Dirty Water - Fact or Fiction?

[revhtree Verified Admin]

I am sure we have all heard the old argument of why or why not someone can keep lps, zoas or other "dirty water" loving corals thriving because of the lack or abundance of "dirty" water. So it's time we put this debate to rest or should I say the test!

I would like to hear your thoughts about this as well as your experience. God loves the "experts" but to me the true expert is the tried and true hobbyist. Also if you have some pics to back up your claims let's see them.

 

[Troylee]

Working on just this and so far so good.... The corals never did good in my Sps tank are now in a filthy biocube and look fantastic ie "chalices, zoos, etc"

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

BUT the biocube has a tremendous difference in lighting and I think that is key. I don't buy the dirty water theory at all.

 

[Troylee]

True.... I have noticed in the past when I let my tank go for awhile and algae popped up everything seemed to do better... Personally I feel a little algae means you have a healthy tank.... I ran a ulns for a ling time and I feel it really stunted the growth of my corals including sps.... Even my theroy of letting it go might be the tank balanced out since I wasn't dosing daily..:tongue:

 

[clowns101]

Dirty water theroy is a total joke. I think corals like clean water. I dont think there is one coral that will do better in dirty water other than xenia.

Corals dont get nutrients from the water all the time, they get it from foods we feed and the light. So what is the need for nurtients to be in the water? There isnt one.

When I started dosing Vodka, I actully got better growth out of the classic watermelon chalices and all of my polyps than I ever had before, I think that corals like a clean water, fed on a regular basis, and good lighting is it. There isnt a need for dirty tanks at all.

 

[Captain Nemo]

I agree with Austin, corals dont eat the fish poop otherwise there would be no algae. I have been neglectful of my tank while we have been remodelling and I can tell that since I havent changed water in over a month, my corals are suffering. Just my experience anyways.

 

[Reef UP]

 agreed completely on corals liking clean water but I've also noticed that my corals seem to be happiest when my nitrates are within the 10-15ppm range and po4 as close to zero as possible I dose vodka and run a bunch of carbon and dose religiously a ton of vitamins and trace elements and I've noticed there is a sweet balance between it all I've notice that if I get to crazy with water changes and my water gets to clean all my corals get upset, if I slack off and keep the balance with the vodka and carbon and my dosing regimen than things really grow so I'd say on the clean but not sterile side is the best!

 

[Troylee]

The question is what's clean??? How clean is to clean etc.... If you have never ran a ulns you have never had a clean tank..

 

[Sea MunnKey]

A lot of wild LPS, softies and even Montis are found in dirty shallow waters ... as evidenced by this ... all this corals were growing in an enclosed marina and the only time they get "replenish/fresh saltwater" is during high tide. You'd see oil slick, garbage, solid and liquid human food etc. all around rockworks and sandbed. In fact if you look carefully you'd see some algae growth too!

Paul

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

They can grow in any water just about but I am talking about optimal growth.

 

[clowns101]

Optimal growth=Clean water

 

[nixer]

i wouldnt say dirty water, but water with abit more nutrients.

 

[Russellaqua]

i wouldnt say dirty water, but water with abit more nutrients.

+1 Too many nitrates or phosphates (dirty water) and there will be so much algae that it chokes out the corals. Nutrient-devoid (clean) water will not be able to support much of a plankton population, which many corals feed on. Somewhere in the middle I think is best.

 

[swannyson7]

i wouldnt say dirty water, but water with abit more nutrients.

+1. Many ULNS don't have optimal growth & coloration unless they dose a source of food such as Aminos, so too clean of water hinders coral health as much as poor of water quality. The problem lies in finding the delicate balance somewhere in the middle.

 

[FishLipz]

I keep primarily LPS and zoanthids, with a couple bulletproof SPS to add some dimension. Oh yeah, my clams too. My tank has always looked best when there has been a light nitrate buildup. That being said, if I've let it get out of control, things go south quick. Color loss, slow growth, excess algae are all things I see when I've let things get out of hand.

 

[Reef UP]

The question is what's clean??? How clean is to clean etc.... If you have never ran a ulns you have never had a clean tank..

Oh I've ran the ULNS for a while then backed off as I didn't like the full extent of it and I noticed a very positive response once my nutrient levels crept back up a little  lps, zoas, and even my acros gained better color and fuller polyp extension and quicker growth!

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

When people think"dirty", they think biological filtration. I havent been able to do a wc for a month due to working, plus I have no skimmer, but chaeto really does its work well.

 

[Aquaph8]

I dont buy the dirty water thing either but there is a fine line between clean water and starving your corals. The balance between good feeding and good husbandry will defeat the dirty water debate all day.

 

[bige]

I think there is a difference between dirty water and not doing maintence. ie not cleaning filters and doing water changes. I use to not feed my fish because of fear of dirty water. Well I gave up and decided to feed fish every day and just deal with it. My tank has never been happier. Still nitrates and phoshates are 0. The ocean is fairly dirty and the coral feed on that.

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

When I think of dirty water, I usually think of a non cycled tank, or a tank with high nitrates/trites, maybe even ammonia. These all slowely poison corals. When I think clean water, I would reference an aged and well maintained reef, incredible biodiversity, minimal nuisance algae, and a bunch of macro algae. What most people think of as clean water is a nutrient starved tank. Micro organisms and bacteria are perfectly normal in a reef ecosystem, however some corals from pristine reefs do prefer a lower nutrient level. It depends on a lot of factors whether a tank is "dirty" or "clean", and I just do bot have the time to argue about it.