Missing Anything

[jcolon2]

Aside from experience am I missing anything in my tank to successfully keep corals, specifically sps? I know I need to purchase a phosban reactor

I have a 55 gallon tank
4 bulb 216 watt tek fixture (2 ati blue+ bulbs, 2 ati aquablue special bulbs)
2- 425 gph koralias
1 maxijet 1200
cpr protein skimmer
proclear aquatic sump w/ quietone 3000 and Cpr 150 Overflow
mangroves and chaeto growing in sump
running carbon in sump
filter floss in one chamber of sump (think I am going to ditch it and add a filter sock, seeing as this traps particles well but is a haven for bacteria).
70 pounds of liverock (50 from reefcleaners, rest of it is premium fiji rock)
about 90 pounds of livesand (about 4 inch deep sandbed)
Thats all I can think of at the moment
And yes, I have test kits.
As far as solutions- I have a ph buffer, a solution to maintain alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, and trace elements.

Aside from hearing the parameters, does everything seem in line to begin growing coral? Thanks.

Best,

Justin

 

[Arati]

sps tend to do poorly in direct flow and the korilas i dont think u can put them on a wave maker timer. just make sure you dont point them directly at the corals.

other then that it seems like your are good to go.

 

[jcolon2]

Arati: Thank you for the advice. I actually sold my wavemaker because I knew I was going to upgrade to koralias (although I am running one of the maxijets for extra flow). The koralias seem to provide weak, but evenly distributed flow. I will be sure to keep the sps out of direct flow- I may have to reaquascape (for the millionth time) to make that possible.

Did I really just see the words, "seems like you are good to go??!!!"

 

[ryangrieder]

Ummmmm how about salt water?

Haha jk. Seems decent. With the 4 bulb t5 id just make sure the sps are pretty high up. While back i had pretty much same set up and 4 bulb was not enough for my sps. Never had growth and faded color. I had to get a cheap 2 bulb t5 fixture to put behind it to have a total of 6 bulbs on it. That was a bit better. So you can give it a go, but make sure that sps is high

 

[jcolon2]

ryangreider: I will make sure the sps is high. I am probably going to hold off on sps for a bit (at least until the swap). But who knows what will happen before then? But first, I am going to start with some lps and see how that works out (to test the waters). I have been taking it very slow with this tank since my crash (6 months ago) and that method has worked. So, I am going to continue to take it slow, one step at a time : ) I'm just happy to see all my equipment running. I need to get some pictures up!

 

[ryangrieder]

Go for it bud, get some pics up. As you saw previously, im thinking about the same light, post some when ever your free, I'm interested in seeing it running and the colors for the fixture

 

[125reefer]

have you had sps before.did u have any success with the coral.if not what have you done differently to your system.

 

[jcolon2]

125. I've have had sps before but with no success. But like I said, I'm going to take it slow and hold off on sps and begin with easier corals first. What have I done differently with my tank? I replaced my t12 vho unit with a t5 tek unit, added 2 koralias to my tank, began running my protein skimmer again now that I purchased a new collection cup, added a lot of livesand, added 50 pounds of reefcleaners rock, added mangroves and chaeto to my sump, began using activated carbon and filter floss, and discarded the sand that was in my sump. Those are the new changes since I last kept coral.

 

[Long-Island-Mike]

Keep on top of your levels, dont dose anything you cant test for. Look forward to those pictures :biggrin:

 

[jcs11236]

your set up sounds good. like mentioned-keep sps corals high up. remember sps like stable conditions so try ur best to keep on top of your levels.. personally i noticed that after i installed my dosing pumps and dosing was done slowly and at the same time every night-the corals started to color up and grow more. not sure the exact reason y other than they like stability.. Good luck with your set up

 

[acromike]

You could get yourself a birdsnest they are the easier of the sps corals and see how it does.The only thing I would be worried about is my friend has a 55 with a 4 bulb katalina light and it doesnt grow her birdsnest but you have a much better tek fixture.Other then that like the above poster said just keep it stable.I like to pretend im just keeping water and if my water is perfect everything else is great.

 

[eddie1272]

You would probably benefit from adding a brs dual reactor. I just picked up a used one from here.

Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using Reefs

 

[James]

.I like to pretend im just keeping water and if my water is perfect everything else is great.

I like this. Water quality is key with sps. Make sure you are not feeding too heavily and do regular water changes with a quality salt. I do weekly with ESV and my sps are all very happy and growing. On top of that get yourself a set of quality test kits (at least Ca, KH, Mag) and test weekly. You will learn your systems needs and you can adjust dosing accordingly. Get yourself a coral that will be a quick barometer for the rest of your tank. A Leather coral or something like that you can look at and know in 1 second if it is happy or not. And make sure you TDS check your RO regularly. I have a friend on here who was doing everything right but topping off and mixing saltwater with bad filters and his sps all browned out and it took him weeks to get the system back in order. Justin, there is no skipping steps in keeping SPS and no magic thing to do. Solid and consistent husbandry practices will get you where you want to be. HTH, I know it is not about equipment so much and nothing is revolutionary but the people who don't keep SPS well (IE: growing and colorful) skip out on these "basics" and then wonder why they are unsuccessful.

James

 

[jcolon2]

Thank you for the advice everyone.

Educator: I have learned my lesson with skipping steps. I have two ati test kits (I believe they are ATI). It is hard to get a true reading because the color reflects differently depending on the angle of the light thus, changing my perception of the results. I intend to take this slow. I do like the idea that someone mentioned of purchase a brs dual reactor. Thanks again. Happy to hear though that nothing thus far seems to stand out as incorrect with my tank.

 

[James]

Thank you for the advice everyone.

Educator: I have learned my lesson with skipping steps. I have two ati test kits (I believe they are ATI). It is hard to get a true reading because the color reflects differently depending on the angle of the light thus, changing my perception of the results. I intend to take this slow. I do like the idea that someone mentioned of purchase a brs dual reactor. Thanks again. Happy to hear though that nothing thus far seems to stand out as incorrect with my tank.

Justin, if the test kits aren't letting you know your true readings then I suggest getting a different company. I have used salifert and elos and prefer elos but they come at a cost, both are more than other test kits. it is important man, if you really want to keep sps you will need to know your water parameters... can't skip this step.

 

[Arati]

I like the dont dose anything you cant test for advice from mike. also educators advice is spot on I use a frog spaw to give me a visual indicator of my water. once u get use to seeing it happy you can tell immediatly if something if a little off. however leather corals are well know for there chemical warfare potential, i wouldnt put one in an sps tank.

im sure if you start off slowly manual dosing will be just fine. i like to dose my tank manualy because i feel it keeps me in closer contact with everything. but if down the line you have trouble keeping your levels up, you may want to look into one of the many dosing contraptions available in the hobby.

lastly dont be scared to do extra water changes. Ill do a water change at the drop of a hat. if anything seems off, its my goto move.



must be time for some pictures!!

 

[ryangrieder]

as the famous kenny blankerchip says on MXC. i quote...

"LETSSSS GET IT ON"

 

[jaa1456]

You guys test your water?

 

[jcs11236]

You guys test your water?

yes.. i test phos and mag every week.. and i test cal and alk twice a week

 

[James]

however leather corals are well know for there chemical warfare potential, i wouldnt put one in an sps tank.

Any coral that you have can be used as an indicator, I have used pulsing xenia before too, not pulsing = something is off in your tank. My experience with leather corals and warfare have been tame compared to some LPS like some of my favias or acan echinatas, those things send out some nasty sweepers! But yeah the point is you can use different corals to tell, you will know them when you see them happy and vice-versa.

Jaa, this is one of those times I was talking about you stirring the pot for no known reason... but to answer your question, yes, I do test my water. I think it is foolhardy to give advice to the contrary. Sure, after a tank is well established and you know it for years you can get away without weekly testing but why put that out there for people without much experience as a good option? Unless you are being sarcastic, which is not easily recognized on the internet where people might take what you post seriously. Whatever, let us not take this thread off topic, just wanted to answer your question.