Detritus stir up = happy corals?

[ausmal]

Last night while trying to do some algae trimming and what not I managed to knock over the big arch in my 25G Nano, which kicked out both the rear and front supporting rocks and it caused absolute chaos. The reef putty I used obviously never got a proper hold and getting it back took a good 30 minutes of dicking around and stirring up what could only be described as a snow storm of detritus and god knows what else. Pretty sure I ticked off every single coral (and fish) in the process and thought surely I had killed something in the process.

So, I dosed some calcium carbonate (which I generally do weekly) to try help with the export of any organic matter I kicked up in to floss, and also added in some Frtiz Zyme 9 bacteria I had sitting around just to help in case there was any possible mini cycle that took place.

Anyway, woke up the next day and the corals are absolutely LOVING life. My banana coral is noticeably turning back to yellow from a paleish green/yellow, acans all puffed up!

Any ideas?? Nitrates two days ago were 8.8, Phosphates 0.03. Worth doing another test I guess today!

 

[Yazannreef]

Last night while trying to do some algae trimming and what not I managed to knock over the big arch in my 25G Nano, which kicked out both the rear and front supporting rocks and it caused absolute chaos. The reef putty I used obviously never got a proper hold and getting it back took a good 30 minutes of dicking around and stirring up what could only be described as a snow storm of detritus and god knows what else. Pretty sure I ticked off every single coral (and fish) in the process and thought surely I had killed something in the process.

So, I dosed some calcium carbonate (which I generally do weekly) to try help with the export of any organic matter I kicked up in to floss, and also added in some Frtiz Zyme 9 bacteria I had sitting around just to help in case there was any possible mini cycle that took place.

Anyway, woke up the next day and the corals are absolutely LOVING life. My banana coral is noticeably turning back to yellow from a paleish green/yellow, acans all puffed up!

Any ideas?? Nitrates two days ago were 8.8, Phosphates 0.03. Worth doing another test I guess today!

Detriitis is a bunch of bound particulate food and trace elements. So what you just did there is you fed your corals!!

 

[Paul B]

I do that almost every couple of weeks just for fun.

Here I am using my DIY filter to stir up everything. I have been doing this almost 50 years. No problems yet.

 

[ausmal]

Well I'm pretty much sold, just seeing the reaction from my corals. Will give it another shot or two see what reaction I get!

 

[MnFish1]

It is usually not an issue. However, if you have anaerobic areas which contain hydrogen sulfide, you can cause serious problems.

 

[bluemon]

I do this, and my Goniopora seem to love it.

They extend a bit more and seem a bit happier.

 

[mcarroll]

I posted this when I noticed how my coral had responded to getting a continuous (but light) blast of detritus from the sump return:
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/interesting-variation-in-sps-growth.140735/
A plating coral that is normally "bare" on the bottom, grow polyps and tissue on the up and down sides even though it was in nearly full shade. They only do that to capture more food I guess. Detritus is the best coral food.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I blast my rocks nightly with a turkey baster, its free coral food.

 

[Dread Pirate Dave]

I read in a book (quite some time ago) that the author used a small powerhead to blast his rocks and corals on a regular basis. He wrote that this was simular to things being stirred up by storms and was a good way to keep detritus from building up. I think the author was Julian Sprung but not 100% sure. It's been a long time.

My tank gets blasted about once a week.

 

[js-3Design]

I 2 times a week stir up the sand bed. Also turkey blast the rockwork 2 times a week. Everything benefits from it:)

 

[Freenow54]

The things you learn Love it. Doing it now

 

[ausmal]

Yeah this is great definitely been a little less concerned about dusting up the water! I love the idea of blasting the rocks every now and then with a power head.

 

[Nordy]

I have a 48 gallon that is 5 months old with various filter feeders and a coco worm. I like using a turkey baster to kick up detritus in the water column. Haven’t used a phyto or zooplankton in some time. I like the benefit of dislodging the particulates, feeding the filter feeders and then having some mechanical filtering remove what’s been stirred. Can definitely get water cloudiness from coral foods and a corresponding raise in nutrients. This method cuts that out.