Some SPS not doing well

[kratosxxl]

Folks my ALk started to go down ? do i dose just alk to keep it in range or what ?

 

[mcarroll]

Thank you for the reply, I really appreciate it!

I’ve added another wavemaker for extra flow in addition to my two XF350s.

Sounds like it should be an improvement.

You might start considering the long-term fate of the XF350's...I'd replace all three pumps with two that could do the job. No rush though!

I’ll try removing the fleece rollers, but I have 14 fish, including three tangs that are 4–5 inches, and they produce a lot of waste! Would you recommend using filter floss and replacing it once a week, or running no mechanical filtration at all?

Poop is even better coral food than detritus. Let it fly! ;)

The improved flow should make all the difference.

I also noticed some residue on the bottom of my sump that looked like dusty sand. I vacuumed it all out, but as you suggested, I siphoned the water through a filter and returned it to the sump without doing a water change.

You could try palcing a small powerhead in the sump to keep it from collecting there. I did that with my previous system that had a sump.

I completely agree that the tank is still too new to have stable conditions for SPS corals. I thought all the gadgets would help me get there faster, but apparently not!

At the beginning it does pay to keep it simple. You might find that as the tank matures you decide you want to add more tech, but then you'll have a lot more experience to base that on.

Folks my ALk started to go down ? do i dose just alk to keep it in range or what ?

If you haven't already read @Randy Holmes-Farley 's articles about calcium and alkalinity, hit pause on everything else until you do. ;) In particular, this is a good one to start with:
https://reefs.com/magazine/chemistry-and-the-aquarium-solving-calcium-and-alkalinity-problems/

Don't stop there though. Read on!

 

[slingfox]

There are a lot of ways to run a successful reef tank. Given where you phosphate and nitrate levels are in the first post, I wouldn’t take your filter roller or other filtration equipment offline. I don’t see any reason why you would need to do so unless you are dealing with borrowed out nutrients.

 

[kratosxxl]

Sounds like it should be an improvement.

You might start considering the long-term fate of the XF350's...I'd replace all three pumps with two that could do the job. No rush though!

Funny that you mentioned it because Hydros replied back to me that they are NOT officially supporting XF350 CLoud edition lol
What would you recommend ? MP40 ? 2 of them maybe ?

 

[kratosxxl]

You could try palcing a small powerhead in the sump to keep it from collecting there. I did that with my previous system that had a sump.

Already ordered :)

 

[kratosxxl]

Small update guys. Things are getting from bad to worst more stuff is dying not really sure what to do i guess ill just lose all sps untill something.
Still waiting for ati icp to arrive but by the time i get results back all of them will be probably gone.water change maybe ? Not doing anything looks like not working :)

 

[kratosxxl]

Btw 4 out of 5 dead corals are from same supplier. 2 big ones had some tissue loss when i bought them. Im a hallucinating or it can be related ?

 

[kratosxxl]

This 2 i got from someone else they dont look bad to me. Or they are next in the line ?

 

[slingfox]

This 2 i got from someone else they dont look bad to me. Or they are next in the line ?

In this kind of circumstance: First time tank, only 3 months old, started with mostly dry rock, and lots of “stuff” going on, I assume the primary issue is with you still learning how to keep a stable reef. We’ve all been there at some point so just stick to it and find ways to improve your husbandry. Eventually the tank will mature and stabilize.

A good sign that your tank is ready for SPS is when you see coraline growing all over your rock work (ie, multiple locations in your tank and with sufficient quantity not just tiny specks). Once that happens, wait a few months and then you should be ready to try some SPS.

 

[kratosxxl]

In this kind of circumstance: First time tank, only 3 months old, started with mostly dry rock, and lots of “stuff” going on, I assume the primary issue is with you still learning how to keep a stable reef. We’ve all been there at some point so just stick to it and find ways to improve your husbandry. Eventually the tank will mature and stabilize.

A good sign that your tank is ready for SPS is when you see coraline growing all over your rock work (ie, multiple locations in your tank and with sufficient quantity not just tiny specks). Once that happens, wait a few months and then you should be ready to try some SPS.

Notcthet it makes much difference but i did started with like 80lb livecrock and 50 dry. Dry arecthe shelf ones.

 

[slingfox]

The live rock was from an LFS who had it in their system, sitting in circulating saltwater for some period of time? If so that will help speed up tank maturity but the dry rock your coral are on look very new so will require some time to mature.

 

[kratosxxl]

The live rock was from an LFS who had it in their system, sitting in circulating saltwater for some period of time? If so that will help speed up tank maturity but the dry rock your coral are on look very new so will require some time to mature.

Yup it was from LFS sitting in recirculating water

 

[fish_collector]

Sorry about your acros, if they've only been in the tank a few weeks or a month and now they are dying, your tank just can't support them at the moment. I'm not sure technically what they want or need that a new tank doesn't have, but it's been demonstrated time after time that it takes about 1 year for a new tank to be able to grow them consistently. There are exceptions, but 1 year is a generally accepted time frame, really the longer the better. Coralline, as has been mentioned, is a good indicator of tank maturity.

I'd bet you could grow a purple Milka stylo right now, as well as Bubblegum digi. Both are fast growers and can be had for pretty cheep most of the time.

Sometimes moving frags from one system to another is enough to do them in. I got 5 or 6 new pieces from a club buddy 23 days ago, most of them are doing "just ok" while 1 RTNd completely in a short period of time. It happens.

It's common practice to take a coral frag that has encrusted the base and cut it off and reglue it to a new plug when introducing it to a new tank, for pest control reasons, that will sometimes set it back many months in itself. Newly cut frags do not move well from tank to tank, it's always best to cut and then mount to a plug for a week or two before selling or moving it. Large pieces of coral also do not transfer well and usually result in a slow death. Acropora frags of about an inch or so are the best size for a safe transfer without issues, stylophora doesn't seem to matter nor does montipora digitata. You can try some of the encrusting montiporas but personally they do nothing for me, the same with the plating montiporas like capricornis, they just get too big and you can never fully get rid of them once you take them out. Montipora spongodes would be a great first sps as well, they grow fast and make neat shapes, if you ask around there's probably someone who would give you a piece for free.

For a few yearS at least I'd stay away from any Acropora tenuis, millipora or anything that tables, they are finicky corals and will rtn on you for no apparent reason. Stags are a good choice to learn with.

You'll get it figured out but you gotta just get through the learning process first. It's long and agonizing but the wait is worth it. I first saw a couple of the tanks from some of the guys in my club and thought I'd never have a tank with such big corals, but now just a few years later I too have some decent sized colonies and am able to frag and sell them regularly

 

[mcarroll]

Funny that you mentioned it because Hydros replied back to me that they are NOT officially supporting XF350 CLoud edition lol
What would you recommend ? MP40 ? 2 of them maybe ?

If you have a favorite like the MP40, go for it. There are lots of powerheads to choose from these days.

Tunze has long been my fav, and that's what I'd recommend. Technically they are hard to beat, but I wouldn't say they are the only game in town.

Small update guys. Things are getting from bad to worst more stuff is dying not really sure what to do i guess ill just lose all sps untill something.
Still waiting for ati icp to arrive but by the time i get results back all of them will be probably gone.water change maybe ? Not doing anything looks like not working :)

If the damage is done (ie if there were parameter swings that caused this), you are just watching the aftermath.

Corals don't always show immediate reactions – if the damage isn't severe they do what they can do cope and adapt. But if their coping skills are overwhelmed it can take days or weeks for things to finish playing out depending on the situation.

The best you can do is to correct things you know are/were wrong (stop the damage) and look forward.

Even when colonies do recover, they often don't look right (eg off color) for a long while afterward.

IMO the tip on waiting to see coralline algae grow before you judge your tank "stable enough" is excellent, BTW.

 

[kratosxxl]

Thank you guys for the help. Yeah its just waiting now. No shortcuts in reefing :). Ill stick to some lps for now untill it mature. I got back to hobby because of disney and sc orange passion :) saw on wwc video

 

[ReneReef]

Small update guys. Things are getting from bad to worst more stuff is dying not really sure what to do i guess ill just lose all sps untill something.
Still waiting for ati icp to arrive but by the time i get results back all of them will be probably gone.water change maybe ? Not doing anything looks like not working :)

Btw 4 out of 5 dead corals are from same supplier. 2 big ones had some tissue loss when i bought them. Im a hallucinating or it can be related ?

As mentioned, you have waaayyyyyy too little light.

This means that no acro is going to thrive in your current set up. No matter, the maturity of your tank or the supplier of the coral.

 

[James CNM]

The live rock setup is so much easier to get up, running and stable.

I agree. But there is a flipside as nature will prevent you going to quick and making impulse purchases.

You can definitely get to a mature state with dry rock and sand but it is without a doubt more challenging.

All the more reason to take things slow, gain a lot more knowledge with added bonus of pest control...well, as long as you thoroughly check and observe any future coral introductions

 

[kratosxxl]

As mentioned, you have waaayyyyyy too little light.

This means that no acro is going to thrive in your current set up. No matter, the maturity of your tank or the supplier of the coral.

I just dont think now its the rigfht time to bump up the par right ? i can get 600 on that top rock and 250 on the sand , but considering all things going would increasing par hurt even more ?

 

[slingfox]

I just dont think now its the rigfht time to bump up the par right ? i can get 600 on that top rock and 250 on the sand , but considering all things going would increasing par hurt even more ?

You could ramp up to your target light intensity over the course of a few weeks?

 

[kratosxxl]

You could ramp up to your target light intensity over the course of a few weeks?

i was doing that but i kind of stopped due to this issue just to not add more stress , but yes ther are corals who doing great and i should not affect them