Sign of low nutrients dying grape culorpa

Jyetman · 01/21/2015, 05:18 PM

My corals aren't as perky as they should be especially my zoos. My salifert PO4 kit always reads zero as does my API nitrate kit. I have a algae scrubber and grows lots of hair algae. Also have thick-dense grape culorpa growing at the bottom of the bucket scrubber. In my DT found a single strand of grape culorpa growing in with a zoo plug well it shriveled with no growth. I'm assuming the scrubber algae is using up the available PO4 and Nitrates causing the corals to react? Started feeding more and zoos did start to open up more but slowly closed again. Noticed this when the scrubber algae got greener! So do I keep harvesting all the hair algae off the screen more often not sure what to do seems like a vicious cycle.

Jyetman · 01/21/2015, 08:23 PM

I know this is probably a really really really stupid post but would increasing the feedings be the right move?

cambo123 · 01/21/2015, 09:35 PM

With a good filtration system it can be hard to get detectable nutrients and corals will often pale/suffer. For example I have a system with 35g of total water volume. I have a skimmer rated for 100g, 40lb of love rock, carbon, and gfo. I feed 1-2 cubes of frozen food, 2ml of amino acid fuel, 0.5ml of oyster feast, and dose .5ppm of kno3...every day!!!. If I don't dose kno3 I have 0 nitrates and 0 phosphates even with heavy feeding. So it's worth a shot I say.

Jyetman · 01/21/2015, 09:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cambo123

With a good filtration system it can be hard to get detectable nutrients and corals will often pale/suffer. For example I have a system with 35g of total water volume. I have a skimmer rated for 100g, 40lb of love rock, carbon, and gfo. I feed 1-2 cubes of frozen food, 2ml of amino acid fuel, 0.5ml of oyster feast, and dose .5ppm of kno3...every day!!!. If I don't dose kno3 I have 0 nitrates and 0 phosphates even with heavy feeding. So it's worth a shot I say.

Where can I buy kno3?

cambo123 · 01/21/2015, 10:11 PM

I would try increasing your feeding first if you really think it is a low nutrient problem. What are your other specs? Lighting, parameters, etc.

KN03..potassium nitrate...is the only ingredient in spectracide stump remove. Lowes carries it. I have found that no matter how heavily I feed my system that I can not increase NO3 without drastically increasing P04. I mix the kno3 to a 1moler solution and can dose the tank to whatever I want. This is only a very recent venture for me. I am currently forcing mine to 2.5ppm no3 with a gradual plan to sustain it at 5ppm. Phosphates bounce around undetectable and 0.015

01/21/2015, 05:18 PM	#1
Jyetman Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,712	Sign of low nutrients dying grape culorpa My corals aren't as perky as they should be especially my zoos. My salifert PO4 kit always reads zero as does my API nitrate kit. I have a algae scrubber and grows lots of hair algae. Also have thick-dense grape culorpa growing at the bottom of the bucket scrubber. In my DT found a single strand of grape culorpa growing in with a zoo plug well it shriveled with no growth. I'm assuming the scrubber algae is using up the available PO4 and Nitrates causing the corals to react? Started feeding more and zoos did start to open up more but slowly closed again. Noticed this when the scrubber algae got greener! So do I keep harvesting all the hair algae off the screen more often not sure what to do seems like a vicious cycle.

01/21/2015, 08:23 PM	#2
Jyetman Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 1,712	I know this is probably a really really really stupid post but would increasing the feedings be the right move?

01/21/2015, 09:35 PM	#3
cambo123 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 337	With a good filtration system it can be hard to get detectable nutrients and corals will often pale/suffer. For example I have a system with 35g of total water volume. I have a skimmer rated for 100g, 40lb of love rock, carbon, and gfo. I feed 1-2 cubes of frozen food, 2ml of amino acid fuel, 0.5ml of oyster feast, and dose .5ppm of kno3...every day!!!. If I don't dose kno3 I have 0 nitrates and 0 phosphates even with heavy feeding. So it's worth a shot I say.

01/21/2015, 10:11 PM	#5
cambo123 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 337	I would try increasing your feeding first if you really think it is a low nutrient problem. What are your other specs? Lighting, parameters, etc. KN03..potassium nitrate...is the only ingredient in spectracide stump remove. Lowes carries it. I have found that no matter how heavily I feed my system that I can not increase NO3 without drastically increasing P04. I mix the kno3 to a 1moler solution and can dose the tank to whatever I want. This is only a very recent venture for me. I am currently forcing mine to 2.5ppm no3 with a gradual plan to sustain it at 5ppm. Phosphates bounce around undetectable and 0.015