Instant Ocean Reef Crystals salt?

I definitely want to maximize my corals growth and with my current equation of their living conditions and habits, I wasn't sure if they were getting all that they were supposed too or not.


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Unread 01/25/2010, 03:27 PM   #12
Randy Holmes-Farley
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FWIW, I'm very surprised you can maintain alkalinity with growing SPS at that water change percent. Are there many SPS in the system?

What do you use for evaporation top off?


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Unread 01/25/2010, 03:42 PM   #13
DC_40gallon
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I have 2 chalice frags, birdsnest frag, a acro frag (3-4 inches), a small head of frogspawn, 10 candy canes (same colony), large kenya tree, small frag of orange monti cap, one 30+ polyp colony and 2 smaller (5 heads) colonies of polyps, large green star polyp colony (round softball sized colony) and a softball sized leather coral.


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Unread 01/25/2010, 03:44 PM   #14
DC_40gallon
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I am going to order a jar of Coral Frenzy for feeding 2x weekly (read great reviews about that stuff) and I with your advice I am going to order a bottle of Kent Coral Accel due to it appears to be a great source of amino acids and also read great reviews about it as well.


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Unread 01/25/2010, 04:39 PM   #15
Randy Holmes-Farley
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Sounds fine.

What do you use for evaporation top off? Tap water may be supplying alkalinity. That's why I asked.


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Unread 01/25/2010, 06:36 PM   #16
DC_40gallon
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I top off with RO/DI. Speaking of which glad I just read your post update, I've got a 5 gallon bucket filling up now in the bathtub that is probably full lol.


You mentioned experimenting using amino acids, what were you referring too? Whatever it is it sounds intriguing.


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Unread 01/26/2010, 05:43 AM   #17
Randy Holmes-Farley
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Many people with very low nutrient systems find that certain organsims may be nutreint deficient, and some seem to be helped by adding amino acid supplements. I do not personally dose them, but many folks do. I discuss it here:

The “How To” Guide to Reef Aquarium Chemistry for Beginners, Part 2: What Chemicals Must be Supplemented
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2007-04/rhf/index.php

from it:

Supplementing Amino Acids
The deposition of calcium carbonate into intricately structured skeletons is one of the wonders of corals that aquarists marvel at. At the molecular level, corals often guide the precipitation of calcium carbonate with organic materials, encouraging precipitation on some parts of the skeleton or inhibiting it elsewhere. Often these organic materials are proteins that contain negatively charged amino acids, such as aspartic acid. These negatively charged amino acids may interact strongly with positively charged calcium as it is deposited, allowing the proteins to guide the precipitation.

It turns out that some corals cannot make enough aspartic acid to meet their demand, and must get it from foods or from the water. Depending on the species of coral involved and the foods provided to the aquarium, the supplied foods may not be an appropriate source of aspartic acid for corals, and supplemental aspartic acid has the potential to be useful. It might be taken up directly or be taken up by other organisms that are, in turn, consumed by the coral (e.g., bacteria).

I do not presently add any amino acids to my aquarium, but some aquarists do. Those who do sometimes report improvements in the appearance of their corals. I do not know if this is a true cause and effect, or a coincidence, but aquarists might consider dosing certain amino acids. A number of commercial amino acid supplements are available to hobbyists, and some might also be obtained in suitable form from a health food store (beware of phosphate as one of the other ingredients in human supplements).

I don’t have a recommended dose. If you choose to experiment, start with a low dose, say, 1/8 teaspoon (0.5 gram) of solid amino acid or the equivalent amount of a solution, to a 100-gallon aquarium once a week. Then, slowly ramp up the dose, looking for positive or negative effects.

Note, however, that not all amino acids are beneficial. Many may just drive bacterial growth, and all contain nitrogen, so they may contribute to the nitrogenous waste that ends up as nitrate in many aquaria.

Additional discussion of the effects of amino acids and other organics on calcification by corals appears in this article:

The Chemical & Biochemical Mechanisms of Calcification in Corals
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/apr2002/chem.htm


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