Do you manually dose? What do you dose?

[neoh]

My tank is seeing more and more SPS these days, and I'm curious what I could use to promote growth. My corals don't really spread, or grow all that fast.

Have you found after using a specific product, you've noticed different results in different areas?

I've been dosing Aquavitro fuel recently to try and promote coral growth and polyp extension, but it really doesn't do anything significant from what I can tell. I don't dose the 3s, as my water parameters are absolutely spot on, with no detectible NO3 or phosphates, and don't want to add to the pollution.

Do you just do the big 3's for stability? Do you dose different things for different reasons? Have you stopped using a product, then noticed a different, so you started using it again, or stopped a product completely?

[The Guy]

I used to manually dose, but kept forgetting and it would throw my parameters off. So I got a couple of BRS 1.1 ml dosers for Ca. & Alk. I check my Mag. and adjust if needed at water change time. It took a few weeks to get the levels where I want them and now they stays spot on. I don't have a lot of SPS coral mostly zoes, a couple of real nice pipe organs & softies. and they all do well.

[reefwars]

My tank is seeing more and more SPS these days, and I'm curious what I could use to promote growth. My corals don't really spread, or grow all that fast.

Have you found after using a specific product, you've noticed different results in different areas?

I've been dosing Aquavitro fuel recently to try and promote coral growth and polyp extension, but it really doesn't do anything significant from what I can tell. I don't dose the 3s, as my water parameters are absolutely spot on, with no detectible NO3 or phosphates, and don't want to add to the pollution.

Do you just do the big 3's for stability? Do you dose different things for different reasons? Have you stopped using a product, then noticed a different, so you started using it again, or stopped a product completely?


What are your parameters exactly?

I'm not sure where your Alk sits but you can try boosting it to a higher level or increase lighting on the tank to spur a growth spurt.

How's the fish load?

[neoh]

Nitrate and phosphate undetectable, Ca 430, Mg 1350, Alk 9. Moderate to heavy fish load, and my PAR is good, running Vertex Illuminas.

[gregzz4]

I tried and stopped using; Coral Snow, Phyto Plankton, Phyto Feast, and Zeovit Coral Vitalizer. The last actually caused me issues with corals. Forget right now the specifics, but it wasn't good.
I think it was stuff closing up and loss of color, but I'd have to look back about a year through my logs to confirm that.
Whatever the case, I don't feed my corals anymore

I dose the big 3 daily and that's it

Maybe 1 day I'll get a Calcium reactor

[Ryan7]

I manually dose acropower for amino acids, immediately noticed new shoots from several sps, continued and still continue to dose with back to normal growth thou. I add it about twice a week.

auto dosing main 3, but also manually dose potassium, strontium, iodine weekly. Potassium is important for some sps if not all... research shows particular for blue and purple colour.

Where in Ladner are you? I'm also in Ladner..

[Ryan7]

What colour leds you got in your fixture? What's your flow like?

[Ryan7]

Also, if you are not dosing, what are you doing to keep cal, mg up?

[Aquattro]

Also, if you are not dosing, what are you doing to keep cal, mg up?

Good question! Those are text book perfect numbers, doubt they come out of a salt bucket :)

[neoh]

I manually dose acropower for amino acids, immediately noticed new shoots from several sps, continued and still continue to dose with back to normal growth thou. I add it about twice a week.

auto dosing main 3, but also manually dose potassium, strontium, iodine weekly. Potassium is important for some sps if not all... research shows particular for blue and purple colour.

Where in Ladner are you? I'm also in Ladner..

I'm off of 45th Ave!

In regards to the lighting. I have a Vertex Illumina SR260. So whites, blues and purples, no add-on modules.

Flow is provided by 2 mp40s, 1 wp40 wave and two returns.

I dose aquavitro fuel, and that's about it. I do 50% water changes every 2-3 weeks with IO reef crystals.

[Aquattro]

I do 50% water changes every 2-3 weeks with IO reef crystals.

That will do it :)

[Ryan7]

Sounds like your system should support sps and grow it...

- its possible your sps react to the large water changes with little growth (meaning they adjust to their current parms for a few weeks, then the parms change with the new water) Surely, after a few weeks, your levels fluctuate, it might not be enough to damage them, but could be stunting their growth. Have you checked your parms just before a water change and then after to see how much of a dif there is?

- If the whites in your lights have a high kelvin temp (14k +) depending on your sps, it may require a lower colour temp for growth (6K - 10K)

- Depending on your particular LED's (i dont know the specral output of yours), your sps may be missing a portion of wavelength that your led's are not providing, reseach has shown this to be all too common with LED's, I know I dealt with this issue with my lights also, this is why the newer lights have greens, reds, violets ect.. added to them. Google the led studies done by Sanjay Joshi on advanced aquarist (sorry no link) there are several of them.

- I have not used the amino acids you are using, you could try a different brand?? IMO, it's one those things we buy to aid our corals, but realistically, we have no idea what consentration is actually in the bottle, it could be water for all I know :)

Anyway, these are just some thoughts, a lot of sps grow soo slow for some, and take off for others....

ps. send me a PM if you are interested in viewing each others systems, since we are so close by, dont know of many hobbyist in Lander...

[neoh]

Sounds like your system should support sps and grow it...

- its possible your sps react to the large water changes with little growth (meaning they adjust to their current parms for a few weeks, then the parms change with the new water) Surely, after a few weeks, your levels fluctuate, it might not be enough to damage them, but could be stunting their growth. Have you checked your parms just before a water change and then after to see how much of a dif there is?

- If the whites in your lights have a high kelvin temp (14k +) depending on your sps, it may require a lower colour temp for growth (6K - 10K)

- Depending on your particular LED's (i dont know the specral output of yours), your sps may be missing a portion of wavelength that your led's are not providing, reseach has shown this to be all too common with LED's, I know I dealt with this issue with my lights also, this is why the newer lights have greens, reds, violets ect.. added to them. Google the led studies done by Sanjay Joshi on advanced aquarist (sorry no link) there are several of them.

- I have not used the amino acids you are using, you could try a different brand?? IMO, it's one those things we buy to aid our corals, but realistically, we have no idea what consentration is actually in the bottle, it could be water for all I know :)

Anyway, these are just some thoughts, a lot of sps grow soo slow for some, and take off for others....

ps. send me a PM if you are interested in viewing each others systems, since we are so close by, dont know of many hobbyist in Lander...

- I have no problem with coloration or keeping them healthy, but they certainly don't grow. I've had one frag in there for 6 months and hasn't even encrusted the plug yet! It's coloring up, but that's about the extent of it.

- I keep my whites at around 35%, with the blue and purples up to 85% max throughout the day, with a 6 hour period, with 6 hours worth of ramp up/down

- I have not checked the parameters before and after, but I'm due for a w/c today, so I'll do that today and see what happens. I'm not expecting too much of a difference.

- I know people are having good results with the UV module to the Vertex. With a $150 per module price tag, it's hard to justify when I need 5 of them, with a fixture that is already over $2000. I'll check out those studies.

- I know of two other hobbyists in Ladner.

[Ryan7]

[QUOTE=neoh;917814]
- I keep my whites at around 35%, with the blue and purples up to 85% max throughout the day, with a 6 hour period, with 6 hours worth of ramp up/down
QUOTE]

I would suspect this would be part of the slow growth.. I'm guessing your whites are dimmed down due to avoid other corals burning...lps, or you like the colour better this way? Can you clarify the light period?

Total whites on = X
Total blue on = X

How many hours is each ramping for?

[neoh]

Total whites on - 12-12PM 0-35-0% with 4 hour ramp up, 2 hour ramp down
Total blue on: 12-12PM 0-85% with 4 hour ramp up, 2 hour ramp down
Total purple on: 24 hours, 12PM-4PM 3%-85%, then slow ramp down from 85% to 3% from 10-3AM

maximum, 4PM-10PM
whites - 35%
blues - 85%
purple - 85%

3AM-12PM 3% P

12-4PM 3%-85% P
12-4PM 0%-35% W
12-4PM 0%-85% B
4PM-10PM - 85/85/3 (P/B/W)
10PM-12AM ramp down 85-0% B, 35-0% W
12-3AM 85-3% P

morning is 4 hours ramp up, evening is 2 hour ramp down, 2 hours on the purples at 85% (I like the glow at night) ;)

Whites are dimmed because they wash the colors out, and I've read that whites do nothing for coral growth or health, as they get most of it from the spectrum out of the blues, and that whites are purely aesthetic.

[Ryan7]

QUOTE "I've read that whites do nothing for coral growth or health, as they get most of it from the spectrum out of the blues, and that whites are purely aesthetic"

It depends on the species of sps. For example, most acropora grow in shallow waters with 10k - 14k light. I would guess your white lights are between that range.

What type and species of sps are you keeping? I can tell you what colour temps they come from based on Indonesia waters, same species from other oceans should be similar..

I totally get you like the overall colour of the tank for viewing as is, but if the above results in any conclusions, you could just brighten your whites during the day or when your not home to view the tank, and ramp them down when your home... but any raise in brightness you would want to do SLOWLY..

I have two of my LED fixtures with blues and whites on at 100%, two blue 100w LED cannons at 100%, a 250w MH (currently 10k) and a pink 80w T5, all on when I'm not usually home. I adjust whats on and off and the ramp to the colour I like best to view when Im home to view..

[riceboy]

do you have fish in your tank how is your bioload?

[neoh]

QUOTE "I've read that whites do nothing for coral growth or health, as they get most of it from the spectrum out of the blues, and that whites are purely aesthetic"

It depends on the species of sps. For example, most acropora grow in shallow waters with 10k - 14k light. I would guess your white lights are between that range.

What type and species of sps are you keeping? I can tell you what colour temps they come from based on Indonesia waters, same species from other oceans should be similar..

I totally get you like the overall colour of the tank for viewing as is, but if the above results in any conclusions, you could just brighten your whites during the day or when your not home to view the tank, and ramp them down when your home... but any raise in brightness you would want to do SLOWLY..

I have two of my LED fixtures with blues and whites on at 100%, two blue 100w LED cannons at 100%, a 250w MH (currently 10k) and a pink 80w T5, all on when I'm not usually home. I adjust whats on and off and the ramp to the colour I like best to view when Im home to view..

I keep a lot of montipora, stylophora, and a few acros.
I'm actually noticing my purple, red and green montis are loosing their vibrancy in color and are starting to become "faded." I'll try dicking around with the light combo again.

In regards to fish - yes, I have a fairly moderate to high bioload (18 fish)

[riceboy]

I keep a lot of montipora, stylophora, and a few acros.
I'm actually noticing my purple, red and green montis are loosing their vibrancy in color and are starting to become "faded." I'll try dicking around with the light combo again.

In regards to fish - yes, I have a fairly moderate to high bioload (18 fish)

ya i was thinking the tank might be to clean thats why i was asking, in my experience is that when ever my corals fade in color or show no growth, i would feed it more or add more fish lol. just an excuse to go to the fish store and add a new fish.

[neoh]

I just recently added 5 new additions, with three more in quarantine. I see no problems with more fish. ;)