G&B Reefing
Community Member
It has been an educational 2 years, funny how thoughts and views on this hobby change over time. Things i thought i figured out were just luck or coincidence when looking back. For example 8 months ago i thought i had my routine figured out with good algae management and stable nutrients, but struggled to keep sps alive. Today i am fighting algae/dinos with nutrients stabilizing on the low side, but my sps is taking off and my lps are thriving.
The following “book” is my current husbandry practices. I am documenting this so i can look back 6 months from now to see how my routine and approach changed. For those that read it, i am sorry, this will be boring! Feel free to throw rocks but please know i will not react/change course quickly based on any comments (i am learning that every change is slow and intentional in this hobby!).
Date: 2/8
Tank: 26 gal RS max nano
Lights: RS50 LED (72%B 28%W) + AI Blade Grow (90%B 40%W)
Temp: 75F
Other: Run a skimmer 24/7 with GAC.
Flow: 2 power heads + return pump
Maintenance Routine:
Morning:
Carbon: 1 ml NoPOx
Bacteria: 1.5 ml MB7
Alk: 2 ml RedSea
Phyto: 10 ml
Food: brine shrimp frozen 1/4 cube
Midday:
Food: Flakes
Night:
Food: brine shrimp frozen 1/4 cube
Phyto: 10 ml
Bacteria: 1.5 ml MB7
Other Feeding:
2-3 times a week i target feed lps corals either brine shrimp (1-2x) or reef roids (1x)
Water Changes: Sundays, 4 gal (15%)
Parameter Targets:
Alk: 8 dkh
Cal: 430 ppm
Mag: 1280 ppm
NO3: 1-2 ppm
PO4: .05 ppm
Salinity: 35 ppt
Testing:
Tuesday: Alk/NO3/PO4
Thursday: Alk/NO3/PO4
Saturday: Alk/Cal/NO3/PO4. This is the only time I dose calcium and trace elements (all red sea dosing, trace elem dosed based on simple calcium add per instructions)
Tank Parameter 2/8:
Running below my target NO3 and PO3 values. Values are non zero but below targets. Although i desire higher values they have been stable near these levels for a few weeks.
NO3: 0.25 ppm
PO3: 0.03 ppm
Other test parameters:
Alk: 7.8 dkh
Cal: 1400 ppm
Mg: 1200 plm (not usually tested, will repeat on clean water to confirm test accuracy)
Salinity: 35 ppt
I have not dosed nitrate or phosphate previously as the test values were stable and i was waiting to see if they would creep up on their own. Today i dosed neonitro to get an additional 0.25 ppm. Going to watch what this does over the next week or so. Going slow, i dont want GHA to go out of control.
Dino &Algae Battle:
My tank is almost 2 yrs old and i have been in a dino resurgence battle for 6 weeks now. I changed my phyto source in october (LFS sourcing issues). Changed to reef nutrition live (which i suspect now was not live) and my NO3 and PO4 spiked (12ppm and 0.15ppm respectively). GHA took off on the rocks. I cut out the reef nutrition phyto as that was the cause of the elevated nutrients. I went without phyto dosing for ~1 month (sourcing issues with desired LFS + deer season + holidays = i didnt have any). In that month dinos showed up on the sand. My thought is that the phyto was a primary organism in my tank and when i stopped dosing phyto it gave the dinos an opening. During the month with no phyto i did some water changes to bring nutrients down to slow the algae. Also added additional clean up crew members to try and stay on top of it.
Current status, I think i am turning the corner on the algae. It’s still there but my daily routine has it “controlled”. The dinos are a different story. They cover the sand daily. I blow them around twice a day. Try to keep them guessing? I have not used a microscope to confirm but they disappear from the sand at night so i am 51% sure they are dinos. Although my nutrients are on the low side of target they are still measurable. And the corals look great in spite of the algae and dinos, great sps color, monti setosa is growing fast, other sps frags are growing with good PE, lps look the best ive ever seen (lots of new heads and very puffed up with great colors), gsp and toadstool are huge. Also, i am cleaning the glass and changing filter socks every 2 days. Skimmer cup is emptied every 3-4 days, skimmer is active which is to be expected as i am dosing phyto and bacteria. I added MB7 to the daily routine to try and out compete the dinos (was a recommendation on other reef2reef forums for dealing with dinos). The thought is to add other organisms that can/will take the place of the dinos, time will tell if this will work. I have gone back to my original phyto source which i believe has created stability in my nutrient levels.
I have a uv, green killing machine, but i suspect it needs a new bulb. It didnt seem to help, have had it out of the tank for 2 weeks and haven’t noticed things being worse. TBD if i get a replacement.
Other observations:
Alk consumption has been increasing. The 2 ml per day dose (0.2 dkh) likely needs to be upped to 2.5 ml per day in the near future as i started doing a supplemental 2-3 ml throughout the week to keep it on target. Calcium is corrected on the weekends and tends to be a 10ml dose (20ppm) every 2 weeks. I dose trace elements with calcium per the RS instructions. Calcium dosing is increasing and aligns/corresponds with the alk observations, i interpret this as the sps are growing (which visually i can confirm). I typically let water changes handle Mg and dont test for it. Tested Mg today and it was 1200ppm which is lower than i wanted. Will run a few more tests for repeatability but may need to start testing that one once a month. Already added 30ppm mg (nice middle area if the test was incorrect it wont make anything mad if it wasnt needed. I have a history with red sea Mg tests being wildly inaccurate, always good to test some new mix water to confirm accuracy)
Bonus thoughts:
Been doing some reading this weekend and ive learned that what my daily routine most resembles is a diy nano tank zeovit method (no reactor but implementing similar carbon dose/bacteria/nutrient approach). I did not intentionally go for this, was doing some reading and adopted a few strategies to try and deal with the dinos and algae. My biggest take away is it probably doesnt matter on the approach as long as it’s consistent with any changes being done slowly. My inconsistency between October through December last yr is whats gotten me into the trouble i have today. The phyto issues, nutrient swing ip then down, then seeing the dinos take root over the holidays where i had a reef sitter for a few weeks (cant take action if you’re not there…). The zeovit stuff makes a lot of claims, not sure if i buy it all but am intrigued by the bacteria feeding the coral statements (bacteria providing PO4 transport to the coral) as my coral are looking very happy since implementing this new routine. Maybe thats actually happening in my system, likely luck and coincidence…
The following “book” is my current husbandry practices. I am documenting this so i can look back 6 months from now to see how my routine and approach changed. For those that read it, i am sorry, this will be boring! Feel free to throw rocks but please know i will not react/change course quickly based on any comments (i am learning that every change is slow and intentional in this hobby!).
Date: 2/8
Tank: 26 gal RS max nano
Lights: RS50 LED (72%B 28%W) + AI Blade Grow (90%B 40%W)
Temp: 75F
Other: Run a skimmer 24/7 with GAC.
Flow: 2 power heads + return pump
Maintenance Routine:
Morning:
Carbon: 1 ml NoPOx
Bacteria: 1.5 ml MB7
Alk: 2 ml RedSea
Phyto: 10 ml
Food: brine shrimp frozen 1/4 cube
Midday:
Food: Flakes
Night:
Food: brine shrimp frozen 1/4 cube
Phyto: 10 ml
Bacteria: 1.5 ml MB7
Other Feeding:
2-3 times a week i target feed lps corals either brine shrimp (1-2x) or reef roids (1x)
Water Changes: Sundays, 4 gal (15%)
Parameter Targets:
Alk: 8 dkh
Cal: 430 ppm
Mag: 1280 ppm
NO3: 1-2 ppm
PO4: .05 ppm
Salinity: 35 ppt
Testing:
Tuesday: Alk/NO3/PO4
Thursday: Alk/NO3/PO4
Saturday: Alk/Cal/NO3/PO4. This is the only time I dose calcium and trace elements (all red sea dosing, trace elem dosed based on simple calcium add per instructions)
Tank Parameter 2/8:
Running below my target NO3 and PO3 values. Values are non zero but below targets. Although i desire higher values they have been stable near these levels for a few weeks.
NO3: 0.25 ppm
PO3: 0.03 ppm
Other test parameters:
Alk: 7.8 dkh
Cal: 1400 ppm
Mg: 1200 plm (not usually tested, will repeat on clean water to confirm test accuracy)
Salinity: 35 ppt
I have not dosed nitrate or phosphate previously as the test values were stable and i was waiting to see if they would creep up on their own. Today i dosed neonitro to get an additional 0.25 ppm. Going to watch what this does over the next week or so. Going slow, i dont want GHA to go out of control.
Dino &Algae Battle:
My tank is almost 2 yrs old and i have been in a dino resurgence battle for 6 weeks now. I changed my phyto source in october (LFS sourcing issues). Changed to reef nutrition live (which i suspect now was not live) and my NO3 and PO4 spiked (12ppm and 0.15ppm respectively). GHA took off on the rocks. I cut out the reef nutrition phyto as that was the cause of the elevated nutrients. I went without phyto dosing for ~1 month (sourcing issues with desired LFS + deer season + holidays = i didnt have any). In that month dinos showed up on the sand. My thought is that the phyto was a primary organism in my tank and when i stopped dosing phyto it gave the dinos an opening. During the month with no phyto i did some water changes to bring nutrients down to slow the algae. Also added additional clean up crew members to try and stay on top of it.
Current status, I think i am turning the corner on the algae. It’s still there but my daily routine has it “controlled”. The dinos are a different story. They cover the sand daily. I blow them around twice a day. Try to keep them guessing? I have not used a microscope to confirm but they disappear from the sand at night so i am 51% sure they are dinos. Although my nutrients are on the low side of target they are still measurable. And the corals look great in spite of the algae and dinos, great sps color, monti setosa is growing fast, other sps frags are growing with good PE, lps look the best ive ever seen (lots of new heads and very puffed up with great colors), gsp and toadstool are huge. Also, i am cleaning the glass and changing filter socks every 2 days. Skimmer cup is emptied every 3-4 days, skimmer is active which is to be expected as i am dosing phyto and bacteria. I added MB7 to the daily routine to try and out compete the dinos (was a recommendation on other reef2reef forums for dealing with dinos). The thought is to add other organisms that can/will take the place of the dinos, time will tell if this will work. I have gone back to my original phyto source which i believe has created stability in my nutrient levels.
I have a uv, green killing machine, but i suspect it needs a new bulb. It didnt seem to help, have had it out of the tank for 2 weeks and haven’t noticed things being worse. TBD if i get a replacement.
Other observations:
Alk consumption has been increasing. The 2 ml per day dose (0.2 dkh) likely needs to be upped to 2.5 ml per day in the near future as i started doing a supplemental 2-3 ml throughout the week to keep it on target. Calcium is corrected on the weekends and tends to be a 10ml dose (20ppm) every 2 weeks. I dose trace elements with calcium per the RS instructions. Calcium dosing is increasing and aligns/corresponds with the alk observations, i interpret this as the sps are growing (which visually i can confirm). I typically let water changes handle Mg and dont test for it. Tested Mg today and it was 1200ppm which is lower than i wanted. Will run a few more tests for repeatability but may need to start testing that one once a month. Already added 30ppm mg (nice middle area if the test was incorrect it wont make anything mad if it wasnt needed. I have a history with red sea Mg tests being wildly inaccurate, always good to test some new mix water to confirm accuracy)
Bonus thoughts:
Been doing some reading this weekend and ive learned that what my daily routine most resembles is a diy nano tank zeovit method (no reactor but implementing similar carbon dose/bacteria/nutrient approach). I did not intentionally go for this, was doing some reading and adopted a few strategies to try and deal with the dinos and algae. My biggest take away is it probably doesnt matter on the approach as long as it’s consistent with any changes being done slowly. My inconsistency between October through December last yr is whats gotten me into the trouble i have today. The phyto issues, nutrient swing ip then down, then seeing the dinos take root over the holidays where i had a reef sitter for a few weeks (cant take action if you’re not there…). The zeovit stuff makes a lot of claims, not sure if i buy it all but am intrigued by the bacteria feeding the coral statements (bacteria providing PO4 transport to the coral) as my coral are looking very happy since implementing this new routine. Maybe thats actually happening in my system, likely luck and coincidence…
