Coral smoothie anyone??

greg1786 · 03/31/2013, 01:25 AM

Hi guys. For the last several weeks ive been mulling over getting food specifically for my corals. After quite a bit of research i had it narrowed down to aquavitro reef fuel, rods food, or red sea reef energy A&B. All three seemed to be well liked in the community and each offered up a pretty nice ingredient list. It was really going to come down to which one i could get locally, and start with that one and switch only if I didnt have good results after a month or two. While at my lfs today, i had the chance to buy the reef energy by red sea, however i took a recommendation from the owner( whom is well respected in my town and has been in business for over 20 years) and decided to give Coral smoothie by algagen a shot.

I guess this would be a good time to give a little info on the system. I have a 125 gallon mixed reef with a 40 gallon sump. I run carbon and gfo in the sump as well as chaeto and red gracilaria macro algae. The tank started as a mixed soft/lps tank but has become a mixed reef dominated by sps. 1100gph return pump, four powerheads totaling 2800gph combined, 110lbs lr, 1" sandbed, 4x54 watt t5ho and 2x95 watt power compact for lighting.Now that you know a little about my tank ill get to the point.

I feed my fish nls pellets, spirinula enriched brine, and nori(for tangs). I target feed my lps corals and nems once a week with the brine. So far ive been havingvery good sucess with my sps in terms of growth and color but i feel like i could get even better results by using one of the foods i mentioned in the beginning. I bought the coral smoothie by algagen after the lfs owner said he has been using it in his tanks and loves it( his corals are beautiful). So i fed using it tonight for the first time and saw some polyp extension from my acros and other sps that ive never seen before! I was hoping some of you guys maybe using this product as well and could share your thoughts and opinions. If your using one of the three i was considering but passed on please share your experiences with those as well. Thanks -Greg

Lowefx · 03/31/2013, 09:21 AM

I use the coral smoothie (Oyster Delight) and my LPS love it. Im fairly new to reefing but in my 55gal w/ 10 gal sump (2x96PC, 2x150MH), but as soon i spot feed, everything goes nuts. Next month im going to try a different food to compare with. I feed twice a week.

sporto0 · 03/31/2013, 09:42 AM

In my opinion, only target feeding is effective for corals & mainly just LPS, most any other reef mix gets wasted in your sytem & ends up dirtying the water conditions over time. Most corals can survive on fish waste & light, my reef is SPS dominant & I rarely if ever add anything specifically to feed the corals. Some SPS feed in the dark, so this may explain why you haven't seen good polyp extentsion before.

greg1786 · 03/31/2013, 07:20 PM

I generally agree that sps do well from light and fish waste. I also believe however that with the right food, they could do better. Things like phytoplankton, rotifiers, copepods, etc etc. i get good PE from my sps however after feeding with the coral frenzy it was so good some of the corals looked like cotton balls!! Anyone else feeding their sps with coral smoothie?

Sk8r · 03/31/2013, 08:08 PM

Most effective coral food (lps) that I've found is jumbo dried krill, Tetra brand, ground up and fed to the tank. Everything likes it, and krill is a good, broad food source.

reefD · 03/31/2013, 09:16 PM

I love coral smoothie. Good stuff

Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android

Fish Biscuit · 04/01/2013, 02:35 PM

I use coral smootie once a week or once every other along w/ Rods reef & Prime Reef. My LPS is growing like weeds.

03/31/2013, 01:25 AM	#1
greg1786 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Baltimore md Posts: 1,241	Coral smoothie anyone?? Hi guys. For the last several weeks ive been mulling over getting food specifically for my corals. After quite a bit of research i had it narrowed down to aquavitro reef fuel, rods food, or red sea reef energy A&B. All three seemed to be well liked in the community and each offered up a pretty nice ingredient list. It was really going to come down to which one i could get locally, and start with that one and switch only if I didnt have good results after a month or two. While at my lfs today, i had the chance to buy the reef energy by red sea, however i took a recommendation from the owner( whom is well respected in my town and has been in business for over 20 years) and decided to give Coral smoothie by algagen a shot. I guess this would be a good time to give a little info on the system. I have a 125 gallon mixed reef with a 40 gallon sump. I run carbon and gfo in the sump as well as chaeto and red gracilaria macro algae. The tank started as a mixed soft/lps tank but has become a mixed reef dominated by sps. 1100gph return pump, four powerheads totaling 2800gph combined, 110lbs lr, 1" sandbed, 4x54 watt t5ho and 2x95 watt power compact for lighting.Now that you know a little about my tank ill get to the point. I feed my fish nls pellets, spirinula enriched brine, and nori(for tangs). I target feed my lps corals and nems once a week with the brine. So far ive been havingvery good sucess with my sps in terms of growth and color but i feel like i could get even better results by using one of the foods i mentioned in the beginning. I bought the coral smoothie by algagen after the lfs owner said he has been using it in his tanks and loves it( his corals are beautiful). So i fed using it tonight for the first time and saw some polyp extension from my acros and other sps that ive never seen before! I was hoping some of you guys maybe using this product as well and could share your thoughts and opinions. If your using one of the three i was considering but passed on please share your experiences with those as well. Thanks -Greg

03/31/2013, 08:08 PM	#5
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Most effective coral food (lps) that I've found is jumbo dried krill, Tetra brand, ground up and fed to the tank. Everything likes it, and krill is a good, broad food source. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

03/31/2013, 09:16 PM	#6
reefD Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Schenectady,New York Posts: 4,968	I love coral smoothie. Good stuff Posted from ReefCentral.com App for Android __________________ DAVID Current Tank Info: it has four sides and a bottom...oh yeah and it has water in it. lol

04/01/2013, 02:35 PM	#7
Fish Biscuit Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Chicago Posts: 1,164	I use coral smootie once a week or once every other along w/ Rods reef & Prime Reef. My LPS is growing like weeds. __________________ Michele I enjoy vodka entirely too much to share with the fish. Current Tank Info: 65 rimless with Eshopps R200 sump, current inhabitants randall goby, helfrichi, possum wrasse, barnacle blenny, mandarin, pistol, peppermint, & fire shrimp, snails, hermits, & LPS

03/31/2013, 09:21 AM	#2
Lowefx Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Winchester, VA Posts: 695	I use the coral smoothie (Oyster Delight) and my LPS love it. Im fairly new to reefing but in my 55gal w/ 10 gal sump (2x96PC, 2x150MH), but as soon i spot feed, everything goes nuts. Next month im going to try a different food to compare with. I feed twice a week.

03/31/2013, 09:42 AM	#3
sporto0 Moved On Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Pittsburgh, Pa. Posts: 2,924	In my opinion, only target feeding is effective for corals & mainly just LPS, most any other reef mix gets wasted in your sytem & ends up dirtying the water conditions over time. Most corals can survive on fish waste & light, my reef is SPS dominant & I rarely if ever add anything specifically to feed the corals. Some SPS feed in the dark, so this may explain why you haven't seen good polyp extentsion before.

03/31/2013, 07:20 PM	#4
greg1786 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Baltimore md Posts: 1,241	I generally agree that sps do well from light and fish waste. I also believe however that with the right food, they could do better. Things like phytoplankton, rotifiers, copepods, etc etc. i get good PE from my sps however after feeding with the coral frenzy it was so good some of the corals looked like cotton balls!! Anyone else feeding their sps with coral smoothie?