Kat's Ol' Max

[Spirofucci]

I don't know shiit about sumps, but I would have thought you could get rid of the media rack and put everything in the sump, although it might mean a modification or two.

 

As you know I'm watching you closel

[metrokat]

I don't know shiit about sumps, but I would have thought you could get rid of the media rack and put everything in the sump, although it might mean a modification or two.

 

As you know I'm watching you closel

Call me crazy, I already see things I do not want and thing I want in a sump. It is possible I might be making another custom sump this year itself.

[albertthiel]

Yes Albert, and those are what I hoped you found answers for from me. I have no experience with drilled so naturally I cannot comment on those. My comments were directed at HOB, glad you found them useful.

 

Yes they were indeed Kat and thanks for your input which indeed helps and is starting to alleviate my concerns about using HOB overflows ...

 

I appreciate it

 

Albert

[albertthiel]

Call me crazy, I already see things I do not want and thing I want in a sump. It is possible I might be making another custom sump this year itself.

Why not, once you figure out what you would like to see happen that is not happening you may indeed get into designing a different layout with possibly more compartments and a differently set up built-in fuge, and maybe space for more media or reactors .... figuring things like that out is one of the great pleasures that we get in this hobby, in addition to running successful tanks of course

Albert

[Reef Casa]

whats the red macro called/?????

[metrokat]

whats the red macro called/?????

In my sump? I have lots of red macro

Red Grape

Red Titan 3 varieties

Red Gracilaria

[albertthiel]

In my sump? I have lots of red macro

Red Grape

Red Titan 3 varieties

Red Gracilaria

 

Pics ?

[metrokat]

Pics ?

Post#2428

[albertthiel]

Post#2428

 

Thanks missed that one I guess but now I saw it ... yes lots of nice macros in there

[metrokat]

Thanks to several of you that I PM'd about my SPS.

 

This week brought some new challenges with the system. I've come to realize where my sump has flaws and what needs improvement. I'm slowly learning about a lot of things, mostly how not to yell F words in the middle of the night. I found Lorax, the YCG in the baffles last night and that was a trip let me tell ya!

 

In all, my sump is almost stocked. I still have some macros in the macro fuge that need to be transferred over. The light I have seems inadequate to me (Coralife Mini T5) so I am looking at options, keeping in mind that I have yet to fit my skimmer in there. I have the dimensions, going to tape off the section and see if I can fit the light I am considering.

 

In not so welcome news, I have some SPS that are browning again. Phosphates are zero. My SPS in general are thriving under the T5-LED combo, thriving as in lots of PE and growth, the color is missing. This could be a combination of lights and nutrients based on my PM's with many of you. So the next step is installing my ATO (which I hope to do this weekend even if it not a snazzy looking reservoir for the moment) and then research KALK.

 

Tubbs yellow birdsnest with purple polyps (on the right) on June 11

Same coral on Jun 22, notice the color was much better back then but I had dead tips

The bird today (browned)

 

Montipora on May 6

Same Montipora on June 30 (not as blue so I would say browned)

 

Yellow Millie and ORA Green Birdsnest the day I got it Apr 27

Both corals on June 30 (Millie browned, ORA thriving)

 

The time lapse for some browning SPS is very quick, as little as a week. I have ordered new bulbs and will be replacing them this week. My limited experience says to me this is a water chemistry problem. The mille is at the same level as the ORA bird, so it can't be the light, or can it?

 

Thanks for your help guys.

[metrokat]

Some Good news too. Ruby the clownfish was a total angel today. Geowge the Midas Blenny was swimming about without being attacked. I am not certain but I would venture to guess that the reason is that I fed the tank extremely heavily yesterday. All my fish had beer bellies after. I suspect that Ruby on a full stomach is not aggressive towards George, maybe she views Geowge as her main competition for food.

 

I'm going to have to keep up the feedings and find out for sure if my hunch is correct.

[animalmaster6]

Is that a Rainbow Monti?

[metrokat]

Is that a Rainbow Monti?

Yes

 

Growing very well, just not as bright any more.

[jedimasterben]

The time lapse for some browning SPS is very quick, as little as a week. I have ordered new bulbs and will be replacing them this week. My limited experience says to me this is a water chemistry problem. The mille is at the same level as the ORA bird, so it can't be the light, or can it?

it definitely seems to move too quickly to be a lighting issue. only thing i can think of would be water quality. your test kits arent giving a reading, but it may be different in the tank. you have so dang much macro that i cant say 100% sure that it is water quality, though, it just wouldnt make sense with such a large quantity, unless it is just something that you arent testing for. :/

 

 

that skimmer will be headed your way as soon as humanly possible, kitty kat. that will be my part. my tank can do without one for a week since i rarely feed it since there are no fish in it.

[albertthiel]

Yes

 

Growing very well, just not as bright any more.

 

FYI : Coral Coloration, Part 4: Red Fluorescent Pigments, a Preliminary Report of Effects of Various Environmental Factors and Color Mixing

 

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007/2/aafeature/

 

And I guess part 1, 2 and 3 may give you more info Kat.

 

Could also be that nitrate and phosphate are still too high for them even if your test kits measure low levels but not low enough

Edited July 14, 2012 by albertthiel

[ZephNYC]

Yes

 

Growing very well, just not as bright any more.

 

Here's the thing...just because your phosphate test kit says O, there can and are more po4 in there than you think. Take my system for example, You know how i have a small microalgae problem and even a little red algae, and i ALWAYS test zero for No3 and Po4. My culprit is probably my very deep sand bed, storing and releasing nutrients, and my heavy feeding.

What do I think your problem is? Everyone is gonna kill me for saying this, but its your Macro. Your macro is constantly giving off and absorbing nutrients. In all honesty, the best sps tanks never have plants in them, maybe slow growing halmida, but ALMOST NEVER caulerpa or fast growing macro.

I am not saying it cant be done, I am saying it is very difficult. Look at this way, your macro's want and need po4, and your sps does not. They are contradictory species. If one is growing the other should be suffering. All that macro is creating nutrients that are bothering your more sensitive SPS. Sure the hardier ones like Montis and birds nest look great, they are easy. This could explain the fluctuation in your browning as well. It is very hard to have the best of both worlds. If you want to grow super sensitive sps, surrounding them with macro is not a good idea.

just my opinion, dont STONE me for it.

 

Edit: Exeprts are using the nutrients released by macro to their advantage these days. Sally Joe of Garf is the only one I know having success with Dendronepthya, and she credits it to the nutrients given off by her heavy macro. Also Anthony Calfo talks about his SPAWNING gonioporas, giving credit to that tank being inline directly after a large sea grass system.

Edited July 14, 2012 by ZephNYC

[metrokat]

In all honesty, the best sps tanks never have plants in them, maybe slow growing halmida, but ALMOST NEVER caulerpa or fast growing macro.

just my opinion, dont STONE me for it.

 

Not going to stone you but I don;t have caulerpa. You have my caulerpa.

 

it definitely seems to move too quickly to be a lighting issue. only thing i can think of would be water quality. your test kits arent giving a reading, but it may be different in the tank. you have so dang much macro that i cant say 100% sure that it is water quality, though, it just wouldnt make sense with such a large quantity, unless it is just something that you arent testing for. :/

 

that skimmer will be headed your way as soon as humanly possible, kitty kat. that will be my part. my tank can do without one for a week since i rarely feed it since there are no fish in it.

Thanks Ben, I can't wait for the skimmer. Also I think I might be paying for some expensive water tests from aquarium water testing company.

 

FYI : Coral Coloration, Part 4: Red Fluorescent Pigments, a Preliminary Report of Effects of Various Environmental Factors and Color Mixing

 

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/2007/2/aafeature/

 

And I guess part 1, 2 and 3 may give you more info Kat.

 

Could also be that nitrate and phosphate are still too high for them even if your test kits measure low levels but not low enough

Thanks Albert.

Edited July 14, 2012 by metrokat

[ZephNYC]

Not going to stone you but I don;t have caulerpa. You have my caulerpa.

 

 

Thanks Albert.

 

 

 

Caulerpa is the worst...but they all release nutrients .

[patback]

Caulerpa is the worst...but they all release nutrients .

I thought the point of macros was to take away nutrients?

 

Do you mean nutrients as in asexual?

[ZephNYC]

I thought the point of macros was to take away nutrients?

 

Do you mean nutrients as in asexual?

Nothing is as simple as it seems. Sure that is the point but it doesnt always work correctly. Macros release alot of stuff too

Thats why many run carbon as the last stage of their fuge

[patback]

Nothing is as simple as it seems. Sure that is the point but it doesnt always work correctly. Macros release alot of stuff too

Thats why many run carbon as the last stage of their fuge

Do you know of a site that may explain how that works? I've never heard of that happening before. I think i understand it. Correct me if I'm wrong, but does the algae become over saturated with nutrients and it releases them like a coral may release zoox? Maybe it just diffuses out of its cells?

 

 

 

Edit: my first post made me sound like a Neanderthal with a keyboard.

Edited July 14, 2012 by patback

[metrokat]

Do you know of a site that may explain how that works? I've never heard of that happening before. I think i understand it. Correct me if I'm wrong, but does the algae become over saturated with nutrients and it releases them like a coral may release zoox? Maybe it just diffuses out of its cells?

I would like to read some studies also.

 

My friend Kgoldy on this forum has not one but 2 enormous fuges stuffed to the gills with macro. His SPS and other corals do not have a color problem or growth issues. In fact he has not done water changes IN ONE YEAR on his frankensense with 2 fuge system.

[ZephNYC]

I would like to read some studies also.

 

My friend Kgoldy on this forum has not one but 2 enormous fuges stuffed to the gills with macro. His SPS and other corals do not have a color problem or growth issues. In fact he has not done water changes IN ONE YEAR on his frankensense with 2 fuge system.

 

Anthony Calfo, author of "Book or coral propagation " says -

 

- " Regardless of where one stands in favor or disfavor of plants in a reef system, many species are known to give off noxious compounds that may inhibit the growth of corals and stress other invertebrates.

 

-"keeping large populations of algae is known to be threatening and deleterious to the maintenance and propagation of most coral reef inverts"

Edited July 14, 2012 by ZephNYC

[metrokat]

Anthony Calfo, author of "Book or coral propagation " says"

 

- " Regardless of where one stands in favor or disfavor of plants in a reef system, many species are known to give off noxious compounds that may inhibit the growth of corals and stress other invertebrates.

 

-"keeping large populations of alga eis known to be threatening and deleteroius to the maintenance and propagation of most coral reef inverts"

Fair enough. Does he list the species?

Also, what is considered a "large population", does he specify?

 

In my total system volume of about 50 gallons, I could fill about 2 gallon zip lock bags with my macros. I would never consider that a large population but I'm curious to see what 'specifics' and measurable quantities Anthony provides.

[ZephNYC]

Fair enough. Does he list the species?

Also, what is considered a "large population", does he specify?

 

In my total system volume of about 50 gallons, I could fill about 2 gallon zip lock bags with my macros. I would never consider that a large population but I'm curious to see what 'specifics' and measurable quantities Anthony provides.

 

I will get back to you..have to get to the gym now. I feel fat.