drock59 Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 My tank has undergone a brown out. Several corals look nice and rusty. It is my understanding that this happens when nutrients are too high but I very much doubt that is the case in my tank. I run a bare bottom tank and have almost 80 X turnover and I skim very heavily. Could someone provide me with some other reasons for brown out and or experiences in correcting the problem? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
180Brandy Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 What are your calcium levels,mag,phos,alk,nitrates,salt etc....? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H20cooled Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 I would go the other way on your brown out, either increase the fish population and feed them good, or add an additive of some sort to raise the food level. I've always found fish poop to work best... Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drock59 Posted November 2, 2007 Author Share Posted November 2, 2007 Everything is normal. Been that way for a long time. Alk: 11 Calcium: 390 Phos: undetectable Nitrate: 0 Mag: a little low at 1290 but nothing major. I switch up salts a lot so that i can mix and match them. Currently I am using Oceanpure, Redsea and a bit of Oceanic. Every batch I make gets tested and levels adjusted as needed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drock59 Posted November 2, 2007 Author Share Posted November 2, 2007 Rich, I have had some troubles in the past with light colored corals and found that this was due to not feeding enough. Now I feel like I feed too much but my levels are fairly good. What about lighting? Is it possible I am giving them too much light? Right now I am running about 8 hours 250w 14K Phoenix on HQI and 12 hours actinic. hmm..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
180Brandy Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 I think your calcium level is a little low. Maybe boosting that will help. Do you run a calc rec? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drock59 Posted November 2, 2007 Author Share Posted November 2, 2007 Yes my calcium is a bit low. I just bumped it up. I test weekly. I do run a calcium reactor and kalkwasser. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefhut Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 There's a few things to concider when trying to keep acro's colored. (I think we're talking acro's(scratch)). Just because you don't detect phosphate...it dosent mean you have zero. The best way to test for phos is with a colorimeter.Travis at Upscales is the only LFS that I know of that has one. Also I would look at temp swing's, keeping MH bulbs replaced every 8 to 9 months, and last dirty R/O filters. The type of MH bulb will make a big difference on color too. One last thing I would like to add...you mentioned no dectection on phosphates? I bet if you tested the effluent out of the reactor, you find a phos issue. You may want to drip you effluent over a bag of phos removal media. This might not help that much, but it could give a place to start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drock59 Posted November 2, 2007 Author Share Posted November 2, 2007 We are talking acros. Some doing really well and colorful, others brown. Hmmm interesting on the phosphate issue. Ill have to look into it. I know that it ridiculously difficult to accurately test phosphate but could you elaborate on why there would be phosphate exiting the reactor? Temp swings from 78.5 to about 79.5. Also, it is my understanding that MANY people have had good success with Phoenix bulbs. i hope that isnt the issue or I will be annoyed. However, I am going to be due for a bulb change out in a couple of months. Ill keep investigating and see what I can find. I think for starters I will do a decent sized water change and lower my photoperiod a tad. I have been reading on RC that brown outs can also be caused by too much of the algea that corals are symbiotic with and I cant spell. xxooleellthalelea algea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefgeek84 Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 We are talking acros. Some doing really well and colorful, others brown. Hmmm interesting on the phosphate issue. Ill have to look into it. I know that it ridiculously difficult to accurately test phosphate but could you elaborate on why there would be phosphate exiting the reactor? The media that is used for the CA reactor contains phosphates, all claim to have no phosphates, but they do, so when they are broken down (i.e. for cal.) and put into the water system, they carry the phosphates with them...Travis at Upscales is the one that turned me onto this, and showed me he drips his CA drip through phos. removing media... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drock59 Posted November 2, 2007 Author Share Posted November 2, 2007 All good information. One question....if I there was excess phos in the water column, one would think I should have some other problems like bad algea issues, no? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
180Brandy Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 How long to you keep your lights on for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefgeek84 Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 All good information. One question....if I there was excess phos in the water column' date=' one would think I should have some other problems like bad algea issues, no?[/quote'] In most cases yes...but you could be right at the level of having slightly to much phos for certian corals and they brown out, but not enough for algae to feed off it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyles Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 I am in shock that nobody has commented on PH, my brown outs have ALWAYS come from low FAST moving ph changes, usually caused by calcium reactor lowering co2 to fast. If you have a ph probe please list your ph swing from light on to light off, ph04 usually won't cause the brown out onless its really bad levels of ph04, an easy way to see if you have ph04 at those levels is if your not getting good growth then there is a good chance that you have adequate levels. Try running some phosloc or phosban if thats the case and watch your feeding. Just remember it only take one good PH shock to brown them out (i.e. low ph at in water change). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impur Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 How old are the bulbs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefhut Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 He say's he due for bulbs in a couple of months... What watt ballasts are you running and what kind of ballast(ie HQI,Pulse Start,Megnetic ect..) I would like to recommend a bulb.. ..I would get a phos reactor and media first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAVES Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 There's a few things to concider when trying to keep acro's colored. (I think we're talking acro's(scratch)). Just because you don't detect phosphate...it dosent mean you have zero. The best way to test for phos is with a colorimeter.Travis at Upscales is the only LFS that I know of that has one. Also I would look at temp swing's, keeping MH bulbs replaced every 8 to 9 months, and last dirty R/O filters. The type of MH bulb will make a big difference on color too. One last thing I would like to add...you mentioned no dectection on phosphates? I bet if you tested the effluent out of the reactor, you find a phos issue. You may want to drip you effluent over a bag of phos removal media. This might not help that much, but it could give a place to start. Shannon these are not the wonderful products you say they are. I looked into getting one until I heard the are +/- .2ppm. What good does it do to test for phosphates when its +/- .2ppm? I instead bought what is suppose to be the most accurate test kit, the D&D (like the lighting people) brand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAVES Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 The media that is used for the CA reactor contains phosphates' date=' all claim to have no phosphates, but they do, so when they are broken down (i.e. for cal.) and put into the water system, they carry the phosphates with them...Travis at Upscales is the one that turned me onto this, and showed me he drips his CA drip through phos. removing media...[/quote'] If Travis is dripping his affluent through phos media I sure hope its not ferric hydroxide (phoslock, rowa, phosban etc) as it will precipitate the calcium (calcium carbonate. This is the reason these need to be used in a phos reactor. If you dont keep the media churning it will turn into a brick because of the precipitation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefgeek84 Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 If Travis is dripping his affluent through phos media I sure hope its not ferric hydroxide (phoslock' date=' rowa, phosban etc) as it will precipitate the calcium (calcium carbonate. This is the reason these need to be used in a phos reactor. If you dont keep the media churning it will turn into a brick because of the precipitation.[/quote'] I am not sure what kind he is using and although he should me how he dripped the water, lots of people have done very similar things...as for it turning into a brick I have no idea...What ever Travis is doing he is doing very well...as I think he has one of the most impressive matured tanks I have ever seen (internet included), so he is doing something right... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
izzypop Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 joel you're trippin. they are +-.04 dude....they are better than D&D i've tested against it. http://www.hannainst.co.uk/acatalog/insthi93713.pdf get a colorimeter reading. Heck drock bring a sample to me and i'll put it to rest... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAVES Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 I am not sure what kind he is using and although he should me how he dripped the water' date=' lots of people have done very similar things...as for it turning into a brick I have no idea...What ever Travis is doing he is doing very well...as I think he has one of the most impressive matured tanks I have ever seen (internet included), so he is doing something right...[/quote'] I never ment to say he was doing it wrong,,, just to be careful how you do it or it wont work. I would guess (maybe you remember the color) he is using aluminum oxide (Kent and seachem style phos media) instead of ferric hydroxide. Was it white or brown? My point was simply it would be a waste to running your effluent into media that was going to cause it to precipitate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAVES Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 joel you're trippin. they are +-.04 dude....they are better than D&D i've tested against it. http://www.hannainst.co.uk/acatalog/insthi93713.pdf get a colorimeter reading. Heck drock bring a sample to me and i'll put it to rest... I stand corrected! I had planned on getting one of those, but read somewhere they are +-.25, it must have been a different model or something. Ill have to pick one up once they arent back ordered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefhut Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 Well... apparently Joel dosent have a colorimeter ..LOL. I didn't mean to get ya stirred up. I'm not saying this is going to be the fix all, but mearly giving the guy a start. As Izzy stated these meters are accurate to 0.04mg/l ...not 0.2ppm as you stated. Not an attack here, but getting accurate information to people reading this thread. I know people that are dripping there effluent over media with no problem, in fact I havent heard of anyone haveing a problem yet. below I copied and pasted the spec's from Hanna... SPECIFICATIONS Range 0.00 to 2.50 mg/L Resolution 0.01 mg/L Accuracy ±0.04 mg/L ±4% of reading Typical EMC ±0.01 mg/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reefgeek84 Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 I never ment to say he was doing it wrong,,, just to be careful how you do it or it wont work. I would guess (maybe you remember the color) he is using aluminum oxide (Kent and seachem style phos media) instead of ferric hydroxide. Was it white or brown? My point was simply it would be a waste to running your effluent into media that was going to cause it to precipitate. I believe it is white...I am not sure though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAVES Posted November 2, 2007 Share Posted November 2, 2007 Well... apparently Joel dosent have a colorimeter ..LOL. I didn't mean to get ya stirred up. I'm not saying this is going to be the fix all, but mearly giving the guy a start. As Izzy stated these meters are accurate to 0.04mg/l ...not 0.2ppm as you stated. Not an attack here, but getting accurate information to people reading this thread. I know people that are dripping there effluent over media with no problem, in fact I havent heard of anyone haveing a problem yet. below I copied and pasted the spec's from Hanna... SPECIFICATIONS Range 0.00 to 2.50 mg/L Resolution 0.01 mg/L Accuracy ±0.04 mg/L ±4% of reading Typical EMC ±0.01 mg/ did you read my last two posts??? 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.