what makes differences between thriving and surviving? I have NO growth

OP
OP
moz71

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Thanks all as far as lights. I am running vipraspectra (black box) but I have tested with a rented par meter and most the Mounties and green slimmer are at about 250 nothing above 300. And have kept it stable for months. The lights are about 13 inches over tank
I did do an ICP test a couple months ago and even then I had 27ppm nitrates and 0 phosphate. But started dosing phosphate but stopped when I got a reading of .08 on my Hanna checker. Maybe stopping was a mistake. Most of my minor elements were untraceable.
 
OP
OP
moz71

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Btw my alk has been slowly creeping up at 8.5 but contribute that to no growth
 
OP
OP
moz71

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Do you have any algae in the tank?
Very little but I use to have two patches of hair algae but they are gone and like I said in an earlier post my cheato is not growing at all either and have an expensive Kessil fudge light on it. I do have extensive film algae though
 

Potatohead

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 3, 2017
Messages
2,427
Reaction score
3,581
Location
Vancouver
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Very little but I use to have two patches of hair algae but they are gone and like I said in an earlier post my cheato is not growing at all either and have an expensive Kessil fudge light on it. I do have extensive film algae though

Film algae is fine

Feed the tank. Up your feedings by like 25% and throw another one per day in there perhaps as well. You will get some more algae initially until your chaeto takes off and the system balances but your coral health will noticeably change in a matter of weeks. Don't worry too much about nitrate for now unless it really starts to spike, more likely the available phosphate now in the system will actually reduce it.
 

homer1475

Figuring out the hobby one coral at a time.
View Badges
Joined
Apr 24, 2018
Messages
11,677
Reaction score
18,662
Location
Way upstate NY
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Keep that alk up! 8.5 eh.
9-11
...whats ur calcium ?
Salt?
Mag?
Temp?
Why?

I keep my ALK in the 7.0 to 7.5 range and I have excellent growth(FWIW the ocean is anywhere from 6.2 to 8.2 depending on location). Elevated ALK with little no no nutrients is a recipe for disaster.
 

Brew12

Electrical Gru
View Badges
Joined
Aug 14, 2016
Messages
22,488
Reaction score
61,020
Location
Decatur, AL
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Plenty of well respected reefers keep their nitrates in the 15 to 25ppm range.

If everything else is stable, I would look at flow first. Do you have a build thread so we can see how your powerheads are set up in relation to your aquascape?
 
OP
OP
moz71

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Everything has been stable for months
Salt1.026
Mag1290
Cal 470
Alk 8.5 range
My flow has been strong 2 wav pumps and a gyre to be honest I never can get what I’d strong,medium etc. I do have Greek slimmer more in direct flow and stylo and monti s in strong variable
I will say even my few LPS don’t grow much but are alive.
btw I probably should mention I had a minor rtn event last week on my poccilipora. Btw this has ALSO grown very minimal in over a year. I MEAN A MILLIMETER AT BEST.
 

Dom

Full Time Reef Keeper
View Badges
Joined
Apr 29, 2016
Messages
5,720
Reaction score
6,305
Location
NY
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
Can someone tell me why my corals do not seem to grow much or not at all? BUT are all alive for over a year!! I have a monti cap, monti digata the has grown millimeters at best and a sylo that has grown at not all but are alive and look well. My parameters have been stable and the only thing I think of is elevated nitrates of 25ish BUT stable and PO4 is .01. I do see that the nitrate here is high but have heard growth even when elevated and stable. the only other thing I can think of is in my ICP test it says i have undetectable minor elements could this be a problem? I havn't dosed because I only have a few frags and I use IOreef crytals which should contain these elements. ANy idea?? ehat are some of the other reasons of no growth. BTW my desara clam is growing Extremely well!

I don't define 25 as elevated nitrates. I purchased a Nem from a LFS. It came from a thriving display tank. On a whim, I decided to test the bag water. Imagine my surprise when it came back with a nitrate level of 180.

"That couldn't be right", I thought. Ugh... API test kits. So I backed up that test with a second nitrate test using my Red Sea kit. Low and behold, the 180 was correct!

If your corals are surviving and not thriving (no growth), I would suggest looking at:

1. Lighting - It isn't enough to have light in the tank. It needs to be ample light. What kind of lighting do you have? Have you tested your light intensity levels? Most people use a PAR meter to do so. I have a meter that tests in LUMENS. I shoot for between 8000 - 10000 lumens at the BOTTOM of the tank. Also be sure that the lighting covers the entire tank bottom. This is called light spread and can eb adjusted by moving the light closer to or further away from the top of the tank.

2. Flow - This is important and is different than the amount of gallons per hour your return pump turns over in the tank. How big is your tank and what is the rating of your return pump. the GPH rating on a return pump will vary based on how high the pump needs to move water to get it back into the tank. This is called head height. The chart included with your return pump will give you a chart based on the head height of your installation. Supplemental power heads are important and they should be pointed at each other and not in the same direction. Flow needs to be chaotic.

3. Calcium - I maintain a level of 420-440 range. This is an essential element for coral growth.

4. Alk - Bicarbonate is another essential element for coral growth. I maintain levels of 8-8.5 range.

Get back to us with this info and we will get you on the right path.

Dom
 
OP
OP
moz71

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
To be honest I am thinking it has to be the low phosphate or second lack of trace elements
Reasons;
No cheato or coral growth
Biopellet reactor not doing anything
Common problems among these three things is low phosphate or low iron but that doesn’t explain biopellet problem
@Dom
I did test par and getting average of 250 n most of areas. Vipraspectra 14 inches off water. See comment on flow in post right before yours
Thanks
 

Potatohead

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Aug 3, 2017
Messages
2,427
Reaction score
3,581
Location
Vancouver
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
To be honest I am thinking it has to be the low phosphate or second lack of trace elements
Reasons;
No cheato or coral growth
Biopellet reactor not doing anything
Common problems among these three things is low phosphate or low iron but that doesn’t explain biopellet problem
@Dom
I did test par and getting average of 250 n most of areas. Vipraspectra 14 inches off water. See comment on flow in post right before yours
Thanks

I am extremely confident you will notice a significant difference raising phosphate alone. If you are keeping monits and what not alive for a year your water chemistry, lighting, flow etc cannot be that far off. Very low phosphate with significant nitrate is not a great recipe. If the system can't be in balance the opposite is preferable.
 

Dom

Full Time Reef Keeper
View Badges
Joined
Apr 29, 2016
Messages
5,720
Reaction score
6,305
Location
NY
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
To be honest I am thinking it has to be the low phosphate or second lack of trace elements
Reasons;
No cheato or coral growth
Biopellet reactor not doing anything
Common problems among these three things is low phosphate or low iron but that doesn’t explain biopellet problem
@Dom
I did test par and getting average of 250 n most of areas. Vipraspectra 14 inches off water. See comment on flow in post right before yours
Thanks

Since I don't measure in PAR, I can't comment. Also, consider that it may be a combination of deficiencies and not just one thing.
 
OP
OP
moz71

moz71

Valuable Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 25, 2018
Messages
1,354
Reaction score
1,293
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
One step at a time right? I am going to increase feeding and dose phosphate a little for awhile then reassess. I am going to take sound advice and not do too many things at once and slow. I will keep a close eye on all levels. I will report back on any status in case anyone interested. If lucky that solves it and if not step two. Lol
 

Mastering the art of locking and unlocking water pathways: What type of valves do you have on your aquarium plumbing?

  • Ball valves.

    Votes: 73 51.8%
  • Gate valves.

    Votes: 72 51.1%
  • Check valves.

    Votes: 36 25.5%
  • None.

    Votes: 31 22.0%
  • Other.

    Votes: 9 6.4%

New Posts

Back
Top