Anybody notice water issues with a lot of GSP?

[blasterman]

One of my 10gal tanks, actually my favorite one, has been frustrating me to death. LPS skeleton growth has been slow, and coraline growth is almost non-existant. Tank is over a year old.

 

Seeder rocks with coraline stay seeded, but it doesn't go anywhere. Tank is otherwise healthy and over a year old.

 

I've screwed around with every water param there is. Increasing Calcium, increasing water changes, changing salt, increasing alk then decreasing it, increasing mag. Changed every additive, stopped doing additives and increased water changes. Changed lighting a zillion times. Lowered nitrates then increased them. Nothing helps. This is the only tank I've ever had that won't grow coraline and LPS growth is so slow.

 

Only remaining variable left is this tank has a lot of GSP growing in it. It got in my accident, but now is a chunk about 7" square and I'm not letting it get bigger. I've talked to a couple other reefers that have small tanks and have a lot of GSP, and they've reported some problems. The theory is that large amounts of GSP either strip out a few key nutrients, or it's actually biological warfare.

 

Before I rip out this GSP as my next step I'd like to know if any others have small tanks with a large bio mass of GSP and having a hard time with coraline growth or other issues.

[ulver982]

Interesting idea. I've got some gsp in my tank, but I wouldn't call it an insane amount. I have more in the back of my tank then what you see in my fts. Anyways, I had my 2.5 gallon loaded with corals, yet coralline growth was non existent, I had some that came with the rocks and that was it. I blamed it on my intense LED lighting, which I heard intense lighting doesn't grow coralline too well. With my 16 gallon I have now, I'm again using LEDs yet my coralline is growing like crazy. I don't know if I would blame it on the gsp, maybe try and get some more coralline from another established tank to get some different strains of the algae in your tank.

[blasterman]

Good suggestion.

 

I might just have the wrong strains.

[jeffblly]

I have a good chunck of GSP growing on my back wall and my coralline has all turned white but I did have alot of coralline growing before and I have always had alot of gsp. I think it has to do with the seachem salt I use. Everything else is growing fine though.

[ulver982]

I think I would cry if my coralline turned white. I've always wanted a coralline covered tank.

[Neophyte]

In my 40BR I had the the top half of a 20lb rock covered with GSP, I dont remember exact size but it's a big rock and I have a ton of coraline. The one thing that I did to start it off is make sure water is in good ranges and stable, turned off filters and skimmer, then I just started scraping it off the rocks and let the power heads blow it around for a couple of hours. Within a few months it was all over the place.

[timdanger]

I think I would cry if my coralline turned white. I've always wanted a coralline covered tank.

 

about 98% of mine turned white when i switched my 150w halide bulb from a prism 14k (not very bright) to a radium 20k. heartbreaking.

[ulver982]

That is sad, I'm sorry for your loss.