Tron's SPS Legacy

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

I'm gonna try n grab a salifert tomorrow. Just got nitrate, alk today...

 

And it's NSW.... so... Ya...

[squirrelieygrrrl]

oh nsw, gawd. well that throws in all sorts of variables. i cant say that ive ever heard of some one running an sps dominant tank with nsw.

 

yesh. you know what my advice is gonna be.... switch to ro/di+high quality salt mix.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

It hasn't killed anything..!! Lol

[squirrelieygrrrl]

no no,

 

i can see that. its just that most of these corals we keep are not necessarily indicative of corals in the wild, usually these species and morphs are collected and then forced into being more colorful than its wild counterpart. by a slew of artificial means, one by the type of source water we use. eliminating variables, and turbidity from the water is one way of achieving a brighter morph if you ask me.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

I have RO/di access at my LFS, no problem there... Just making salt water just for 2gal changes seems more of a pain than just grabbing NSW from the store lol....remember, I'm down here in south Florida!

[squirrelieygrrrl]

oh nsw from your lfs,

 

if its been filtered and collected off shore than it probably isnt that bad. i had a vision of you on the beach dodging waves with a bucket. lol

 

heres how i see it since we have pretty much gone over the basics. i agree with you, test the mg and see where its at and if it needs adjusting.

 

then leave it the heck alone(i mean everything), if you dont see some color change in a month. then you might want to consider switching to a synthetic mix.

 

you also could be seeing a loss of color just from tinkering with the tank too much. i agree with the general consensus on the subject of less tinkering and keeping your hands out of the water makes for better acros.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

I rarely put my hands in, just recently to move that acro from propping up the clam lol.

 

Lights have been tinkered with lately.

 

All tests coming in tomorrow so I'll get an idea.......already got Kent tech-m incase I need to dose.

 

Salt suggestion?

[squirrelieygrrrl]

i use reef crystals cuz im cheap.

[Banjo]

you also could be seeing a loss of color just from tinkering with the tank too much. i agree with the general consensus on the subject of less tinkering and keeping your hands out of the water makes for better acros.

 

+1000.

 

And +1 to Reef Crystals

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

Ok, once I test mag all this week n see where that's at, I'll look into salt mixes.

 

Ok, once I test mag all this week n see where that's at, I'll look into salt mixes.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

So salifert alk = my API. Both read 9, alk at 9 for 3 straight days. Calc however unless I miscounted, (API) 440, 420, 480

 

Also, the salifert no3 is a PITA.... N I thought the elos phosphates color chart was hard.... API reads 0 no3, this could be 2 or 100... But it's a tint of light purple not pink lol. I'll call it 2-5

[squirrelieygrrrl]

i know, i struggle with mine too. that could be the problem, 5 is a bit high, 2 imo is acceptable. what specie of acro is this again?

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

i know, i struggle with mine too. that could be the problem, 5 is a bit high, 2 imo is acceptable. what specie of acro is this again?

 

the only sps that is having issues with color or PE (opens at night only) is the "blue tip" acro, didnt come with a scientific name.... the guy to the left of the derasa.... i know, this or a bad iphone pic lol

 

and the n03 were higher, at 10-20, but my cheato has rolled through it in a few weeks....just trimmed it up so its only going more down from here...

 

another shot, but hes moved from under there already... more to the left like in first pic

[squirrelieygrrrl]

appears to be a valida. which can be a finicky sp to keep, especially the blue morphs. ive had my fair share of ups and downs with mine.

 

k so with that tid bit of info im gonna say were back to the same plan. test for mg, and leave it alone aside from regular maint. time will tell as to the next plan of action, if any.

 

are you running the chaeto on a reverse photoperiod from the tank? it helps keep the ph more stable.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

24/7... It never fluctuated...

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

so MAG checks in at 1250-1260, i think, first run at the test, needle method is harder than color matching lol

 

and for pH...maybe api LIED TO ME!!!!

 

this is what i got twice from salifert pH, too low? i dont even know the color...

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

also, here is the coral in question (had blue tips) and also the BoP losing polyps on one branch....

hard to see, but notice most of Bop is fuzzy, yet one branch (green) no extension

2

[Banjo]

Oh wow... Yeah.

 

That pH is incredibly low judging from the camera shot of the picture. If your alkalinity is fine, it almost makes me question the accuracy of the kit... I would bring it to the LFS asap and get it tested there as well or buy another cheap ATI kit for like five bucks.

 

Then again, from the picture, I can't tell if that's a 7.7 -> 8.0 or if it's a very low 7. something. If it's the former, it's not bad.

 

Mag could def be higher, but isn't too low.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

Would raising the alk a tad fix it? Also, what's ideal mag... 1450?

 

Any idea on the BOP?

[TheWAND]

Looks like a 7.7-80 reading on the pH. Raising alk would help it a bit, but I like opening windows and increasing surface agitation a little for pH fixes. It's more stable since the main reason why your pH would be low is increased carbon dioxide in the water from being in a carbon dioxide rich environment, like a house with people in it.

[JakeF150]

Hey there..

 

I'm curious- how high is your AI sol from water line?

 

I can't find bracket L like yours...I found few but it's 8" length...what's the length is your ?

 

I haven't go to lowes yet..just home depot.

 

 

How high % sol did you go?

 

Some mentioned said do not go over 50%??

 

 

Thanks

Jake

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

Jake, check the closet/shelving section usually in the back.

 

My sol is 8" above the water but should be 10-12", a picture prevented me.

 

I started at 20%, 5% a week til I cranked it to 30/60/60 during peak.

Was at 60/60/60 but didn't like the color.

 

My l bracket is 10 or 11" I think

[Banjo]

Would raising the alk a tad fix it? Also, what's ideal mag... 1450?

 

Any idea on the BOP?

 

Raising Alk will help. Yeah that mag level is fine. Here are NSW parameters:

 

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php

 

And the BoP, it's hard to tell from pictures. But it almost looks like that could be due to too much light?

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

Strange considering the rest of it is fully extended....

[Banjo]

I am not really sure other than that. From the position, it doesn't look like lack of light. Pictures are just too blurry. It really doesn't look all that bad though, leave it be imo.