Cloudy Water Ideas
 

Hi

I've got cloudy water last few days and it puzzles me. My Red Planet is loosing the skin. My parameters:
1. PH 8
2. PO4 0.06
3. Ca 530
4. Alk 9
5. Salinity 1.026
6. Temp 25C

Recently I added BioPellets Reactor less than a month and I am using Live phyto and live pods. Mainly my SPS reacted. Red planet lossing the skin. Acro loosing Blue color, Pocci doesn't extend much. Other corals like hummer, acans, zoa frogspawn are ok.

Any ideas? Did 20% WC still cloudy. Thx

Take the pellet reactor off line

Well, I was thinking about BioPellets but I was told to keep it on to break it through and it will get normal after 4-6 weeks. Wouldn't stop the process if I take it off the line?

Do you have a picture? Is it cloudy white, green, yellow? Do you have clams? Caulerpa algae? Is the outlet of your biopellet reactor pointing at the inlet of your skimmer? Could be a phytoplankton bloom?

Also, your calcium at 530 is a bit in the high side. Is that the value you are aiming for?

HI Kien

it is white, not too cloudy, but not clear for sure - kind of like after WC with fine sand. The lights are on aktinic now so cannot take picture. something like this http://www.tropical-fish-friends.com...ium-water.html.

BitoPellets outlet goes directly in front of skimmer inlet. Don't have clams, but have herliquin shrimps and they just started their next star fish :) have caulepra in refugium, can it give me problems?

This was my first concern, but my ALK is 9 usually at high Calcium Alk is very low. Tomorrow I am taking a sample to Denny, may be my Calcium Tester is out. I use Hanna checkers for Alk and Calcium. Have a bit of Phosphate but shouldn't make a big problem and other corals including Elegance coral is doing well.

Do you think PH 8 when lights are on is low? should I dose kalkwasser? but that should affect my Calcium as well, by the way Red Sea Mg test shows 1450.

Caulerpa has the potential to go sexual on you and cloud your tank. This is the reason why people will tend to stay away from caulerpa as a macro algae in refugiums.

A pH range of 8-8.4 is fine during the day. Unless there is a specific reason why you want to keep your alk at 9 and calcium at 530, I would personally lower them if you plan to continue with bioPellets. Those numbers should not be catastrophic as there are many people running high alk and calc. However, generally speaking if you are doing probiotics in your tank (bioPellets, zeoVit, vodka/sugar, etc) it is recommended to run your alk in the 7-8 range.

so my plan is to test tomorrow with Denny.
1. remove caulepra from refugium
2. another WC
3. monitor Alk and keep at 7.5-8.0 level
4. Keep Biopellets on

any ideas how i can drop the Calcium?