Corals looking ahhhh

jmags080307 · Sep 21, 2016

Have had a 40 gallon breeder with a 20 gallon sump set up for about 4 months now. I used 35 pounds of cycled rock which I cycled for abiut 2 months prior to starting the tank. Getting zero growth on corals in there. It's zoas, 2 dime size ricordia, some leather coral and a meteor shower. Alk is 7.8, calcium is at 380, magnesium is at 1,190. Nitrates at 2 and phosphates .05. Is it just that the tank is too young? Mars aqua 300 watt about 10 inches above the water. Blues on about 60% from 9:30-8:30 and whites on about 40% from 1-6:30. Sump has skimmer, filter sock, chaeto and 35 pounds of live rock. Just curious what others think why corals are showing no growth?
Thanks!

cromag27 · Sep 21, 2016

They want t5.

saltyfilmfolks · Sep 21, 2016

and or a lux meter to make sure your not over lighting.
Im def no zoa pro, but good flow and light, little dirtier water. And I did scoff at the pimply faced kid on youtube when he spotfed his zoas the juice from mysis shrimp.
I should have emailed him and apologised. I started popping babies pretty quick.

fwiw, the science says at a certain par photosynthesis stops, growth stops, but not color, that may actually increase. Good flow like enough to ruffle the zoas helps to let the animal absorb nutrients. not eat like the mouth but through the skin. the few propagation racks ive seen the flow was so rumbly when you looked down you couldn't see the zoas.

and yea they were under t5

I think its because the spectrum hits the zooox a bit better(for lack of a much longer theoretical debate) making it a bit easier to get them going with out worrying so much about intensity. the good led zoas ive seen, I think they hit the sweet spot in the amount of light flow and food. so it can be done. prob better a little under than over.

Im under led now and its hit and miss. some great colonies and some melters. again no zoa pro.

Rick.45cal · Sep 22, 2016

1190 ppm Mg is pretty low. If your Mg is low it will inhibit calcification, it will also make your calcium level appear unusually high.

On top of that your tank is pretty young and it sometimes takes corals awhile to settle in. I'd add magnesium and then retest your parameters and make adjustments in Ca and Alkalinty to get the levels where you want them, then you need to keep them there as consistently as possible, add light, food, and time. Before you know it they will start growing rapidly!