Advice on Dosing Amino Acids for SPS

[Lavey29]

It's all about balance and moderation. I dose aminos every day but much less than the recommended dosage.

That's true and every tank is different. I just found that regular amino dosing for me was more harmful then beneficial. Fish poop worked best and is a much more natural approach. However, if it is working well for you that's great and I hope it continues.

 

[WallyTime7]

I used to be a big proponent of aminos and dosed various brands. Excess aminos cause problems for corals and create vitamins for algae. If your tank has consistent proper nutrients of nitrates and phosphate produced by healthy fish stock that's all you need. As I have almost completely phased out aminos all the corals began to thrive big. Just phyto feast I dose now which has a little aminos but the other stuff is out. SPS much better now along with LPS and softs.

Sounds good - I have stable low nutrients in my tank and seems to be doing ok. I was debating doing aminos to bring up my nitrates , 0-5ppm.

 

[Lavey29]

Sounds good - I have stable low nutrients in my tank and seems to be doing ok. I was debating doing aminos to bring up my nitrates , 0-5ppm.

Or just feed more. You want nitrates at 10 and phosphate at .05 to .1 .

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

That's true and every tank is different. I just found that regular amino dosing for me was more harmful then beneficial. Fish poop worked best and is a much more natural approach. However, if it is working well for you that's great and I hope it continues.

My system is fishless right now so i think it helps

 

[Lavey29]

My system is fishless right now so i think it helps

Makes sense in your case

 

[OceanDreamer]

Does anyone knows the difference between this one (AF Amino Mix) and AF Power Elixir? Power Elixir seems to be more practical (more suitable for nano tanks and in doesn't need to store in the fridge..), but is there any difference in terms of amino acids and or vitamins?

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Does anyone knows the difference between this one (AF Amino Mix) and AF Power Elixir? Power Elixir seems to be more practical (more suitable for nano tanks and in doesn't need to store in the fridge..), but is there any difference in terms of amino acids and or vitamins?

No idea and they're pretty vague as to what Power Elixir actually contains but tbh if I had to choose between the two I'd go with Power Elixir. I went with AF Amino Mix a month back just because it was a little cheaper and I'm also dosing AF Phyto Mix for other tank inhabitants so I'd imagine the two together are at least as good as the Power Elixir...If you're just deciding between the AF Amino Mix and Power Elixir for corals, I'd choose the Power Elixir as it contains more than only amino acids. (Hence why it costs more.)

 

[OceanDreamer]

No idea and they're pretty vague as to what Power Elixir actually contains but tbh if I had to choose between the two I'd go with Power Elixir. I went with AF Amino Mix a month back just because it was a little cheaper and I'm also dosing AF Phyto Mix for other tank inhabitants so I'd imagine the two together are at least as good as the Power Elixir...If you're just deciding between the AF Amino Mix and Power Elixir for corals, I'd choose the Power Elixir as it contains more than only amino acids. (Hence why it costs more.)

Someone told me today that AF Power Elixir is basically the AF Amino Mix an AF Vitality. So I will follow your recommendation as well and go with the Power Elixir It seems to be more complete . Thank you!

 

[berna_system]

1. Psammacora is one of the easiest coral to take care off. It is also very invasive and will encrust and spread everywhere, even the branching kind. They don't require amino to thrive although it can help accelerate growth.

2. You can just spread out the dosage so instead 1 drop every 2 days, do 1 drop every 4 days.

3. Dosing amino is only necessary when you have lots of corals that are consuming aminos faster than you can replenish them with water changes. It sounds like you have a newer tank and dosing aminos is often a cause for algae out break in newer tanks.

4. You have a skimmer for a 10g tank?? Are you running into nutrient issues that you need a skimmer? Usually skimmer not needed for nano tanks and it's just a way for vendors to sell you equipments you don't need. Water change is your friend for nano tanks.

Water changes don't replenish amino acids directly, as amino acids are organic compounds and water changes primarily replenish inorganic ions and trace elements. If your water changes contain nitrate or phosphate those are potential building blocks for aminos, but that’s very different to dosing aminos which can more easily be utilized by coral. You can dose aminos to new tanks, just keep the dosage very low and slowly increase it.