JCas06
Community Member
- Joined
- Nov 30, 2017
- Messages
- 83
- Reaction score
- 14
- What state or country do you live in
- Florida
Hello all. I got into the hobby 8 years ago now and over that time my success has gotten worse and worse.
I started in 2013 with a used 72 gallon bow front, Rubbermaid tub sump, and $200 aquatic life 4 bulb t5 light fixture running ATI bulbs. Two hydor corallia power heads. I had cheap API test kits, cheap salinity swing arm meter, got my saltwater from my local south Florida inlet, and my RO from my lfs. Had maybe a 3 inch sand bed and combination of live and base rock. I had a filter sock in the sump as my only filtration and had carbon in it. Hard to remember but I think I ran phosguard pellets as well. I would add ph buffer from time to time as I didn’t yet know it was not highly thought of. That tank grew coral like you would not believe and I had to scrape the glass weekly or the coraline algae would get too settled on the glass everywhere and be hard to scrape off. I worked right near the inlet at a resort and would fill 20 gallons of beautiful clear ocean water weekly or occasionally bi-weekly for water changes. I had around 6 fish most of the time, nothing large and would feed them every other day or so. I rarely if ever lost a coral and the rate of growth made the hobby very enjoyable. After a couple years I had large colonies of corals like pink panther birds nest, stylo, war coral, duncans, torch, and a gigantic montipora. I always had little critters in my filter socks and crawling on my glass.
Well a couple years went by and I moved back to my hometown in east central Florida. Everything survived and was going strong for a while But my access to quality, free ocean water was not nearly as good. I did change the sand bed to new. I started buying water which also meant driving 30 minutes to lfs so water changes became every 2-3 weeks. I would occasionally get water from the local inlet but it wasn’t as crystal clear as further south. I eventually purchased a RODI system and started making my own salt and fresh water but salt is expensive and it still wasn’t as easy as filling up a bucket of ocean water so my water changes stayed 2-3 weeks. Some corals started to decline like my war coral and eventually died. Others grew slower or stayed the same size. Coraline Algae growth on my glass was not really an issue anymore. I still had critters in filter socks.
Then one day I decided I wanted to upgrade. I got a custom 100 gallon tank, new stand, acrylic sump, 2 kessil ap700 LED lights (4 pucks total), a protein skimmer, Hydrometer, icecap gyre powerhead and eventually a two part dosing machine. I again changed the sand bed and I had better test kits from salifert and Red Sea but didn’t test a ton. My new LED’s blasted my corals even though I think I started them at 25%. I eventually went down to like 15% and that is where they stayed. So with all this new equipment and new energy I was very disappointed to see I was not having good results. Many frags I purchased would lose color and slowly die. Growth was slow on other corals including the ones I had since I started the hobby years ago. By accident my girlfriend killed most of my big colony survivors like the huge montipora, birds nest and stylo. They are now home decorations. I averaged 3-5 fish in the tank.
Fast forward another two years and we move back to South Florida again to the same town. Everything survives the move and I’m excited to use that beautiful clear ocean water again for changes. I have hair algae so I bought a GFO/carbon reactor. I don’t live or work as close so water changes are 30 gallons every two weeks. I still make my RODI. I buy frags and and some grow slow, some die, and all lose that beautiful color they had at purchase. I describe it as turning pastel, or light colored. My lights I have worked up to 45 - 50% but I still don’t get coralline growing on the glass or see the growth and health of the corals that I did when I first entered the hobby. Even my zoas dont spread. I never have critters in my filter socks or see specks crawling around on glass. I am currently at a better point than I have been in years but it’s nothing like I use to see. I really do not know what to do anymore to be honest.
Right now I have 6 fish. I just measured water parameters and it is as follows:
Salinity - 36 ppt Refractometer
PH - 8.2 Red Sea
Alk - 9.5. Red Sea
Cal - 440 Red Sea
Nitrate - 0 Red Sea
Nitrite - 0
Phosphate - 7 ppb Hanna Ultra low
My magnesium always, always has tested high and I haven’t tested in a while. I do get some clumping of sand from precipitation. I have hair algae which is slowly getting better but still a problem.
So, I have better equipment, more equipment, and can’t get the results I had just starting out. I suppose I could do a 30 gallon water change weekly instead of bi weekly but it’s not easy. Do I shut down the protein skimmer, shut down the 2 part, shut down the GFO reactor and go back to basics? I will try and post pictures of 72 gallon bow front and of my tank now.
I started in 2013 with a used 72 gallon bow front, Rubbermaid tub sump, and $200 aquatic life 4 bulb t5 light fixture running ATI bulbs. Two hydor corallia power heads. I had cheap API test kits, cheap salinity swing arm meter, got my saltwater from my local south Florida inlet, and my RO from my lfs. Had maybe a 3 inch sand bed and combination of live and base rock. I had a filter sock in the sump as my only filtration and had carbon in it. Hard to remember but I think I ran phosguard pellets as well. I would add ph buffer from time to time as I didn’t yet know it was not highly thought of. That tank grew coral like you would not believe and I had to scrape the glass weekly or the coraline algae would get too settled on the glass everywhere and be hard to scrape off. I worked right near the inlet at a resort and would fill 20 gallons of beautiful clear ocean water weekly or occasionally bi-weekly for water changes. I had around 6 fish most of the time, nothing large and would feed them every other day or so. I rarely if ever lost a coral and the rate of growth made the hobby very enjoyable. After a couple years I had large colonies of corals like pink panther birds nest, stylo, war coral, duncans, torch, and a gigantic montipora. I always had little critters in my filter socks and crawling on my glass.
Well a couple years went by and I moved back to my hometown in east central Florida. Everything survived and was going strong for a while But my access to quality, free ocean water was not nearly as good. I did change the sand bed to new. I started buying water which also meant driving 30 minutes to lfs so water changes became every 2-3 weeks. I would occasionally get water from the local inlet but it wasn’t as crystal clear as further south. I eventually purchased a RODI system and started making my own salt and fresh water but salt is expensive and it still wasn’t as easy as filling up a bucket of ocean water so my water changes stayed 2-3 weeks. Some corals started to decline like my war coral and eventually died. Others grew slower or stayed the same size. Coraline Algae growth on my glass was not really an issue anymore. I still had critters in filter socks.
Then one day I decided I wanted to upgrade. I got a custom 100 gallon tank, new stand, acrylic sump, 2 kessil ap700 LED lights (4 pucks total), a protein skimmer, Hydrometer, icecap gyre powerhead and eventually a two part dosing machine. I again changed the sand bed and I had better test kits from salifert and Red Sea but didn’t test a ton. My new LED’s blasted my corals even though I think I started them at 25%. I eventually went down to like 15% and that is where they stayed. So with all this new equipment and new energy I was very disappointed to see I was not having good results. Many frags I purchased would lose color and slowly die. Growth was slow on other corals including the ones I had since I started the hobby years ago. By accident my girlfriend killed most of my big colony survivors like the huge montipora, birds nest and stylo. They are now home decorations. I averaged 3-5 fish in the tank.
Fast forward another two years and we move back to South Florida again to the same town. Everything survives the move and I’m excited to use that beautiful clear ocean water again for changes. I have hair algae so I bought a GFO/carbon reactor. I don’t live or work as close so water changes are 30 gallons every two weeks. I still make my RODI. I buy frags and and some grow slow, some die, and all lose that beautiful color they had at purchase. I describe it as turning pastel, or light colored. My lights I have worked up to 45 - 50% but I still don’t get coralline growing on the glass or see the growth and health of the corals that I did when I first entered the hobby. Even my zoas dont spread. I never have critters in my filter socks or see specks crawling around on glass. I am currently at a better point than I have been in years but it’s nothing like I use to see. I really do not know what to do anymore to be honest.
Right now I have 6 fish. I just measured water parameters and it is as follows:
Salinity - 36 ppt Refractometer
PH - 8.2 Red Sea
Alk - 9.5. Red Sea
Cal - 440 Red Sea
Nitrate - 0 Red Sea
Nitrite - 0
Phosphate - 7 ppb Hanna Ultra low
My magnesium always, always has tested high and I haven’t tested in a while. I do get some clumping of sand from precipitation. I have hair algae which is slowly getting better but still a problem.
So, I have better equipment, more equipment, and can’t get the results I had just starting out. I suppose I could do a 30 gallon water change weekly instead of bi weekly but it’s not easy. Do I shut down the protein skimmer, shut down the 2 part, shut down the GFO reactor and go back to basics? I will try and post pictures of 72 gallon bow front and of my tank now.
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