Polyp extension?

cmjreef · Jul 14, 2011

I've seen quite a few sps tanks. Some have outrageous PE, some have good PE, and some have very little. What do you think encourages good PE, and does good PE really suggest a healthier colony? I love the look of polyps blowin' in the breeze, and I associate it w/ health, but my own corals have pretty weak PE. They still grow, but what gives?

dmorazan · Jul 14, 2011

well in my opinion pe tell you what the corals fell like. if all the corals in your tank have pe that means that they feel happy if your some of the coral have pe and other don't you have to check for position water movement and many other factors.water chem. is key or plays a big play on pe , lighting and water movement.you have to have everything correct for that coral to be happy. some like lots of light and water movement and other don't. i like how you think "Patience is a virtue" I also think that is part of the equation for pe. good luck.

Surf&turf · Jul 14, 2011

^^^^^^+1^^^^^^^^^

If a coral isn't really happy, lack luster PE.

BigJohnWoody · Jul 14, 2011

I'm curious on this as well. I am sps dominate and my polyp extension has never been great. Granted my tank is only about 8 months old, but my maintenance schedule is immaculate. I have always used BRS 2 part and just recently switched over to a calcium reactor. I can tell you that my polyp extension has improved a lot. I know tons of people that run 2 part though and have great PE and great growth. So I am not knocking on 2 part in any way, more just saying for me a calcium reactor seems to have helped a lot. I have always had good growth but now they just look a lot better. Just my 2 cents. Plus a calcium reactor has been very easy for me and my levels are always constant. Instead of ways battling the constant rise and fall I got with dosing. I did use dosing pumps and dosed 8 times daily using my Apex to help keep it to a minimum.

dmorazan · Jul 14, 2011

BigJohnWoody said:
I'm curious on this as well. I am sps dominate and my polyp extension has never been great. Granted my tank is only about 8 months old, but my maintenance schedule is immaculate. I have always used BRS 2 part and just recently switched over to a calcium reactor. I can tell you that my polyp extension has improved a lot. I know tons of people that run 2 part though and have great PE and great growth. So I am not knocking on 2 part in any way, more just saying for me a calcium reactor seems to have helped a lot. I have always had good growth but now they just look a lot better. Just my 2 cents. Plus a calcium reactor has been very easy for me and my levels are always constant. Instead of ways battling the constant rise and fall I got with dosing. I did use dosing pumps and dosed 8 times daily using my Apex to help keep it to a minimum.

lots have to do with how mature your tank is.if your sytem is well stablish and the eco system is all harmony you will see pe. about calcium and other different types of additives are very inportant but not all the whole thing is a combo of lots of things. water changes are inportant to keep a system running fine but, when you have a system that is running just fine water changes are not as critical to do as often as one that is not as stablish. i do 1 water change every 25 days and that is it.

SteezySPS · Jul 14, 2011

info on parameters and flow help

cmjreef · Jul 16, 2011

I have a standard 120 (4x2x2) tech tank. I use a flowstar submersible pump for return (1500gph), and I also have 2 mp40s on either end of the tank in reef crest mode anti-synched. My chems are pretty spot on: pH 8-8.2, Alk 8.5, calc 430, mag 1300, NO3 is undetectable using Elos kit, PO4 is .03 using a hannah meter. I have a Giesemann infiniti light w/ 2 250mhs and 4 54wT5s. I change about 10 gals a week. I dose about 60-80 mls per day of B-ionic and top off w/ Kalk on a Tunze osmolator. I'm happy w/ my tank, I just want more PE, who doesn't?

clowns101 · Jul 16, 2011

FHF-Flow Happines Food

The 3 things that will make a SPS coral have good PE,FHF...

_sludgefactory · Jul 16, 2011

I was literally just coming on to post the same thing. My acros grow like weeds and haver intense color but no pe or very little. I have a koralia 3 pointed at them now about a foot a way. Think I should go down to a 2?

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_sludgefactory · Jul 17, 2011

Bump

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Troylee · Jul 17, 2011

Well I used to think flow played a part and very well might... But after talking to calfo I'm gonna go with his suggestions of huge pe means the coral is starving an not a good thing.... I have got pieces from friends who have little to no flow and there pe was outrageous put a frag in my tank nothing... Always made me wander then after using the biopellets and talking to Anthony I saw a increase in pe and he said it was contributed to a lack of food since I had a lower nutrient content the corals are stretching for food... Maybe it's both not sure..:tongue:

dmorazan · Jul 17, 2011

Troylee said:
Well I used to think flow played a part and very well might... But after talking to calfo I'm gonna go with his suggestions of huge pe means the coral is starving an not a good thing.... I have got pieces from friends who have little to no flow and there pe was outrageous put a frag in my tank nothing... Always made me wander then after using the biopellets and talking to Anthony I saw a increase in pe and he said it was contributed to a lack of food since I had a lower nutrient content the corals are stretching for food... Maybe it's both not sure..:tongue:

i dont know who calfo is but 75% to 90% of the food that photosynthetic corals make comes from them self making food. wich i think is 90% of all the corals that we keep. nutrients are vital for the corals but pe is an action that that coral take to breathe or to feed at night or extend their polyps to grab as much light as they can during the day. i will be concern if a milli does not have all its polyps out. there are many articles about this on the net to read,

Troylee · Jul 17, 2011

Anthony calfo is a very wise man who has written many books and is a pioneer in today's hobby.... I tend to believe lots of things he says... Just google his name..;) a Millie with little to no pe is one of 2 thins.. Flow or aefw only factors I have ever seen with them...

dmorazan · Jul 17, 2011

Troylee said:
Anthony calfo is a very wise man who has written many books and is a pioneer in today's hobby.... I tend to believe lots of things he says... Just google his name..;) a Millie with little to no pe is one of 2 thins.. Flow or aefw only factors I have ever seen with them...

correct about the milli and that is my point that pe is very necessary for a mili,if a milli was not extended there will be something wrong with it but not because is staving.and about this gentleman that is his opinion that i don't agree with not about starving or not much nutrients in the water.:wink:

Troylee · Jul 17, 2011

No the gentleman stated that nice big pe is a indication of the coral starving.. A well fed coral doesn't show as much pe from what I got out of his statements..

Troylee · Jul 17, 2011

here ya go this will shed more insight for ya.... also give ya a little background of the gentleman we speak of...;)
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/general-sps-discussion/57132-polyp-extention.html

dmorazan · Jul 17, 2011

Troylee said:
here ya go this will shed more insight for ya.... also give ya a little background of the gentleman we speak of...;)
https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/general-sps-discussion/57132-polyp-extention.html

correct and if you read it got to do with extending for light since we are giving them a non natural source but got nothing to do with low nutrients also talking about people at the lfs manipulating the system to get the extra pe. if you go to the wild corals will not have lots of pe during the day but they extend at night. and also their light source is greater than our led, mh, t5s and others. just like a tree that needs light to grow also corals so they extend to get more light from the source that we provide. also with all the respect to anthony that is his opinion just like mine. :wink:

_sludgefactory · Jul 17, 2011

That article makes sense because I feed my fish pretty heavily and does a few different food supplements for them. I wonder what will happen when I install my zeo reactor.

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Troylee · Jul 17, 2011

So what exactly are you getting at I'm really confused???? What's tour thoughts on how and why??? Every coral feeds at night that's when they grow and release c02... Like a plant but these are animals not plants..:tongue: