Getting overwhelmed...

[Layll318]

Current orbit lights do not have enough PAR for coral other than leathers or mushrooms. PH just alittle above 8.2 is deadly to most coral even for a single day. It's not the PH that gets them. It's the stress weakens them so other things can. And if your nitrates were at 50ppm then your ammonia was high at one point too. Read up more on nitrogen cycle. Which is also deadly. Your tank seems lite on rock. Do you have a sump? A sump tank with more rock gives the nitrifing bacteria a place to live. Do you have a Protein skimmer?

so the lights I have are not enough either
Should I be running a second string of lights then?
I do have more rock but it’s not live.
and yes I’ll start testing it more because lfs has never tested positive for anomia.
No protein skimmer. Or sump.

I am starting to learn I have a lot of issues to solve before anything will grow ...

 

[Layll318]

So for a recap:

test own water
Lights prob not ok
Keep things more stable
Sump/skimmer?
Make own water


and prob restart after everything in my tank but the fish die but that’s just me being a pessimist... I think...

 

[Brad Waddell Wrath's Reef]

As much as ppl say you can use whatever lights. I had some cheap Chinese lights and was having issues. Found some AI Sol Blues on Ebay 4 with controller and rail system for $500. Great deal and my corals are taking off like crazy. Light quality spectrum are a big deal.

 

[Layll318]

As much as ppl say you can use whatever lights. I had some cheap Chinese lights and was having issues. Found some AI Sol Blues on Ebay 4 with controller and rail system for $500. Great deal and my corals are taking off like crazy. Light quality spectrum are a big deal.

I was told by a few sources that these light would work and they are a lot better then my old one which were cheap Chinese lights lol I am assuming not so much?/should I be running both of them?

 

[Layll318]

I was told by a few sources that these light would work and they are a lot better then my old one which were cheap Chinese lights lol I am assuming not so much?/should I be running both of them?

 

[Layll318]

So I moved them to a higher spot and but my old light with the new ones. Also moved them to a higher flow based on what I was told here, as well as rl friends and the lfs.
last test showed:
9dkh
1.027 salinity ( which I will lower)
.1 phosphate
1350 ppm magnesium
430ppm Calcium
25 ppm nitrates ( it was at like 50 last test)

thank you guys for the the help!

 

[Brad Waddell Wrath's Reef]

So I moved them to a higher spot and but my old light with the new ones. Also moved them to a higher flow based on what I was told here, as well as rl friends and the lfs.
last test showed:
9dkh
1.027 salinity ( which I will lower)
.1 phosphate
1350 ppm magnesium
430ppm Calcium
25 ppm nitrates ( it was at like 50 last test)

thank you guys for the the help!

That is what we are here for! Hope it all works out. Keep us updated and some photos also!

 

[Hermie]

I was told by a few sources that these light would work and they are a lot better then my old one which were cheap Chinese lights lol I am assuming not so much?/should I be running both of them?

if it won't cause problems then run more light, because that's not that much with just 1 strip. however, 2 strips you can definitely still grow corals, just may not be as fast.

 

[Layll318]

if it won't cause problems then run more light, because that's not that much with just 1 strip. however, 2 strips you can definitely still grow corals, just may not be as fast.

This is what I have running now. The second light is timed to be on 8 hours when the orbits are during the day.

and this is what my dad coral looks like. I will be sure to update. My tank seems to be one of the few things I get ocd with. I take a pic every night to compare it and see what has changed lol

 

[Layll318]

This is what I have running now. The second light is timed to be on 8 hours when the orbits are during the day.

and this is what my sad coral looks like. I will be sure to update. My tank seems to be one of the few things I get ocd with. I take a pic every night to compare it and see what has changed lol

 

[Hermie]

I like that finnex light tbh, I have a freshwater one 24"

Which LEDs does yours have? 12K + actinic?

 

[CuzzA]

PH just alittle above 8.2 is deadly to most coral even for a single day.

Sorry but that is nonsense. PH above 8.2 is not deadly. Natural sea water can be found as high as 8.4. Hobbyists should try to keep their pH from rising above 8.5. I've never heard of home aquariums having a pH that high unless they were over dosing or their salinity was way off. Which isn't uncommon for those who use $5 hydrometers.

If I could pick a pH for my tank it would be 8.3, but it's hardly that critical as long as you're close to 8. The higher the pH, the better the coral growth. This is well documented.

 

[CuzzA]

A 27 watt light ain't going to cut it for sps corals.

You need to measure alkalinity. This is the most important parameter for a reef tank. The next being phosphate. Your tank looks new, you have chosen corals that are not easy for a new hobbyist. That NPS gorgonian is doing okay now because your water is dirty, but your birds nest is suffering because your water is dirty. Nevertheless, coral health and success is measured in years, not weeks or months and I suspect the gorg will perish soon.

You really need to research what you put in your tank. More importantly you need to have a vision and biotype figured out for your tank. A soft coral tank is going to be far more forgiving and can be very beautiful, especially with all of the various zoa and paly species we have today. A SPS tank is going to require you make a serious investment. Aside from the staple items, like an ATO, skimmer, test kits, refractometer, RODI system and wavemakers, you're going to need high output lighting. T5's would be a good choice for a new reefer since they are plug and play. High output LED fixtures will work, but go with something proven where you can copy everyone's settings. The problem with LEDs with multiple channels is there's a lot of guess work without a par meter and spectrometer.

This is not a cheap hobby. Not only does it require an investment in good equipment capable of sustaining the sensitive life we want to keep, it takes a considerable investment of your time. Constant filter bag swaps, skimmer cleaning, water changes, dosing, water testing. The moment you start slacking, bad things happen. We read the threads all the time.

Anyway, I wish you luck. I would find someone else's tank you like and try to emulate it, especially if they have a build thread. Build threads are step by step guides. And my last piece of advice is us hobbyist need to provide the proper setup and environment that will allow marine life to survive, but from there your number one job is water manager. You can't manage and maintain water unless you're testing everything.

 

[Layll318]

... that felt kinda like a dad lecture. I know it’s not a cheap hobby... the coral is new but the tank is a few years old. Thanks for taking all the time to type that.

birdsnest seems open and not worse today after I added another light and moved it higher. Tank is tested a lot. Regardless of if it’s me doing it or not and that was the “dirtyest” it’s ever been...

Plan on getting a slimmer soon
Not sure about the r/o but I will work on it. My research has more or less said the worse water you have the more it will cost.
also will get test kits

is a wave maker a true need? I just have never been told this.

on a final not this hobby isn’t the easier to get info on and to understand stand what’s needed. I am doing my best I have also had two kids and moved to take care of my parents in the time frame I have been learning lol

thank you all for your advice.

 

[Brad Waddell Wrath's Reef]

... that felt kinda like a dad lecture. I know it’s not a cheap hobby... the coral is new but the tank is a few years old. Thanks for taking all the time to type that.

birdsnest seems open and not worse today after I added another light and moved it higher. Tank is tested a lot. Regardless of if it’s me doing it or not and that was the “dirtyest” it’s ever been...

Plan on getting a slimmer soon
Not sure about the r/o but I will work on it. My research has more or less said the worse water you have the more it will cost.
also will get test kits

is a wave maker a true need? I just have never been told this.

on a final not this hobby isn’t the easier to get info on and to understand stand what’s needed. I am doing my best I have also had two kids and moved to take care of my parents in the time frame I have been learning lol

thank you all for your advice.

As for the wave maker or power head I would say yes unless you have a crazy return pump and is creating a ton of flow. You can get a DC power head and create waves, it is best. You do not have to spend a ton of $$ on one.

 

[Layll318]

I had t5 lights at one point but I am a insurance sales person and they kinda scare the **** out of me if knocked off. Much like people with wood burning stoves

 

[Layll318]

Things seems to be happier with more light after two days. Not sure If the birds nest is doing ok but it seems to be not looking worse every day.

Then red finger lol yea that was a mistake prob. It hasn’t opened up in a few days

the touch seems really happy with more light though!

 

[CuzzA]

... that felt kinda like a dad lecture. I know it’s not a cheap hobby... the coral is new but the tank is a few years old. Thanks for taking all the time to type that.

birdsnest seems open and not worse today after I added another light and moved it higher. Tank is tested a lot. Regardless of if it’s me doing it or not and that was the “dirtyest” it’s ever been...

Plan on getting a slimmer soon
Not sure about the r/o but I will work on it. My research has more or less said the worse water you have the more it will cost.
also will get test kits

is a wave maker a true need? I just have never been told this.

on a final not this hobby isn’t the easier to get info on and to understand stand what’s needed. I am doing my best I have also had two kids and moved to take care of my parents in the time frame I have been learning lol

thank you all for your advice.

Sorry if I came across as too harsh. I am torn between passions when it comes to the ocean. I enjoy this hobby, but hate to dive and see what is happening to our reefs so I tend to push hard for all of us to take a greater responsibility when we choose to buy animals that were removed from the ocean.

Yes, you need a wave maker. I think RODI water is another piece of the puzzle to success in this hobby. You can buy water, but in the long run making it yourself will be cheaper, even if you have to buy extra filters, dual RO membranes, et cetera to achieve 0 TDS water.

Keep in mind, there's no reason people can't have beautiful, yet less demanding tanks. A tank chalk full of zoas, plays, mushrooms and various other dirty water corals can look just as amazing as some SPS tanks. And they relieve the hobbyist of the pressure of constant testing and dosing.

Anyway, there's a ton of people willing to help and even basic questions should come without fear of humiliation. But, I can assure you, anything you're considering on doing, someone has done and posted about it so a little research goes a long way.

 

[SudzFD]

A lot of good advice above. I also think that you are light on rock. Live rock will help a lot keeping things balanced. I think that, coupled with your own testing should help a lot. Check that your light is adequate too. I’m not familiar with that light.

 

[Layll318]

A lot of good advice above. I also think that you are light on rock. Live rock will help a lot keeping things balanced. I think that, coupled with your own testing should help a lot. Check that your light is adequate too. I’m not familiar with that light.

On Friday I plan to get some rock and my own testing stuff. Will also look into a wave box.
r/o will be on the list but my fish budget is a-little slimmed down because of the baby due in a month....

there has been really good advice here and I appreciate it greatly. The hard coral and red finger are things my wife wanted lol so yes I should do a lot more research and just not allow things to go in there. This is my third time at coral and some of it is doing really well. The zoas I am really happy about