Back again, any more ideas, or should I just tap out? - Page 6

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 01:07 PM

And I believe I have all simple corals right? Except the montipora, which is not so well. How many on here can't grow GSP, trumpets, colt coral, blue cloves, frogspawn, palys, shrooms, nephthea, coralline, etc??????

jml1149 · 04/10/2016, 01:16 PM

Easy man, less light, 5cc randy (or 7.5) post a pic from today, let's see what it looks like

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 01:18 PM

pic comin up!

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 01:41 PM

as requested. sad GSP, unsaveable montipora? Keep forgetting to shoot the pineapple tree, but not much to see!!!!

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 01:48 PM

little pineapple tree is about 2 1/2 years old? Same size. Blue clove polyps since last June. Same size

jml1149 · 04/10/2016, 01:58 PM

That trumpet looks a hair fuller, yeah??

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 02:04 PM

I would have to agree, hope it keeps getting better...........What's your theory on the other 'nuissance' stuff? Colt, kenya, gsp, clove. Hope it's all light related???!!!

homer1475 · 04/10/2016, 02:06 PM

Trust me when I tell you, you don't want that blue clove polyp to start growing......

Mine in a year has overgrown my tank so bad, that none of the rocks in my biocube are making their way into my new tank.

And not to keep telling you to slow down, but the biggest key to success in his hobby, is stability IMO. Even if your numbers are high or low, as long as they stay consistently high or low, it's still better then wild fluctuations.

jml1149 · 04/10/2016, 02:07 PM

Well I think the trumpet is the "hardest" coral you have to keep, so if we can make it happy everything else should fall in line.

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 02:09 PM

ha, I know what you mean about the cloves or GSP overtaking, I'd LOVE to have to worry about that right about now though!!!!!!!

cncguy · 04/10/2016, 06:55 PM

so I mixed up a gal of randys recipe for alk in a 1 gal jug, but at 5ml a time it's gonna last a while!!!!

How long will it be good in the jug?

jml1149 · 04/10/2016, 07:18 PM

My first jug lasted over a year

gigamanx · 04/11/2016, 08:25 AM

My 2 cents if it helps....I've never bothered with PH and Alk. Once I knew the PH of my R/O water, things pretty much stay the same all the time. Light has been the biggest change for me. New bulbs vs Old bulbs and changing the length of light in a day. I have an abundance of Kenya and the green polyp I see in your picture. I would highly suggest isolating the polyp to a single rock because once things start growing, it will take over every rocky surface. The kenya will do the same thing. I've had two mass "mowings" in the last two years where I just clean ripped out half my kenya coral. That stuff goes crazy. Good luck!

One more add "Switched from Reef Crystals to Red Sea Coral Pro. No difference"..... I use Reef Crystals and love it. Everyone has an opinion on the best to use, but I've had success with this brand. I actually had a situation where my calcium was too high from water changes so I now use both Reef Crystals and their regular one that has less calcium "instant ocean" I think it's called.

cncguy · 04/11/2016, 09:43 AM

thanks for your 2 cents gigamanx!!! 'IF' things start growing, I'll def. move the GSP, and/or put them back in the 90gal. Guess we'll see, but my kenya tree has been that size for over 2 years now

.

I had used reef crystals since the beginning, maybe 3 or 4 years now, but it was suggested I try something different, so I went with the RSCP hoping for something, but as always, nothing

cncguy · 04/12/2016, 06:57 PM

Ok, update. 3 days dosing the randy recipe for alk at 5ml a day. Alk 10, calcium 420, mag 1290. Question now is, what next? Keep dosing? Check everyday or every 2 days?

cncguy · 04/12/2016, 07:04 PM

Should I also hold off on feeding the corals or keep feeding? I was feeding about once a week, but not last 2 or 3 weeks. I target feed a mix of marine snow and reef chilli

jcheneydc · 04/12/2016, 07:05 PM

With as many water changes and changes, it makes me wonder if you should add some beneficial bacteria back into the tank.

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cncguy · 04/12/2016, 07:10 PM

Good question as well! I have noticed some pods in there if that helps. And also, I know a lot bash the 'live' bagged sand, but either way, I just added that about a month ago......

jcheneydc · 04/12/2016, 07:13 PM

Do you get any algae growth? And what kind?

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cncguy · 04/12/2016, 07:21 PM

Not really yet. From the sand you're asking? It's turned a lil light brown in just a couple spots, but not like I expected

BrianKC · 04/12/2016, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jml1149

also your temp, 79-81 is too high, I keep mine at 77-78. 78 MAX. I find my Euphyllia are really sensitive to anything greater than 78, to the point of not opening up

Red herring. Everyone will debate the right temp but all the issues you're having, throw temp out as a variable (unless your temp swings around a lot. Most will say anything from 76 - even 84 is fine as long as it's stable).

jcheneydc · 04/12/2016, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cncguy

Not really yet. From the sand you're asking? It's turned a lil light brown in just a couple spots, but not like I expected

It really sounds to me like a balance stability issue, along with lack of natural bacterial loads.

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polaravic · 04/12/2016, 09:55 PM

Hi,

I have had a similar problem. I am now doing much better by keeping the kH stable and down to 7.5 to 8.0 because I discovered thru trial and error that is where my tank wants to be or rather the corals are happier and it was such a useless fight to raise it.

I lowered my salinity from 1.027 down to 1.025 and spent more time keeping as stable as possible. I lowered my light levels on my LED light fixture but its no point listing the figures because every tank and light is different.

I hope this helps.

polaravic

jml1149 · 04/13/2016, 05:05 AM

Good news, your parameters are solid. Any further changes in that trumpet? Next need to find a maintenance dose of alk, to keep it from going low again. I would have expected your alk to be slightly lower than 10 though. When I did this, I got my alk to around 10, stopped adding alk, then measured it every day for a couple days. Then I could see how much I was using and calculated how much to add back in. So I think that's what to do next, measure every day for three days and see how it drops.

There may be a BRS video on this on two part dosing.

Next, how do you do your water changes?

I think the beneficial bacteria are ok, if you had an ammonia problem we probably wouldn't have gotten this far.

If still not much change in trumpet need to tweak down the lights a bit further.

But hey, great job getting this far, I know how frustrating it can be and even getting through these last three days is progress!!

homer1475 · 04/13/2016, 05:23 AM

I personally think 1290 while acceptable, is a little on the low side for MAG. I like to keep mine right around 1350 to 1400, but its negligible at this point. Just keep in mind that MAG is the key to the big 3 and with a low MAG the other 2 won't raise no matter how much supplements you add.

At this point, test daily and write it down. Then after a few days you can see how much ALK your using and dose daily accordingly. If your not seeing improvements in a week or 2, then we should trouble shoot something like turning the light intensity down or up, or something totally different.

04/10/2016, 01:16 PM	#127
jml1149 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Southern CT Posts: 818	Easy man, less light, 5cc randy (or 7.5) post a pic from today, let's see what it looks like __________________ 120g mixed reefer.

04/10/2016, 01:58 PM	#131
jml1149 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Southern CT Posts: 818	That trumpet looks a hair fuller, yeah?? __________________ 120g mixed reefer.

04/10/2016, 02:06 PM	#133
homer1475 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Upstate NY Posts: 5,313	Trust me when I tell you, you don't want that blue clove polyp to start growing...... Mine in a year has overgrown my tank so bad, that none of the rocks in my biocube are making their way into my new tank. And not to keep telling you to slow down, but the biggest key to success in his hobby, is stability IMO. Even if your numbers are high or low, as long as they stay consistently high or low, it's still better then wild fluctuations. __________________ 80G SCA Build: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2560256 Originally posted by der_wille_zur_macht: "He's just taking his lunch to work"

04/10/2016, 02:07 PM	#134
jml1149 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Southern CT Posts: 818	Well I think the trumpet is the "hardest" coral you have to keep, so if we can make it happy everything else should fall in line. __________________ 120g mixed reefer.

04/10/2016, 07:18 PM	#137
jml1149 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Southern CT Posts: 818	My first jug lasted over a year __________________ 120g mixed reefer.

04/10/2016, 01:07 PM	#126
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	And I believe I have all simple corals right? Except the montipora, which is not so well. How many on here can't grow GSP, trumpets, colt coral, blue cloves, frogspawn, palys, shrooms, nephthea, coralline, etc??????

04/10/2016, 01:18 PM	#128
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	pic comin up!

04/10/2016, 02:04 PM	#132
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	I would have to agree, hope it keeps getting better...........What's your theory on the other 'nuissance' stuff? Colt, kenya, gsp, clove. Hope it's all light related???!!!

04/10/2016, 02:09 PM	#135
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	ha, I know what you mean about the cloves or GSP overtaking, I'd LOVE to have to worry about that right about now though!!!!!!!

04/10/2016, 06:55 PM	#136
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	so I mixed up a gal of randys recipe for alk in a 1 gal jug, but at 5ml a time it's gonna last a while!!!! How long will it be good in the jug?

04/11/2016, 08:25 AM	#138
gigamanx Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2015 Location: Hershey, PA Posts: 77	My 2 cents if it helps....I've never bothered with PH and Alk. Once I knew the PH of my R/O water, things pretty much stay the same all the time. Light has been the biggest change for me. New bulbs vs Old bulbs and changing the length of light in a day. I have an abundance of Kenya and the green polyp I see in your picture. I would highly suggest isolating the polyp to a single rock because once things start growing, it will take over every rocky surface. The kenya will do the same thing. I've had two mass "mowings" in the last two years where I just clean ripped out half my kenya coral. That stuff goes crazy. Good luck! One more add "Switched from Reef Crystals to Red Sea Coral Pro. No difference"..... I use Reef Crystals and love it. Everyone has an opinion on the best to use, but I've had success with this brand. I actually had a situation where my calcium was too high from water changes so I now use both Reef Crystals and their regular one that has less calcium "instant ocean" I think it's called.

04/11/2016, 09:43 AM	#139
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	thanks for your 2 cents gigamanx!!! 'IF' things start growing, I'll def. move the GSP, and/or put them back in the 90gal. Guess we'll see, but my kenya tree has been that size for over 2 years now. I had used reef crystals since the beginning, maybe 3 or 4 years now, but it was suggested I try something different, so I went with the RSCP hoping for something, but as always, nothing

04/12/2016, 06:57 PM	#140
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	Ok, update. 3 days dosing the randy recipe for alk at 5ml a day. Alk 10, calcium 420, mag 1290. Question now is, what next? Keep dosing? Check everyday or every 2 days?

04/12/2016, 07:04 PM	#141
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	Should I also hold off on feeding the corals or keep feeding? I was feeding about once a week, but not last 2 or 3 weeks. I target feed a mix of marine snow and reef chilli

04/12/2016, 07:05 PM	#142
jcheneydc Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 8	With as many water changes and changes, it makes me wonder if you should add some beneficial bacteria back into the tank. Sent from my SM-G860P using Tapatalk

04/12/2016, 07:10 PM	#143
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	Good question as well! I have noticed some pods in there if that helps. And also, I know a lot bash the 'live' bagged sand, but either way, I just added that about a month ago......

04/12/2016, 07:13 PM	#144
jcheneydc Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 8	Do you get any algae growth? And what kind? Sent from my SM-G860P using Tapatalk

04/12/2016, 07:21 PM	#145
cncguy Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Kane, PA Posts: 296	Not really yet. From the sand you're asking? It's turned a lil light brown in just a couple spots, but not like I expected

04/12/2016, 09:55 PM	#148
polaravic Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 74	Stability Hi, I have had a similar problem. I am now doing much better by keeping the kH stable and down to 7.5 to 8.0 because I discovered thru trial and error that is where my tank wants to be or rather the corals are happier and it was such a useless fight to raise it. I lowered my salinity from 1.027 down to 1.025 and spent more time keeping as stable as possible. I lowered my light levels on my LED light fixture but its no point listing the figures because every tank and light is different. I hope this helps. polaravic

04/13/2016, 05:05 AM	#149
jml1149 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2015 Location: Southern CT Posts: 818	Good news, your parameters are solid. Any further changes in that trumpet? Next need to find a maintenance dose of alk, to keep it from going low again. I would have expected your alk to be slightly lower than 10 though. When I did this, I got my alk to around 10, stopped adding alk, then measured it every day for a couple days. Then I could see how much I was using and calculated how much to add back in. So I think that's what to do next, measure every day for three days and see how it drops. There may be a BRS video on this on two part dosing. Next, how do you do your water changes? I think the beneficial bacteria are ok, if you had an ammonia problem we probably wouldn't have gotten this far. If still not much change in trumpet need to tweak down the lights a bit further. But hey, great job getting this far, I know how frustrating it can be and even getting through these last three days is progress!! __________________ 120g mixed reefer.

04/13/2016, 05:23 AM	#150
homer1475 Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Upstate NY Posts: 5,313	I personally think 1290 while acceptable, is a little on the low side for MAG. I like to keep mine right around 1350 to 1400, but its negligible at this point. Just keep in mind that MAG is the key to the big 3 and with a low MAG the other 2 won't raise no matter how much supplements you add. At this point, test daily and write it down. Then after a few days you can see how much ALK your using and dose daily accordingly. If your not seeing improvements in a week or 2, then we should trouble shoot something like turning the light intensity down or up, or something totally different. __________________ 80G SCA Build: http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2560256 Originally posted by der_wille_zur_macht: "He's just taking his lunch to work"