Tank update - Contemplating dumping it

[Anonymous]

Tank is doing OK. Not much growth. The switching of the MH bulb to the 10K XM helped some color but the tank still lacks allot. The blue tort is still light lavender and the green with blue tipped Acro is brown. The bali slimer has only grown 1 inch in ~6 months.

Growth has halted again. and still NO CORALINE on the rocks. This still bothers me because there should be by now. It grows on the glass. Allot of the SPS frags still have not attached to the LR either.

CA 420
Alk 11 DKH
Sal 1.026
PH 8.1-8.3
Temp 79-81
Amon, Nitrate, PO4 - 0

So now I am contemplating again on what to do. Its lack of progress has made me feel its not worth it anymore. I am not sure what I will do.

 

[Anonymous]

Not much I can suggest except maybe check your Mg levels and do a substantial water change - at least on the order of 30% to see if you can offset whatever is lacking and / or limiting. Also if you aren't currently dripping kalk in addition to a reactor try that , has many benefcial effects that will work with almost any system / maintenance routine including precipitating some immeasurable phophates, aiding coralline algae growth among others.

Also even though corals will grow somewhat faster at the temperatures listed in your post in my personal experience you get better survivability and color at a somewhat lower temperature 76-77. Faster growth at higher temperatures seems to be the norm with many stonies but susceptibility to disease and stress along with bleaching goes up in tandem.

 

[Anonymous]

I cant get the tank that low in temp. I do not have a chiller nor can I add one (no more electricity in the condo).

I run a kalk reactor as well.

Mag is 1290.

 

[Anonymous]

Rob, before you were the king of *green* thumbs, now you complaint about thing not growing fast enough!?!? :wink:

Seriously, sorry to hear that you are not happy about this hobby. Mg does not really affect the coralline algae as much as the Ca, but light certainly is a very important component as well as flow. Seems like you are doing everything right, so I have no idea what to tell you. Sorry bro.

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah - I got the algae beat. The corals just look blah and not growing.

 

[Unarce]

The Alk's a little higher than normal, but I think it's more of just a waiting game, really. Are your corals wild, aquacultured, tank-raised, etc.? Could be weeks or months before things really get settled and begin to flourish.

Also, I can ship you some pebbles with red and purple coralline on them. Help seed your tank.

 

[Anonymous]

I got coraline on the glass and it grows there fast just NONE on the rocks.

I dont know why it wont spread to the rocks. IMO something is still there in those rocks.

The corals have been in there for months and some over a year. Most were tank raised IIRC.

 

[Unarce]

I've heard complaints about bad live rock recently. It's possible that some rock may have been collected near a river runoff, where siltation or pollutants are heavy

 

[Anonymous]

these are the same rocks I have had problems with since day one of this cursed tank.

First it was really bad hair algae for 2.5 years and now the algae is gone the corals just dont thrive.

There is still no sign of pods in over a year or so.

 

[Unarce]

What kind of pods did you add?

 

[Anonymous]

None - There used to be some 3 years ago before the algae killed everything.

 

[Unarce]

You can replenish your tank.

Tigger Pods
http://www.reefnutrition.com/tiggerpods/index.htm

Ocean Pods
http://www.oceanpods.com/

 

[Anonymous]

Has your tank gone down hill since the last time you took a pic and posted it? IIRC you tank was (is?) nice looking.

 

[Anonymous]

it was getting better I thought. Just doesn't look right.

 

[Anonymous]

Pic

 

[bleedingthought]

That hammer is huge! 8)

Have you added new rock since you last wanted to dump your tank?

 

[Anonymous]

no new LR

 

[Anonymous]

What was the question? I forgot because that pic is so perfect! How can anyone be upset when their tank is that hot?

Really, coraline algae is over rated. I can't stand it myself. It corrodes pumps, and makes it so you can't read your thermometer, and cruds up my pH probe. Believe me, if you are scraping the malignant crap off your glass, it is only a matter of time 'till you are cursing it like me.

Besides, it looks like most of your real estate is taken up by all those corals?

 

[Unarce]

Looks good, Rob! Snap out of it!

 

[Anonymous]

Looks like it is comming along to me. It's better than mine. The hammer is a bit larger than every thing else. Kind of out of proportion. Is it branching? You could make some trades if you frag it.