Can't get anything to grow

[ketchup318]

Here are some better lit pictures

 

[hhholds]

Having same issues in my 75gal reef. System is 8mths old...no coralline growth, LPS seem to be fine, SPS slowly lose polyps over several weeks time, some zoas look good others don't fully open and slowly shrink up and disappear. All fish look great

Parameters Alk=9, Ca=420, Mg=1500, PH 8.1-8.2, Salinity 35-36ppm, Temp 77
Bi-Weekly 30% water changes, refugium with Chaeto
Lighting is 2 kessil 160WE and 4 T5 (ATI bulbs, 2 Actinic, 1 Blue Plus and 1 Coral Plus)
Dose BRS 2 part 72ml daily and use Kalk in ATO.
GFO/Carbon reactor
Reef Octopus 150 Skimmer
MP40 and two PP15 for flow (all 3 set at about 40%)

 

[hhholds]

Here are some pics...

 

[Richards_reef]

Having same issues in my 75gal reef. System is 8mths old...no coralline growth, LPS seem to be fine, SPS slowly lose polyps over several weeks time, some zoas look good others don't fully open and slowly shrink up and disappear. All fish look great

Parameters Alk=9, Ca=420, Mg=1500, PH 8.1-8.2, Salinity 35-36ppm, Temp 77
Bi-Weekly 30% water changes, refugium with Chaeto
Lighting is 2 kessil 160WE and 4 T5 (ATI bulbs, 2 Actinic, 1 Blue Plus and 1 Coral Plus)
Dose BRS 2 part 72ml daily and use Kalk in ATO.
GFO/Carbon reactor
Reef Octopus 150 Skimmer
MP40 and two PP15 for flow (all 3 set at about 40%)

I'd try to get your mag down a bit. When my mag was above 1400 I never had any coralline growth. Does your t5 have reflectors? What's your lighting schedule?

 

[hhholds]

I'd try to get your mag down a bit. When my mag was above 1400 I never had any coralline growth. Does your t5 have reflectors? What's your lighting schedule?

Yes t5 is a retro kit with reflectors. I do not dose Mg so not sure how to get it down aside from stopping water changes.

 

[Roggio]

If you're investing all this money why not just use a Triton kit or short term a poly filter? Take the guess work out of it. Based on just the pictures... it doesn't look very bright. I grow SPS and my lights are bright enough to light up the whole room. Maybe borrow a par meter from your LFS

 

[tgionet]

Having same issues in my 75gal reef. System is 8mths old...no coralline growth, LPS seem to be fine, SPS slowly lose polyps over several weeks time, some zoas look good others don't fully open and slowly shrink up and disappear. All fish look great

Parameters Alk=9, Ca=420, Mg=1500, PH 8.1-8.2, Salinity 35-36ppm, Temp 77
Bi-Weekly 30% water changes, refugium with Chaeto
Lighting is 2 kessil 160WE and 4 T5 (ATI bulbs, 2 Actinic, 1 Blue Plus and 1 Coral Plus)
Dose BRS 2 part 72ml daily and use Kalk in ATO.
GFO/Carbon reactor
Reef Octopus 150 Skimmer
MP40 and two PP15 for flow (all 3 set at about 40%)

What are your nutrient levels?

 

[hhholds]

What are your nutrient levels?

NH4=0, PO4=0ppm, NO3 fluctuates between 20 and 60ppm between water changes.

 

[standam]

Here are some better lit pictures

When cycle do you have any algea growing.Do you have any algea growing now?What are the values of nitrate and phosphste now?

 

[SashimiTurtle]

I have an A160 over my 14g nano and coralline growth is crazy. Power head and rocks are covered in light and dark purples in about 6 months. Coral growth is decent, hard to maintain stable parameters in 14 gallons of water. I have a birds nest that has tripled in size and a stylo that is taking off under the Kessil where they were stagnant under an SB... Kessils work for me, and I put 2 more 160s over my new 35g 20" cube build. Over a RS250, I'd have gone with 2 360s, or at least 3 160s maxed out on intensity... Hopefully here soon I can afford a Seneye, and I'll have some PAR numbers.

 

[Bacon505]

Is coraline algae that important? Also hhholds and ketchup, why you two dose so much for sunch a young tank? Your tank doesnt have that much corals for that kind of consumption. You might want to check where those value goes, seem like your dosing are going to waste somehow.

 

[Itsander]

Hi All

As the title says, I can't seem to get anything to grow. I've had a RSR 250 for over a year, which was an upgrade from a 36G tank (which I've had for 2 years prior). I wasn't too successful on getting stuff to grow in the 36G either, but at least I was able to get coralline to grow.

With my RSR 250, all the corals that I put in are either staying the same size (duncans, frogspawn), or slowly withering away (daisy coral, torches, zoas, monti's, leptos). I have stable parameters, decent lighting, good flow, and good skimming. Again, with the 250, coralline doesn't grow, everything is kinda just grey.

I have a couple of inhabitants, a pair of Clownfish, a Royal Gramma, a Yellow Watchman Goby, a Pistol Shrimp, and a couple of hermit crabs. I feed 1/2 a Hikari cube of brine a day, and drop in a couple pinches of pellets.

I am at a total loss as to why my tank is doing so bad. I would very grateful for any advice. Thanks

Here's info on my tank
55G RSR 250
2 Kessil 160's (10hr period, intensity ramps from 10-60%, peak intensity = 4hrs)
Reef Octopus Classic 110INT
GHL Doser 2 (2ml Rea Sea NoPox, 72ml Alk., 72ml Calc per day)
Red Sea Energy 2x a week

My water parameters are good, I've ICP-tested the tank water and the RODI going in
RODI
- Zero for everything except Silicon. Not sure if that's a problem
Tank Water
- Basic parameters good; Alk = 7.24, Mg = 1316, Calcium = 400.6, Nitrate = 0.01, Phosphate = 0.02

Other elements I'm not sure of...

Try to adjust

Hi All

As the title says, I can't seem to get anything to grow. I've had a RSR 250 for over a year, which was an upgrade from a 36G tank (which I've had for 2 years prior). I wasn't too successful on getting stuff to grow in the 36G either, but at least I was able to get coralline to grow.

With my RSR 250, all the corals that I put in are either staying the same size (duncans, frogspawn), or slowly withering away (daisy coral, torches, zoas, monti's, leptos). I have stable parameters, decent lighting, good flow, and good skimming. Again, with the 250, coralline doesn't grow, everything is kinda just grey.

I have a couple of inhabitants, a pair of Clownfish, a Royal Gramma, a Yellow Watchman Goby, a Pistol Shrimp, and a couple of hermit crabs. I feed 1/2 a Hikari cube of brine a day, and drop in a couple pinches of pellets.

I am at a total loss as to why my tank is doing so bad. I would very grateful for any advice. Thanks

Here's info on my tank
55G RSR 250
2 Kessil 160's (10hr period, intensity ramps from 10-60%, peak intensity = 4hrs)
Reef Octopus Classic 110INT
GHL Doser 2 (2ml Rea Sea NoPox, 72ml Alk., 72ml Calc per day)
Red Sea Energy 2x a week

My water parameters are good, I've ICP-tested the tank water and the RODI going in
RODI
- Zero for everything except Silicon. Not sure if that's a problem
Tank Water
- Basic parameters good; Alk = 7.24, Mg = 1316, Calcium = 400.6, Nitrate = 0.01, Phosphate = 0.02

Other elements I'm not sure of...

Try to play with your Alk, mine was over 10 for almost two years with any luck in growth, after I lowered to 8 my growth it's great, on the other side my friend can see any growth in 8 he needs to be over 10,5 to 11, good luck.

 

[Lninwa]

I would run your 160's at 100% the whole time. I have 5 over my 92gal and run them all at 100% for the 14 hours they are on. First and last hour the color is 100% blue, then the rest of the day there at about 75% white/ 25% blue.

HB AL do you know your par values at the 100%? Are you saying 100% for both color and intensity?

 

[HB AL]

HB AL do you know your par values at the 100%? Are you saying 100% for both color and intensity?

No idea on par values, 100% for intensity the whole 13 hours the lights are on and around 50% for color the majority of the day, with the dial to all blue the first and last hour, a few times a week i put the color at about 75% to 100% white for a few hours a day, doing it this way for the last couple years seems to work for me. Absolutely no scientific data for the way I do it, the corals just seem to respond nicely so I just keep doing what works.

 

[Ronald Brown]

Following along with the same issues

 

[Richards_reef]

Yes t5 is a retro kit with reflectors. I do not dose Mg so not sure how to get it down aside from stopping water changes.

What salt do you use, and have you tried a different mg test kit? Last year I had a bunk mg kit and it wasn't even close to being expired. Also still wondering what your light schedule might be?

 

[Oldsalt01]

Get an orange gel filter for your camera. It'll neutralize the blues and give you much better pics. U can use it over ur cell phone lens too.

 

[Oldsalt01]

What kind of Phosphate test kit do u use and is it low-range?

 

[hhholds]

What salt do you use, and have you tried a different mg test kit? Last year I had a bunk mg kit and it wasn't even close to being expired. Also still wondering what your light schedule might be?

I use Red Sea Coral Pro salt and use Red Sea Pro Multi Test kit for Mg and Ca and a Hannah Alk Checker. I use API kts for NH4, PO4 and NO3.

Lighting schedule is Kessils on at 7am off at 10pm. They ramp slowly to 30%/30% peaking at about 2pm. Actinics come on at 9am and off at 9pm, coral+/blue+ come on at 11am and off at 7pm.

 

[Richards_reef]

I use Red Sea Coral Pro salt and use Red Sea Pro Multi Test kit for Mg and Ca and a Hannah Alk Checker. I use API kts for NH4, PO4 and NO3.

Lighting schedule is Kessils on at 7am off at 10pm. They ramp slowly to 30%/30% peaking at about 2pm. Actinics come on at 9am and off at 9pm, coral+/blue+ come on at 11am and off at 7pm.

You use the same salt as me.
You said that your water salinity is 35-36ppm are you using a calibrated refractometer? If so try lowering your salinity to 1.025 that is just shy of 35ppm. It should also help bring your mag down a hair. You also are running chaetomorpha and gfo? I personally don't run either I get a little bit of algae in the display but a small tang or foxface would take care of it. I think that the gfo and chetto might be taking it the nutrients before your corals can get any.