rcpalmer1
Well-Known Member
Background
Ok. So I have had a saltwater tank for over 20 years. Things have changed over the years and what was the standard way of doing thing are now unheard of. In the last year I realized how much things had changed and how much information was there. Before corals were few to pick from and even less was understood how to get them to survive. If there was ever a problem it was because your nutrients were too high. I changed the filter system on a tank that I have had running for maybe 5 years or more. It was at the time a fish only tank. I have added corals and they have grown faster than expected and it stays so clear it doesn’t look like there is water in it. All of the equipment on it is low end or homemade. I was thinking I had a good grasp on running a tank so I got another tank. It is a 120 gallon tank. It has a 30 gallon sump, esshop Axium 160 skimmer, Kessil AP700 light, refugium, filter socks, 15 gallon auto top off, 4 head dosing pump with containers, temperature controller, 55w UV filter, carbon reactor, 3000GPH DC return pump and a couple 1000GPH programmable DC power heads. I started it with about 100lbs of Real Reef and a couple bags of live sand. I have lost a few fish and corals but most are doing well. I have a sailfin tang, 3 PJ cardinals, dotty back ,damsel, dragonet and an anthias. All have been in the tank for a few months. I also have around 50 corals in it.
What I have done
So after months my tank was never crystal clear like I wanted it. It had a haze in it. Phosphate and nitrates were both undetectable. This had been a reefers goal for decades. After talking to different people and info from this forum I been told I need phosphates around .03 and nitrates around 5. I don’t want to dose nitrate and phosphates so I had increase the number of fish I had and feed them a lot more. I turned the refgium light off and only have a small piece of cheato in it. I put my skimmer and UV on timers. I also stopped cleaning socks as often. I also lost a fish during this time. The fish was in the rocks so I was unable to find it. My nitrates got up to 15 and have been between 5 -15 for the last months. After the fish disappeared my phosphate got up to 0.1. within a few days they dropped back to 0.0.I am still trying to get my dosing dialed in. I am using BRS 2 part. My Alk has stayed between 9-9.7.
Problem
For the last few weeks my tank has been covered in Cyano. I am just confusted. I don’t know if I should cut back on the feeding or increase it. Any opions of what I am not getting?
Ok. So I have had a saltwater tank for over 20 years. Things have changed over the years and what was the standard way of doing thing are now unheard of. In the last year I realized how much things had changed and how much information was there. Before corals were few to pick from and even less was understood how to get them to survive. If there was ever a problem it was because your nutrients were too high. I changed the filter system on a tank that I have had running for maybe 5 years or more. It was at the time a fish only tank. I have added corals and they have grown faster than expected and it stays so clear it doesn’t look like there is water in it. All of the equipment on it is low end or homemade. I was thinking I had a good grasp on running a tank so I got another tank. It is a 120 gallon tank. It has a 30 gallon sump, esshop Axium 160 skimmer, Kessil AP700 light, refugium, filter socks, 15 gallon auto top off, 4 head dosing pump with containers, temperature controller, 55w UV filter, carbon reactor, 3000GPH DC return pump and a couple 1000GPH programmable DC power heads. I started it with about 100lbs of Real Reef and a couple bags of live sand. I have lost a few fish and corals but most are doing well. I have a sailfin tang, 3 PJ cardinals, dotty back ,damsel, dragonet and an anthias. All have been in the tank for a few months. I also have around 50 corals in it.
What I have done
So after months my tank was never crystal clear like I wanted it. It had a haze in it. Phosphate and nitrates were both undetectable. This had been a reefers goal for decades. After talking to different people and info from this forum I been told I need phosphates around .03 and nitrates around 5. I don’t want to dose nitrate and phosphates so I had increase the number of fish I had and feed them a lot more. I turned the refgium light off and only have a small piece of cheato in it. I put my skimmer and UV on timers. I also stopped cleaning socks as often. I also lost a fish during this time. The fish was in the rocks so I was unable to find it. My nitrates got up to 15 and have been between 5 -15 for the last months. After the fish disappeared my phosphate got up to 0.1. within a few days they dropped back to 0.0.I am still trying to get my dosing dialed in. I am using BRS 2 part. My Alk has stayed between 9-9.7.
Problem
For the last few weeks my tank has been covered in Cyano. I am just confusted. I don’t know if I should cut back on the feeding or increase it. Any opions of what I am not getting?
I was surprised when I got my Triton test back to find my Po4 elevated when my test kit, HANNA, showed <.02.
