Back in the hobby and having trouble

[terraincognita]

TLDR all responses. but IMPO you're doing "too much" i think as someone else said.

In a 32G System with no major Sticks or SPS growing you shouldn't even worry about dosing man, don't worry about dosing Cal, MG, ALK, or Nitrate, or Phosphate, or carbon literally anything.

If you're doing LPS and softies just do you weekly water changes. Feed Moderate to light. If you only have 1 or 2 fish I wouldn't feed more than once or twice a day, and if you're feeding twice just take a "normal feeding" and cut it in half.

Once you start adding SPS, you'll start to notice the bigger intake of Alk, and your ALK significantly dropping over 1-2 days, and THEN You scan start dosing. Until then, don't even sweat it bro.

After also getting back into the hobby through Nano's, The less I did with them, the better they always did.

 

[Rarnold]

Let's get this straight 1.020/1.026? Or do you mean 26ppt or 26 sg? I'm just some what confused.
Salt water should be 35ppt or 1.026 sg.
I once let my salt drop to 1.021 and my coral were very sad and started to bleach. I was unaware and corrected it and didn't have any losses.
So if you have 1.020 and raise it, other things like alk and cal will also raise. And it could explain why the corals are not doing well.

EDIT: 26 ppt is 1.0196 @ 78F
Not good for coral... Can you please verify.

Yes I meant 26ppt, using rc. It's what my lfs uses and keeps their at. The day I bought the water they were doing w/c also. They filled my buckets using the hose filling a frag tank. Also until that wc my tank has held a stable 35ppt

 

[Rarnold]

TLDR all responses. but IMPO you're doing "too much" i think as someone else said.

In a 32G System with no major Sticks or SPS growing you shouldn't even worry about dosing man, don't worry about dosing Cal, MG, ALK, or Nitrate, or Phosphate, or carbon literally anything.

If you're doing LPS and softies just do you weekly water changes. Feed Moderate to light. If you only have 1 or 2 fish I wouldn't feed more than once or twice a day, and if you're feeding twice just take a "normal feeding" and cut it in half.

Once you start adding SPS, you'll start to notice the bigger intake of Alk, and your ALK significantly dropping over 1-2 days, and THEN You scan start dosing. Until then, don't even sweat it bro.

After also getting back into the hobby through Nano's, The less I did with them, the better they always did.

Thanks, I appreciate the info. I think everyone is right, i am doing alot. the plan is to cover a nice variety including SPS, it's why I swapped to the nicrew and no lid.

 

[Dburr1014]

Yes I meant 26ppt, using rc. It's what my lfs uses and keeps their at. The day I bought the water they were doing w/c also. They filled my buckets using the hose filling a frag tank. Also until that wc my tank has held a stable 35ppt

Yes, please raise this up. At minimum to 1.024 sg which is 32 ppt
I realize you're doing a lot and maybe that's not good but please raise your salt up to the proper number I think you will see a big Improvement on your coral

 

[Rarnold]

Slow changes. For now just stop with nopox. Maybe skip a water change since nutrients are low and everything else is high.

Should I turn off the skimmer as well?

 

[Jekyl]

Should I turn off the skimmer as well?

No

 

[Rarnold]

No

Awesome, thanks

 

[Jekyl]

Awesome, thanks

You can dial it back or allow if to empty back into the system. Never lose the gas exchange though.

 

[bnord]

So Rarnold has been given all good advice here, as well as do not do too much too fast. But is it consensus that 1) drop the Nopox, 2) slowly come up with 34-35pt, and 3) nurse up the nitrates - consistent feeding/dial back skimmer, take out a sock for a couple of days?

 

[Rarnold]

Yes, please raise this up. At minimum to 1.024 sg which is 32 ppt
I realize you're doing a lot and maybe that's not good but please raise your salt up to the proper number I think you will see a big Improvement on your coral

It's over 33ppt currently, should I let it raise naturally with water changes?

 

[Rarnold]

So Rarnold has been given all good advice here, as well as do not do too much too fast. But is it consensus that 1) drop the Nopox, 2) slowly come up with 34-35pt, and 3) nurse up the nitrates - consistent feeding/dial back skimmer, take out a sock for a couple of days?

I use floss, no socks. I don't really like to run without it bc I'm running biohome marine media right below it. Someone else suggested to empty the skimmer cup back into the system. I may try this

 

[Dburr1014]

It's over 33ppt currently, should I let it raise naturally with water changes?

Yes, I think you are in a safe zone now.
Any new developments?

 

[terraincognita]

It's over 33ppt currently, should I let it raise naturally with water changes?

Yeah just slowly raise it. but .33 is totally cool.

I use floss, no socks. I don't really like to run without it bc I'm running biohome marine media right below it. Someone else suggested to empty the skimmer cup back into the system. I may try this

You can empty the cup into the system to increase nutrients, but I wouldn't do that until you start getting a lot more corals in there that are going to demand the nutrients, you're NO3 and PO4 are already high, thus why you were dosing carbon to begin with (NOPOX)

every action you take, has a reaction, and in Nano systems the Reaction is normally much larger than in larger systems because it's a smaller water volume we're dealing with and things will happen quicker.

That's why IMPO I will only use them for LPS and softy tanks with maybe a FEW sticks in the future. SPS really demand stability for happiness. Stability stability stability. All corals do really, but SPS are the least tolerant of swings.

Anyway. before I ramble too much.

Again just literally stop doing everything except your WC's and feeding. In a Nano like that with the small amount of corals you do have, that's all you need to do. Even skip maintenance for 1-2 months to lets things "settle"

Then continue your maintenance routine.

 

[Rarnold]

Yes, I think you are in a safe zone now.
Any new developments?

The candy cane is inflating enough I'm not as concerned, also no additional tissue loss today. The acan is fuller than yesterday too. Palys and some zoas are slowly opening back up. My eagle eye frag seems to continue downward, still no open clove or gsp. Only had time for a nitrate test today so far currently around 4ppm. I took out the floss and turned the skimmer all the way down and have been doing my normal feedings

 

[Rarnold]

Yeah just slowly raise it. but .33 is totally cool.



You can empty the cup into the system to increase nutrients, but I wouldn't do that until you start getting a lot more corals in there that are going to demand the nutrients, you're NO3 and PO4 are already high, thus why you were dosing carbon to begin with (NOPOX)

every action you take, has a reaction, and in Nano systems the Reaction is normally much larger than in larger systems because it's a smaller water volume we're dealing with and things will happen quicker.

That's why IMPO I will only use them for LPS and softy tanks with maybe a FEW sticks in the future. SPS really demand stability for happiness. Stability stability stability. All corals do really, but SPS are the least tolerant of swings.

Anyway. before I ramble too much.

Again just literally stop doing everything except your WC's and feeding. In a Nano like that with the small amount of corals you do have, that's all you need to do. Even skip maintenance for 1-2 months to lets things "settle"

Then continue your maintenance routine.

I was dosing nopox based on the red sea reef recipes, i incorrectly assumed bc the booklets list ULNS numbers and how to maintain them, that i should, no3 was 5-8ppm on average and po4 hovered around 1ppm. At that time everything but the eagle eye zoa and the acan were doing fine.

 

[Dburr1014]

Stay as you go, hopefully the other corals will open up.

 

[terraincognita]

I was dosing nopox based on the red sea reef recipes, i incorrectly assumed bc the booklets list ULNS numbers and how to maintain them, that i should, no3 was 5-8ppm on average and po4 hovered around 1ppm. At that time everything but the eagle eye zoa and the acan were doing fine.

you said 1PPM but I think you meant .01 PPM For the Po4? or was it .1?

Just to list out what most would consider "ideal Params" for you all in one spot in case someone hasn't yet.

Alk 7 to 9 (I Keep mine at 10.5 but I'm part of the weird "elevated" alk club)
Mg 1350-1440
CA 410-480

You want to keep those three in those ranges in acceptable comparison by ratio. i.e. you don't want 1440 MG and 9.5Alk with 400 Calcium, that's an unbalanced ratio within the "acceptable" ranges. But as long as you're in those ranges dont chase numbers.

PO4 .1 - .01 (kind of a preference)
Nitrate 20 - 1 (kind of a preference more importantly you just don't want them to really "bottom out" or you'll see slower growth)

Salinity 1.026SG or 35PPT (2 different ways of measuring) there's no real preference on this, it should always be Salty lol

RE: the PO4 and Nitrates don't worry about reducing them to a "better level" STABILITY is KING. if your Nitrates are ALWAYS 20 and your livestock is happy, just let it BE. don't chase numbers.

--------------------

But these are "Acceptable" ranges, the purpose of having this info is so if you notice a bad symptom, you can start with testing those, and see if any one of them is for some reason suddenly outside of an "acceptable" range. Not to "chase numbers" and try to get to what someone else has.

EVERY TANK IS UNIQUE AND INDIVIDUAL.

As long as you can get into those ranges, everything else should settle and be happy. If you're only doing WC's and nothing else, It'd be almost impossible for you to NOT be in these ranges with modern day salt mixes.


--------------------------

If you're having problems, just do 30-50% WC's every week for a month, and your water quality should settle out and become "perfect". Then you can return to 10-15%. (this would take into account you continuing to do nothing else but feed basically)

From there on out 10-15% WC's with glass scraping should be all you ever really need to do. with a nice biocube like this. (Vacuum sand if you do)

hope my long essay helps a little lol. more or less, KISS, and you will enjoy this a lot more

 

[terraincognita]

Lastly once your feet are really wet again and you're waist deep, THEN you can start making decisions like "replacing water changes with dosing instead (or if you get really into SPS And they're just consuming ALK, then "supplementing dosing with WC's as well etc etc etc.

Until you're seeing daily ALK drops of like .5 though don't even bother.

 

[Rarnold]

Ok so it's been about a week. Yesterday the candy cane has looked its best since the decline started. Everything else remains closed or mostly closed except RFA, they don't seem to care at all. Today's test results are:

35ppt salinity
8.0ph
13.5dkh
Po4 2.04ppm
No3 8.0ppm

I had removed the filter floss material for several days, I removed the collection cup to the skimmer to let it empty back into the sump. I did a 10% wc and will test a bit later to see if po4 changes. Also my alkalinity seems high again. Could this just be from the saltwater I mixed up to use a top off water to get salinity back to 35ppt?

 

[Dburr1014]

Ok so it's been about a week. Yesterday the candy cane has looked its best since the decline started. Everything else remains closed or mostly closed except RFA, they don't seem to care at all. Today's test results are:

35ppt salinity
8.0ph
13.5dkh
Po4 2.04ppm
No3 8.0ppm

I had removed the filter floss material for several days, I removed the collection cup to the skimmer to let it empty back into the sump. I did a 10% wc and will test a bit later to see if po4 changes. Also my alkalinity seems high again. Could this just be from the saltwater I mixed up to use a top off water to get salinity back to 35ppt?

Yup, most likely. What is the new water alk?