fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Most of my testing is done with Hanna meters and backed up with double checks at lfs's. As of late my plate corals have begun to pale fairly heavily, so testing ensued. Po4 came in at 4ppb = .015 ppm after conversion Nitrates are undetectable both by my tests and lfs. Alk 155-160 ppm = 8.6 +- Cal - 500 Mag -? I'm assuming the corals turning pale are a result of the phos and nitrate being too low. Question is; 1. What phos level are you getting good colors at? 2. What the most effective way to bring phos up? Turn skimmer off ? Just plain feed more? I have other corals that are slowly crapping the bed that I was attributing to my crash a few months ago but now I'm leaning toward this being the problem. Thanks in advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paratore Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Not by any means an SPS god haha. But I also struggle with low nutrients in my tank. To combat this, I only run my skimmer during the day. 12 hours on, 12 hours off. Been doing that for a little while and I'm noticing that my SPS are looking really good. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arsonmfg Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Definitely not a god but I like to think I know a thing or two... I'm not a fan of running your skimmer only part time, because of the other effects it can have. Lower ph, less oxygen in the water column etc. What are you feeding your fish and your corals? Seems to me like your starving your corals. Personally I have to keep my po4 around .05-.08 but I highly suggest not to stress so much on the number and focus more on what your tank tells you. On the same note you need to know where your Mag is at. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 Not by any means an SPS god haha. But I also struggle with low nutrients in my tank. To combat this, I only run my skimmer during the day. 12 hours on, 12 hours off. Been doing that for a little while and I'm noticing that my SPS are looking really good. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk I've seen your photos, pretty nice in my book. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 Definitely not a god but I like to think I know a thing or two... I'm not a fan of running your skimmer only part time, because of the other effects it can have. Lower ph, less oxygen in the water column etc. What are you feeding your fish and your corals? Seems to me like your starving your corals. Personally I have to keep my po4 around .05-.08 but I highly suggest not to stress so much on the number and focus more on what your tank tells you. On the same note you need to know where your Mag is at. I feed an assortment of Mysis, brine, rods foods, fresh shrimp, krill, nori, anything really, I try and mix it up everyday. I do only feed once a day due to work. I read all these threads and hear people say they feed 2-4 times a day and think, do these people not have jobs!? I'm gone before the lights come on and return to just a few hours left each night. And I agree about the mag, the sailfert kit I have is now pretty old and I question if I trust it. It's funny, for months I've thought my skimmer hasn't been doing a great job. Guess it's keeping up ey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheClark Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Not even close to an SPS God, but willing to throw some ideas out. Sometimes that can be caused by too much light. Any chance lighting has changed or coral has been moved recently? Good luck I hate the feeling of watching a prized piece die... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arsonmfg Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 You're skimmer is definitely working... While there can be a variety of things causing your problems I think you're staving your corals. I'd pick up a bottle of oyster feast, you can feel it once or twice per week, also are you using any other supplements? I think the corals are starved since eventually they're just relying on fish waste for their main food source. I feed my corals specifically once per week, mixture of things. I can help you out together a feeding program for your corals of you want. Takes me a total of about 3 min per week to feed my corals. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Z Reef Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Nitrates play a factor too, you don't want them zero, I try to keep mine in the single digits. Also, have you had any swings lately? An alk swing can pale things quick and take a long time to color back up from. You add any amino supplements? With a larger skimmer I have to along with feeding to keep the corals fed properly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 Not even close to an SPS God, but willing to throw some ideas out. Sometimes that can be caused by too much light. Any chance lighting has changed or coral has been moved recently? Good luck I hate the feeling of watching a prized piece die... Actually yes, I just installed all new lights last week. I'm starting them at a low % and slowly intensifying. However the old lights above the plates were half bad and the condition was slowly starting before that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 You're skimmer is definitely working... While there can be a variety of things causing your problems I think you're staving your corals. I'd pick up a bottle of oyster feast, you can feel it once or twice per week, also are you using any other supplements? I think the corals are starved since eventually they're just relying on fish waste for their main food source. I feed my corals specifically once per week, mixture of things. I can help you out together a feeding program for your corals of you want. Takes me a total of about 3 min per week to feed my corals. . I have to admit, I do feed oyster feast and dose fuel, however after my crash, I kinda let that go as most all my sps took a dump. I suppose that was mistake numero uno Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheClark Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 You're skimmer is definitely working... While there can be a variety of things causing your problems I think you're staving your corals. I'd pick up a bottle of oyster feast, you can feel it once or twice per week, also are you using any other supplements? I think the corals are starved since eventually they're just relying on fish waste for their main food source. I feed my corals specifically once per week, mixture of things. I can help you out together a feeding program for your corals of you want. Takes me a total of about 3 min per week to feed my corals. Totally interested in your feeding program! Love your colors, a super tank for sure... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paratore Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Since you just changed your light I would say that's probably part of it. I know if I leave my lights on too long my corals start to pale... Once left them on for three days on accident and the corals were soo pale when I got back home. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arsonmfg Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Ding ding ding! Did things start to change after the new light install? Very well could be bleaching or just plain frying your corals. Depending on the lights and the optics used of led's. One of the best things I can stress is make ONE change at a time or you'll spend your entire reefing experience chasing your tail with very limited success. I'll post up my current feeding program when. I'm not driving lol 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 (edited) Ding ding ding! Did things start to change after the new light install? Very well could be bleaching or just plain frying your corals. Depending on the lights and the optics used of led's. One of the best things I can stress is make ONE change at a time or you'll spend your entire reefing experience chasing your tail with very limited success. I'll post up my current feeding program when. I'm not driving lol No, I use 4 of the ocean revive units. The old ones were the SO26 units and I replaced them with new IT units. I started the new lights with blues at 35% and whites at 25% increasing them about 5% every 4 days or so. I'm still only at 55% blue and 45% white. The old lights ran at 100% both Chanel's. Overall coral degredation gas been ongoing for over a month. If it so happens to just be light shock, what's the best way to proceed in that arena? Edited March 27, 2016 by fishmanmike01 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveHash-fish20 Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Knowing what your mag is could help, as if it's too high or low you could have issues with your alk and calc binding. Overall seems like lighting issues and once light shock sets in I've always put sps on the sand bed and slowly moved up from there depending on their progress. I have heard of light shock causing permanent bleaching. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted March 27, 2016 Author Share Posted March 27, 2016 Used my Red Sea kit for mag. It's says 1080-1100. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveHash-fish20 Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 Ya your gonna wanna get it up to 1300 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveHash-fish20 Posted March 27, 2016 Share Posted March 27, 2016 I personally now think it's your mag. It being that low the all and calc will just bind instantly and pretty much turn into sand. Getting it to 1300 will fix your issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboys Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 (edited) . Edited April 2, 2016 by fishboys 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveHash-fish20 Posted April 1, 2016 Share Posted April 1, 2016 Travis is the only one IMO worth the brain picking. Dude has been doing t for so long and keeping sps since it was available to keep. And the only one I personally ask for advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishmanmike01 Posted April 2, 2016 Author Share Posted April 2, 2016 I personally now think it's your mag. It being that low the all and calc will just bind instantly and pretty much turn into sand. Getting it to 1300 will fix your issue. And what timeline after that would you expect color to regain? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveHash-fish20 Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 No clue TBH. Just keep everything consistently dialed and everything should come back with time. Unfortunately I don't have a timeline as every tank is different. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fishboys Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 I need to restate my position. I re read my post and it sounded like I was saying only two people are smart enough to help you. I in no way shape or form meant it that way. There is such a wealth of knowledge on this board and they are willing to help even the slowest aquarist such as myself. Every single person who has posted on here has enough knowledge to help you. Sorry for the way my first post sounded. Anyone who knows me from this board knows I don't think that way and have been thankful for many of you helping me out. Now if any of you can figure out my stupid calcium reactor and gauges I would be thankful Then there is the issue of setting up my apex wirelessl? It never ends. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.