divecj5 Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Just thought I would post this up since I've been experiencing vast improvements in color and growth over the last month with pretty much all of my SPS. These corals were in my BC29 for over a year with very little to no growth. There was plenty of flow in that tank provided by 2 Tunze 6025s and an Aquatinics T5 fixture. Now they are happily in my almost 3 month old 20H. I now run a Vortech MP20 (which I attribute the growth to) and the same Aquatinics TX5 fixture. Growth and coloration have greatly improved as seen below. Just thought I would share.... Green Pocillopora Looking sad after moving spending time in the BC29 dungeon Now ORA Oregon Tort This is just crazy coloration change Then Now LE Birdsnest Then Now Green Cap Two weeks ago Now That makes me really happy that I must be doing something right Link to comment
BumbleBeeJBG Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 I have an MP20 arriving today, that you now have me completely excited for. Link to comment
angelacbishop Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Wow, all that color change just from a different powerhead? Did you swap out the bulbs in your fixture or place the frags closer to the light than they were before? Link to comment
NanoReefNovice Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Nice photos, that's cool to watch. Link to comment
Atlantis Reef Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Very nice and it great to see that just think you will be fraging soon Link to comment
divecj5 Posted March 10, 2009 Author Share Posted March 10, 2009 I have an MP20 arriving today, that you now have me completely excited for. You will definitely enjoy the MP20. Wow, all that color change just from a different powerhead? Did you swap out the bulbs in your fixture or place the frags closer to the light than they were before? I was talking about this in my tank thread and I am having a hard time figuring out what has made the difference. The only things that have changed are: -Tunze 6025s to MP20 -Same fixture and bulbs -Pretty much same placement of SPS -No 9002 skimmer with this tank -Now run a refugium with chaeto Dosing and using the same salt......all I know is that I don't plan on changing a thing Very nice and it great to see that just think you will be fraging soon I hear ya....I can literally see some daily growth on the Caps....may be fragging sooner than I thought. I wish the Tort would grow at a similar pace Link to comment
Withers Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Flow is much more important to SPS than light, IMO and IME. Those are some crazy changes for one month! Link to comment
divecj5 Posted March 10, 2009 Author Share Posted March 10, 2009 Flow is much more important to SPS than light, IMO and IME. Those are some crazy changes for one month! Thanks man. I have come to that realization myself after 2 1/2 years of reef keeping. I started off with maxijets, moved to Seio's, moved to Tunze's and now have a Vortech. Although I can't say the Vortech is hands down better than Tunzes, since a lot depends on the setup of the tank, I can say that you definitely get what you pay for in this hobby. I skimped in the beginning with the 55g and ended up still spending the money down the line Link to comment
Withers Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Yup, lol. I think everybody always ignores that rule of reefkeeping and then realizes it later after they've wasted a massive amount of money. I know that's how I learned. I've owned both a Prizm and a Sea Clone skimmer. Link to comment
reefman225gal Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Although I can't say the Vortech is hands down better than Tunzes, since a lot depends on the setup of the tank, I can say that you definitely get what you pay for in this hobby. I skimped in the beginning with the 55g and ended up still spending the money down the line Ain't that the truth!!! Looking good man. Link to comment
treygarz Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 Amazing growth! Is there any decent/good fish stores down there in charleston? i'm down there occasionaly visiting some people and haven't really come across too many Link to comment
Mike Maddox Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 Congrats on your success! The #1 way to tell if your inverts are healthy or not is by their growth. Corals can slowly die of nutrient/carbon attrition over a period of months, and sometimes the only way to tell if a coral is actually doing well is by whether or not it's growing. Glad to hear of your success! Link to comment
divecj5 Posted March 11, 2009 Author Share Posted March 11, 2009 Amazing growth! Is there any decent/good fish stores down there in charleston? i'm down there occasionaly visiting some people and haven't really come across too many Thanks. There are only a couple of stores in the area. Not to bash them, but they are really only good for buying fish, supplements/salt in a pinch, and the usual snails, crabs, etc. None of the stores carry any real quality SPS. They occasionally will get something nice in but it is usually really $$$ and not really worth it. I would say the best one to check out would be Tideline Aquatics...the owner, Chris, is a great guy. Congrats on your success! The #1 way to tell if your inverts are healthy or not is by their growth. Corals can slowly die of nutrient/carbon attrition over a period of months, and sometimes the only way to tell if a coral is actually doing well is by whether or not it's growing. Glad to hear of your success! I agree....I think that was what was happening in my BC29. I noticed little to no growth and the coloration was pretty abysmal, as you can see. Thank you for the compliments on the growth so far...I hope I can keep it up. Link to comment
JPF Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 Flow is much more important to SPS than light, IMO and IME. Those are some crazy changes for one month! I didnt know this. Very interesting. I am a card carrying flow freak. Link to comment
Withers Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 I didnt know this. Very interesting. I am a card carrying flow freak. It's not hard science or anything, but IME once you have proper lighting, flow and stability are what makes or breaks an SPS tank. Well that and heavy feeding + heavy skimming. Flow definitely has a huge impact on growth though. Link to comment
debbeach13 Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 This is great thanks for showing the change in growth and colors. I hope you have continued success and keep posting this will be fun to watch. Link to comment
divecj5 Posted March 11, 2009 Author Share Posted March 11, 2009 Flow definitely has a huge impact on growth though. And like you've said before, it's not the total amount of flow, but the type of flow as well. Laminar flow is a lot different than diffuse turbulent flow. Stability across the board is huge in my opinion as well. This is great thanks for showing the change in growth and colors. I hope you have continued success and keep posting this will be fun to watch. Glad you enjoyed it. I'm hoping for continued success as well Link to comment
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